Dolores Duran

Dolores Duran (Adiléia Silva da Rocha; 7 June 1930 – 24 October 1959) was a Brazilian singer and songwriter. at the age of twelve, influenced by her friends and convinced of her personal dreams, she decided, with her mother's permission, to sign up for a singing competition. surprisingly, she sang very well, like a professional, even though she had never studied music, and won first prize on the program Calouros em Desfile, by Ary Barroso. presentations on the program became frequent, establishing her artistic career. contrary to his mother, she left her studies to dedicate herself solely to music. although she wanted to be a singer, it was very difficult to actually get a job. to do this, she took the only test available at the time, which was for an actress. She recorded the text and did a good scene, and beat other candidates, managing to work as an actress on Cruzeiro do Sul and Tupi radio stations, on the latter on the program "Hora do Guri". as a teenager, the young woman still dreamed of being a professional singer. she worked at home with her mother and sisters, sewing and washing clothes, and on the weekends she participated as an actress on the radio, until in the late 1940s, she met a rich and influential couple: Lauro and Heloísa Paes de Andrade. Heloísa, very rich, gave soirées and concerts in her mansion, and noticing the young woman's beautiful voice in a music competition, she invited her to perform at her home. Very excited, Adiléia accepted, and was a huge success, catching the attention of radio hosts who attended the party, and thus, she was called to record some songs. Without ever studying languages, she taught herself to sing in English, French, Italian, Spanish and even Esperanto. Ella Fitzgerald, during her stay in the beautiful city of Rio de Janeiro, in the 1950s, went to the Baccarat nightclub especially to hear Dolores and was thrilled with her interpretation of "My Funny Valentine" - the best she had ever heard, said Fitzgerald.