ARTIST BIO: Brazilian guitarist, Torcuato (tor-QWAH-toe) Mariano - who cites the legendary Jeff Beck as a primary stylistic influence - is a guitar master in his own right with an outstanding pedigree in the rich world of Brazilian Jazz. After winning the Sharp Prize (the equivalent of a Grammy award) as Best Pop Composer and spending several years as one of the most sought after guitarists in his adopted homeland, he went on to perform and record with a virtual “Who’s Who” of Brazilian music. He’s played and recorded with singers Djavan, Gal Costa and sax great Leo Gandelman, and has toured with Sergio Mendes and Ivan Lins. Some of his songs are still among the most played tracks on “Smooth Jazz Radio”. His newest release on NuGroove Records, “So Far From Home” featuring Michael Lington among others, looks to be his biggest and best yet.