Gustavo Assis-Brasil is an accomplished guitarist with a remarkably fluid linear concept and a distinctive, ultra-sophisticated harmonic sense, who also exhibits a fully developed voice as a composer.
~Bill Milkowski, Jazz Times Magazine
Based in Boston, USA, Gustavo Assis-Brasil began playing the guitar at the age of 13. He attended the Federal University of Santa Maria, Brazil, to get his bachelor in classical guitar in 1995. During those years, he worked as a studio musician, private teacher and played with some important bands and projects (Nocet, Bichofolha duo w/Guilherme Barros)
In 1995 he was featured in Guitar Player Magazine - USA (Spotlight session).
In 1999 he got a full scholarship to get his Master Degree In Jazz at Berklee College of Music and The Boston Conservatory. His main teachers were Mick Goodrick (Gary Burton Quartet, Pat Metheny), Wayne Krantz (Leni Stern, Steely Dan, Michael Brecker), Hal Crook, Ed Tomassi, Dave Fiucsynski (Screaming Headless Torsos), Rick Peckham, Larry Baione, and the South Indian 'guru' Prasanna. Gustavo also had master-classes/lessons with Pat Metheny, Frank Gambale, Mike Stern, Dave Liebman and John Scofield. Gustavo also studied improvisation and composition privately with the late jazz-guru Charlie Banacos.
From 2001 until 2006, Gustavo played/toured the renowned group the Dig Trio.
Gustavo is the director of the Jazz and Contemporary Music Ensembles and is a faculty member of the Cambridge School of Weston. He also teaches at Berklee College of Music's Guitar Sessions since 2006. Also as a teacher, Gustavo taught clinics at GIT, Guitar Institute of Technology, Los Angeles, CA; University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA; Berklee College of Music, Boston, MA; UFRGS, Brazil; Federal University of Santa Maria, Brazil; University of Passo Fundo, Brazil.
In 2005, Gustavo released the book Hybrid Picking for Guitar. This book is the first method entirely dedicated to the art of combining pick and fingers to play the guitar. The book is in its 3rd edition and it has been receiving praise worldwide.
In 2008, he released the follow up book Hybrid Picking Exercises: Single Note Permutations, with more than 1,400 different exercises based entirely on math permutations. Also in 2008, Gustavo released a live DVD/CD combo called "In Concert" where he features original compositions. Also in 2008, he was invited by ESC Records (Germany) to write and record an arrangement of Steely Dan's "Aja", to be part of a tribute CD called Maestros of Cool. The CD was released in USA and Europe.
In 2009, Gustavo was invited to participate in the project Mahavishnu Re-Defined - a Tribute to John Mclaughlin & the Mahavishnu Orchestra along with other important jazz artists.
In 2010 was featured as the soundtrack composer for the feature Brazilian movie "Manhã Tranfigurada". The movie is also available on DVD with his full soundtrack, which is also being released at the same time. In this same year, Gustavo started a Solo Guitar Project. With this project, he performs original compositions as well as Jazz standards and Brazilian arrangements on acoustic and electric guitar without any accompaniment.
Gustavo performed/recorded with John Stowell, Tim Pascoal, Frank Potenza, Richard Smith, Sandro Albert, Hiromi, Tony Grey (John Mclaughlin), Prasanna, Greg Hopkins, Brett Wilmott, Mauricio Zottarelli, Tony Gaboury, Matthew Nicholl, Tim Ries (Rolling Stones, Paul Simon, Steve Wonder), Nelson Faria (João Bosco), Jose Pienasola (Elis Regina, Romero Lubambo, Leny Andrade), Marina Elali, Michael Farquharson, Hiroaki Honshuku, Dough Johnson, Natalie Dietrich, Fernando Huergo, Dan Moretti among others.
Profile by T. E.
