German-Brazilian composer, producer, keyboardist, and arranger
Manfredo Fest issued more than a dozen albums during his lifetime. 1976's pioneering fusion work
Brazilian Dorian Dream along with 1978's jazz-funk dancefloor classic
Manifestations are widely considered classics.
Fest emigrated to the U.S. in the late '60s to work with
Sergio Mendes. Under the twin spells of MPB and jazz,
Fest issued a half-dozen bossa nova and jazz trio dates before relocating; beginning with 1969's
Bossa Rio, his first American recording session as a leader, he began entertaining the use of electric piano in a meld of Latin and American jazz. By 1976, when he cut
Brazilian Dorian Dream,
Fest was already a pioneer of synthesizers, early sequencers, clavinet, and the Fender Rhodes electric piano.