Composer of "Lábios Que Beijei," "Maria," and "Quem Foi," some of the biggest hits of, respectively, Orlando Silva, Sílvio Caldas, and Carlos Galhardo, and having played with Leonel Azevedo in one of the most important compositional duos of the Golden Age of Brazilian radio ("Mágoas de Caboclo," "História Joanina," "Juramento Falso," and "Lábios Que Beijei"), J. Cascata wrote his first song at 17 for Carnaval bloco (small group) of his neighborhood, Abolição, on the North Side of Rio de Janeiro. In that period he was friends with Noel Rosa, João Petra de Barros and Cristóvão de Alencar. Later he participated in a short-lived group with Newton Teixeira, Valzinho, Luís Bittencourt, and others. In 1932, he debuted on the radio, during the Horas de Outro Mundo show (hosted by Renato Murce). On Rádio Philips, Cascata became acquainted with a young singer, Leonel Azevedo, who was also in the same situation, having to write songs for himself as the professional composers would give their production to established interpreters only. Performing each others' songs, the duo also started to write in partnership; it was when João Petra de Barros recorded Cascata's valse "O Teu Olhar" in 1933. His second song to be recorded (by Luís Barbosa and then by Sílvio Caldas), "Minha Palhoça," became a huge success and remained a classic. Next, Orlando Silva recorded "Para Deus Somos Iguais," "Tristeza" (Cascata/Cristóvão de Alencar), and two other ones by the duo of Cascata and Azevedo, "Mágoas de Caboclo" (which had been launched at the Casa de Caboclo by Jaçanã), and "História Joanina." Silva still recorded Cascata's, "Lágrimas de Homem" and "Não Serás Feliz." The duo also had success with "Não Pago o Bonde" (recorded by Odete Amaral), "Minha História," and "Quero Voltar Aos Braços Teus" (recorded by Francisco Alves), "Ao Cair da Noite" (Roberto Paiva), "Um Sorriso, Uma Frase, Uma Flor" (Carlos Galhardo), "Não Foi o Tempo," and "A Que Ponto Chegastes" (Orlando Silva), "Samba Triste" (Gastão Formenti), and others. Cascata also penned hits in partnership with Nássara, Luís Bittencourt, and other composers. In 1954, he was invited to the Conjunto da Velha Guarda, reorganized by Almirante, and participated in the historic Sinter albums A Velha Guarda and Carnaval da Velha Guarda. ~ Alvaro Neder, Rovi