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Poems, sonnets and ballads

São Paulo, Edições Gavetas, 1946

When Vinicius published Poems, sonnets and ballads, he was living in Los Angeles. He had taken the first international diplomatic post and traveled with the family, already formed by his wife Tati  and the children, Susana and Pedro. The poet met Tati through a good friend of his, the architect and artist Carlos Leão. In the book, the poem "Ballada do Cavalão" (Ballad of the Big Horse) is conceived - or inspired – during the visitings Vinicius used to make at Carlos’s in Morro do Cavalão in Niterói.

It was exactly with Carlos that Vinicius wrote his book in 1946.  With 22 drawings of his friend and 47 poems of his, the Gaveta Publishing house of São Paulo, owned by the artist Clovis Graciano, releases the first edition with the limited number of 372 copies – which transformed it in a collector's treasure. The book is a step closer to the popularization and public qualification of the mature and fully resourceful poet whom Vinicius became during the last years. After all, a book that starts with "Soneto de Fidelidade” (Sonnet of Fidelity) and ends with "Soneto da Separação (Sonnet of Separation) already showed its impact on the present and the future of our poetry.

It is noteworthy that in 1974, the critic Afrânio Coutinho organizes the “Poesia Completa e Prosa” (Complete Poetry and Prose) by Vinicius to the Nova Aguilar Publishing house and, with the consent of the author, denominates the same book as “O Encontro Cotidiano” (The Daily Encounter).

Bibliographical Note

The book was published in 1946 (São Paulo: Edições Gaveta publishing house), with 22 illustrations by Carlos Leão.

Registers the colophon, printed on the back of the title page:

From this book, it was drawn 372 typographically numbered copies signed by the author, from which:
22 copies on laid paper, numbered 1-22, each copy  with an original drawing by Carlos Leão;
20 copies on cream-colored bouffant paper  numbered 23-42,  each copy with a manuscript poem by the author;
And 300 copies on bouffant paper numbered 73- 372.