Almir Guineto introduced the use of the banjo in the samba. A die-hard traditionalist, he has had success in his personal way of making pagode. He began in 1981 with O Suburbano and has recorded another 11 solo albums until 1999. The first album came after he won the MPB-Shell festival (1981) with "Mordomia." Guineto was born in the Salgueiro hill, in Rio, into a musical family. He started as a percussionist and composer at the Acadêmicos do Salgueiro samba school, where his brother Mestre Louro is diretor de bateria. He was one of the founders of the Fundo de Quintal group in 1981, together with Arlindo Cruz, and has also been a member of the Originais do Samba group for over ten years. ~ Alvaro Neder