Brazilian songwriter and composer who transformed the extroverted rhythms of the Brazilian samba into an intimate music, the bossa nova (“new wrinkle” or “new wave”), which became internationally popular in the 1960s.

A guitarist and pianist since boyhood, Jobim performed in Rio clubs before becoming music director of Odeon Records, one of the largest record companies in Brazil. In 1958 he began collaborating with singer-guitarist João Gilberto, whose recording of Jobim's song "Chega de Saudade" (1958; "No More Blues" ) became a hit in Brazil and helped popularize bossa nova. In 1959 Jobim and Luís Bonfá became noted for their score for Orfeo negro (Black Orpheus), which won an Academy Award for best foreign film. By the early 1960s, Jobim's music was being played around the world.

Jobim maintained a second home in the United States, where bossa nova's fusion of understated samba pulse (quiet percussion, unamplified guitars playing subtly complex rhythms), gentle singing (Jobim often worked with lyricist Vinícius de Morais), and the melodic and sophisticated harmonies of cool jazz found a long-lasting niche in popular music. In 1962 he appeared at Carnegie Hall with his leading jazz interpreters, tenor saxophonist Stan Getz (Getz, Stan) and guitarist Charlie Byrd. Jobim collaborated on such albums as Getz/Gilberto (1963) and Frank Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim (1967), as well as recording under his own name. Notable solo albums include Jobim (1972) and A Certain Mr. Jobim (1965). He also composed classical works and film scores. In addition, hundreds of performers recorded his more than 400 songs, including "Samba de uma nota só" ( "One-Note Samba" ), "Desafinado" ( "Slightly Out of Tune" ), "Meditação" ( "Meditation" ), "Corcovado" ( "Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars" ), "Garota de Ipanema" ( "The Girl from Ipanema" ), "Wave," and "Dindi."