In most of his songs, one can find traces of maracatu, coco and "repentes de viola" (improvising fast-paced Brazilian folk music).

When he was young, he used to listen songs by Dalva de Oliveira, Orlando Silva, Sílvio Caldas etc.

Some years later, his mother got sick and his family moved to Recife to live in his aunt's house.

Together, they participated of many festivals and, in that same years, recorded their first album: Alceu Valença & Geraldo Azevedo, also known as Quadrafônico.

[1][2] Along his career, Valença recorded more than 20 albums and travelled around many countries, such as Portugal, France, Netherlands and United States.