Instruments commonly played in choro

Choro (IPA: ['ʃo.ɾu], literally "cry" in Portuguese, meaning "lament"), traditionally called chorinho ("little cry" or "little lament"), is a Brazilian popular music style. Its origins are in 19th century Rio de Janeiro.

Choro instruments

Originally choro was played by a trio of flute, guitar and cavaquinho (a small chordophone with four strings). Other instruments commonly played in choro are the mandolin, clarinet, and saxophone. These melody instruments are backed by a rhythm section composed of guitar, 7-string guitar (playing bass lines) and light percussion, such as a pandeiro. The cavaquinho appears sometimes as a melody instrument, other times as part of the rhythm.

Arrangements for piano of famous chorinho works (like "Carinhoso") often appear in e.g. TV shows.

Compositional structure

Structurally, a choro composition usually has three parts, played in a rondo form: AABBACCA, with each section typically in a different key. There are a variety of choros in both major and minor keys.

History

Much of the success of this style of music came from the early days of radio, when bands performed live on the air. By the 1960s, it had all but disappeared, being displaced by Bossa Nova and other styles of Brazilian popular music. However, in the late 1970s there was a successful effort to revitalize the genre, through TV-sponsored nation-wide festivals in 1977 and 1978, which attracted a new, younger generation of musicians. Thanks in great part to these efforts, choro music remains strong in Brazil. More recently, choro has attracted the attention of musicians in the United States, such as Mike Marshall, who have brought this kind of music to a new audience.

Notable Brazilian choro musicians

• Altamiro Carrilho
• Chiquinha Gonzaga
• Dino 7 Cordas
• Ernesto Nazareth
• Garoto
• Hamilton de Holanda
• Henrique Cazes
• Irineu de Almeida
• Israel Bueno de Almeida
• Izaias Bueno de Almeida
• Jacob do Bandolim
• Luiz Otavio Braga
• Luizinho 7 Cordas
• Mauricio Carrilho
• Maurita Murphy Mead, Professor of Clarinet at the University of Iowa, is one of the most notable American Choro players.
• Oscar Castro Neves
• Paulo Bellinati
• Paulo Moura
• Pixinguinha
• Raphael Rabello
• Waldir Azevedo
• Zé Barbeiro

Notable choro compositions

• "Brejeiro" (Ernesto Nazareth)
• "Apanhei-te Cavaquinho" (Ernesto Nazareth)
• "Odeon" (Ernesto Nazareth)
• "Carinhoso" (Pixinguinha)
• "Lamentos" (Pixinguinha)
• "Segura Ele" (Pixinguinha)
• "Um a zero" (Pixinguinha)
• "Brasileirinho" (Waldir Azevedo)
• "Pedacinhos do Céu" (Waldir Azevedo)
• "Doce de Coco" (Jacob do Bandolim)
• "Noites Cariocas" (Jacob do Bandolim)
• "Tico-Tico no Fubá" (Zequinha de Abreu)
• "Meu caro amigo" (Chico Buarque e Francis Hime)

Suggested Reading

Livingston-Isenhour, T. & Garcia, T.G.C. (2005). Choro: A Social History of a Brazilian Popular Music. Bloomington, Indiana, USA: Indiana University Press.

External links

• Dirty Linen Brief History of Choro
• Agenda do Samba & Choro
• All Brazilian Music
• Maria-Brazil - Brazilian Culture on the Web
• ChoroMusic.com Play Along Brazilian Choro
• Pe de Cana, choro trio band from Vancouver-Canada