Roda de Samba e Choro

Brazilian Summer Sessions
Nelson Latif
(Brazilian Cavaquinho player)
Nelson Latif is a Brazilian cavaquinho player and guitarist, who lives both in Brazil and Amsterdam and pointed me to a great Roda de Samba e Choro which is scheduled as part of the Brazilian Summer Sessions during the summer season in the Bimhuis in Amsterdam, the 2nd of July, 2011. Nelson Latif forwarded a small introduction about what a Roda de Choro is and he loved to share it with you at this Choro-music blog, which celebrates its 5th birthday this month.


A roda de samba e choro (photo courtesy Nelson Latif)
The Rodas de Samba e Choro are informal and unpredictable events, where musicians gather in a circle around a table to improvise samba and chorinho, combining personal and collective flair.
A roda de samba e choro (photo courtesy Nelson Latif)
From the raw drumming to the refined choro, from candomblé to capoeira, the roda is the most primordial format of the Brazilian cultural manifestations, a direct heritage of the Brazilian African roots.

The rodas de samba serve as schools for many Brazilian musicians as an open space where singers challenge each other, talent turns into legend, composers try out new creations and the Brazilian music renews itself.
A roda de samba e choro (photo courtesy Nelson Latif)

In the Brazilian Summer Sessions 2011, musicians from both nationalities will interpret traditional and modern themes and styles.
Singers and musicians from existing groups – or meeting for the first time – will bring to the Dutch audience the flavor and mood of this so important Brazilian way of experience popular music.
Nelson Latif and friends
Contact

Choro music in the Netherlands:
There are but few venues in The Netherlands where you can enjoy an original Brazilian Roda de Choro. In Rotterdam Marijn Van Der Linden organized two times a month ( the first and third Sunday) a Roda de choro in Taberna Tia Piri Piri and the 't Syndicaat in The Hague seems also a venue with regular Choro concerts. Please inform about the dates to come.
This Summer Nelson Latif organizes a roda de samba e choro at the Bimhuis in Amsterdam. The concert has veen scheduled the 2nd of July, 2011.
Hans Koert
keepswinging@live.nl
Deze bijdrage wordt ook gepubliceerd op de Keep Swinging blog.

Nosso Choro

This month it has been 5 years since the Choro-Music blogspot started. Co-editor of the blog and manager of the Keepswinging Website, Hans Koert, took the initiative to start the blog and persuaded me to contribute with entries on the music, we both share a passion for: the Brazilian choro. The actual background of the blog was the dvd-release of Mika Kaurismäkki's documentary 'Brasileirinho - Choro in Rio', which put us on the trail of exploring this fascinating music gradually by posting info on (some of) its story, performers and practice. As there wasn't a blog already dealing with choro - at least not in the English language, we thought it a good idea to select info in English to feed non-Portuguese speaking readers with our findings to support an interest in choro - as a small follow-up of Kaurismäkki's great documentary. We are fully aware that our knowledge on the subject is limited and may be considered insufficient compared to the works of serious scholars, our main intention has been and still is just to share our passion for the music with readers, who are looking for easily digestable info in English on different aspects of the Brazilian choro. This way the Choro-Music blogspot also could be labeled 'our choro' - in Portuguese: Nosso Choro - considering the fact that the entries always have a personal bias that we do not intend to hide, however, it should be to the benefit of the music or aspect of choro in focus, we hope.

To mark the 5 year anniversary of the choro-music blog I like to point you to a great cd by two European musicians. The cd, shown above, is properly titled 'Nosso Choro' and was released 2009 by Emmeciesse records. The fourteen tracks on the disc are performed by pianist Ivan Tibolla and Stefano Scutari, who plays both bandolim and violão - Tibolla also contributes on accordion, flute and percussion besides piano on some tracks that have overdub. Both performers are Italians, well-known and highly respected musicians on the contemporary Italian music scene. The 'Nosso Choro' cd is their first co-work dedicated to the Brazilian choro, both musicians are active in other fields of music as well.


According to a MySpace-profile, Ivan Tibolla was born in Belluno in 1975. He graduated as organ player and in organ music composition at the Academy of Music “B. Marcello” in Venice. After that he studied music composition as well as music improvisation. In the last few years he has come closer to the world of jazz and performs as a pianist participating in various settings and also has his own trio specializing in experimental jazz. Ivan Tibolla has his own website (- in Italian only) including dicography.

Stefano Scutari was born in Venice 1950 and had his first musical experiences with various rock bands in the sixties, later he began to lean towards classical guitar, studying with Tommaso de Nardis, a teacher in the “Benedetto Marcello” Conservatory in Venice. He then took part in various jazz guitar seminars held by a variety of different musicians (John Abercrombie, John Scofield, Larry Corryell a.o.). Lastly, he went on to develop a specific interest in Brazilian music, travelling often to Brazil where he was able to meet and play with musicians such as Sebastião Tapajos, Horondino Silva (Dino 7 cordas), Nana Vasconcelos, and others. He has headed a column on Brazilian music in an Italian magazine and has also recorded cds on his own. A profile including music samples is available at MySpace.

The mentioned 'Nosso Choro' cd contains the duo's renditions of classic choros such as "Tico tico no fúba", "Chochiando" and "Lamentos", Scutari has solo violão interpretations of "Sons de Carilhões" and "Odeon", but plays the bandolim in interplay with Tibolla. A selection of compositions by Jacob de Bandolim - "Doce de Coco", "Flamengo", "Santa Morena", "A Ginga do Manè" and "Noites Cariocas" - get a fair interpretation by the duo with elaborate improvisation by Tibolla showing off his jazzinfluence. Further, a solo reading of "Choro Pra Bisconce" - a choro composed by Tibolla; Scutari also has a couple of compositions, "Concolacao" and "Vals Sem Nome", performed on solo violão. And there is an example of the forró influence, "Lèo Estante", a composition by Tibolla, which has him playing accordion and percussion besides piano in overdub. The overall impression of the performed music is engaging and a great experience, a nice example of how the Brazilian choro is interpretated by two very skilled European musicians, highly recommended. - The cd may still be available from retailers, the tracks may also be purchased at iTunes, click here

Jo