When considering the music of Brazil, it is important to remember that it is music
used to tell stories – to convey ideas – to show that life is not always what it appears to be
on the surface. It is a dialogue between people for both competition and for fun. Many
forms of music have developed because of this, constantly evolving because of a need for
expression of the people. Brazilian music, therefore, exists as a dialogue between
cultures and as conversation between the social classes that exist in the society itself.
There is a story from the Amazon called “I Really Must Be Gone”. It goes
something like this:
One day a jaguar decides to have a fox watch her cubs while she goes out hunting,
promising to bring food back for everyone. This happens three nights in a row, but the
jaguar never brings anything for the cubs or the fox though she herself dines quite nicely.
Finally, the fox leaves the cubs abandoned. Furious, the jaguar is determined to get
revenge on the fox. So, the jaguar invites all the animals to a party with the intent of
eating the fox (or one of the other guests!) Jaguar calls out to each animal to dance with
him. The other animals are smarter however and sing their response to the jaguar:
“Twang-twang” Monkey sang, “strum, strum, strum
Who will be eaten before the night is done?”
The party continues on with many of the animals throwing in verse after verse of
what they all know will happen – someone will get eaten by Jaguar. Fox eventually is
forced to dance with jaguar. But somehow, she dances just out of reach and concludes by
singing:
“Jaguar is angry! Jaguar is strong!
But you’ll have to excuse me
I really must be gone”.
He quickly makes his exit, surviving the peril before him.1
This is a picture of the music of Brazil. The people use music to respond to life.
In Brazilian culture, there is an infusion and mixture of ethnic diversity. In his book
“Music In Latin American Culture – Regional Traditions”, John Schechter calls Brazil
“…the most micegenated country on earth.”2 Classifying folk songs is somewhat difficult
because the music has the stamp of these cultures upon them –European, African and
South American Indian. Claus Schreiner, in Music Brasileira also categorizes folk songs
1
by function, character, regional occurrence and origin or development3 It would appear
that music cannot be classified as one without the other. For the purpose of this paper, I
will look primarily at the mix between European and African traditions that have taken
place in the music and culture of Brazil.
LUNDU
The first example of this mix of cultures would be the form of the lundu. The
origins of this form can be traced back to Angola where it was used for religious
activities. Its use in Brazil became a song and dance form that was considered quite
erotic and was banned by church authorities in the 1800’s. The dance became a street
vendor song that contains a movement called the umbigada. In this dance, there is a
thrusting forward and contact of navels preceding the beginning of the dance. This then
occurs several times throughout the dance as well as the clapping of hands above the
head.
Textually, the lundu presents what often appear to be “confused thoughts”4 of African
slaves. Though sometimes serious, they are always intended to have a comical effect.
Interpretation of the text is practically impossible due to run on sentences “containing
expressions in dialect spiced up with Negro interjections.” 5 The music is often heard
within the style of a Portuguese fado. The fado is a sad, melancholy, guitar oriented
ballad originating in Portugal. The melodies have the quality of delayed syncopation
with a rhythm that is strict.
An example of a song with some musical features of the lundu can be found in “The
Rising Tide” (see Example #1 on the next page)6. Some of the characteristics of this
music would be an accompaniment that is reminiscent of a guitar. The opening two lines
2
of piano accompaniment lend themselves to the overall feel of a guitar arpeggio on an Ab
chord with several altered tones adding to the melancholy effect of the fado – such as the
Fb in measure three and four. Later on, the piano simply strikes some chords, again
giving the feel of a guitar adding emphasis to the text. Editorial accents appear to be
properly placed to bring about a syncopated feel as in measure fifteen on the “and” of one
and measure nineteen where it appears on beat two. Textually, the words are similar to a
fado in their emotional quality stating that no matter how many suitors the author has, she
will stick with the one at sea.
Desafio, Embolada and Coco
Desafi, embolada and coco are folk music forms that originated in Northern Brazil,
but have their roots in Portugal. The style of the music has a certain carefree and
rhythmical grace with a unity between music and the spoken word.
The coco was originally a dance built upon a simple refrain where musicians would
improvise on the many repetitions given. Traditionally, the coco is performed on ganza
which is a kind of maraca, pandeiro (similar to a tambourine) and sanfona or accordion.
A vocal “patter” 7 was added to these improvisations and this form became known as the
embolada. The two terms are now used interchangeably though the embolada is given to
the vocal style.
The embolada requires a rapid, chattering movement and tongue twisting rapid fire
lyrics that require excellent enunciation from the singer. The word embolada itself means
“confusing” or “mixed up” which is what is often found in the texts of these songs, often
a commentary on customs or events or local gossip and sometimes simply vocables. The
embolada is typically accompanied by pandeiro and ganza. The tempo is rapid and the
3
musical intervals are small. The song is sung either by a soloist or with two singers in a
sort of duel called a desafio. In a desafio, the text is often a put down, appeals for money
or comical references to the onlookers. The style of singing is often very nasalized with
staccato and rapid fire repeated notes in a small melodic range. The rhythmic figures are
often a 3+2+3 pattern or a 3+3+2 pattern.
In a desafio one of the singers keeps a rhythm with a pandeiro and the other with a
ganza. The vocals fly back and forth. They begin with a six line stanza featuring a
rhyme scheme of abcbdb but four line stanzas with abcb rhyme scheme are common
also. One singer starts and the second singer must begin his verse with a rhyme from the
last line of the previous verse. These can also be performed using guitars and have been
known to last several hours or entire nights. The singers are called repentistas and they
strive to improvise a verse that will break the concentration of their opponent. The one
that breaks the other is the winner.
As these desafios continue, the rhythmic context gets more and more complex. Six
verse stanzas change to a seven line stanza where one singer must provide lines three and
four and still maintain the rhythmic scheme. There is a twelve line stanza with a fixed
ninth line that says “you will fall”, eight line stanzas with aaabbccb rhyme scheme and
ten line stanzas with a scheme of abbaaccddc. Throughout all of this is a viola which
supplies a drone and fills in between stanzas with an ostinato that gives the singers a
moment to construct their thoughts into poetic-musical structure.
Musically, the singing features many repeated notes, use of constant note values and a
high tenor tessitura with heavy nasalization. The melodies consist of simple motifs,
sequences and melodic cadences.
4
A famous example of this deasfio style within a modern context is Daude’s “Quatro
Meninas” (Four Girls) in which Daude and repentista Miguel Bezerra try to outdo each
other in reciting girl’s names. The lyrics are rapid fire. The music is sparse
harmonically, with a heavy bass line. In between the battles, the accordion replaces the
viola as the instrument providing a break. In Example #2 (attached) a transcription
shows the opening line sung by both Daude and Bezerra. The line of music is simple in
its range, but very fast and the accents fall in different places than one would expect. The
second transcription shows the motif played by the accordion which is not very long for
the singers to think about what is coming next. While this may be a well rehearsed piece,
it shows the intensity of the duel that goes on.
There is also a folk song attached that uses this form, call “Bambambule” (Example
3, attached). The lyrics here are “nonsense syllables” 8 that are repeated very quickly.
The range is very narrow, not more than a fifth, but showing some accidentals that make
it feel like a combination of major and minor scales.
Modinha and choro
The modinha is considered the first independent point of development in folk music
during the colonial period (at least by Schreiner. Appleby in “The Music of Brazil” states
that it is a popular song with no folk origin. 9) It claims a “semi-classical status”. 10
Growing out of the Portuguese moda in the 17th century, Afro-Brazilians gave this lyrical
Iberian song more lascivious lyrics dealing with erotic themes with or without guitar
accompaniment. By the beginning of the 19th century, modinhas had found popularity in
Brazilian metropolitan centers, but with a trend towards more sentimental lyrics. Its
5
original 2/4 beat changed to a 3/4 time. Eventually it disappeared, only to reappear in
bars and streets in 4/4 time.
Out of this style came the choro with its heavy emphasis on the flute, cavaquinho and
guitar. Though mostly based in instrumental performance, the choro has elements of this
competition that are common to the desafio and embolada. The term Choro means
“weeping or crying”. Choro is an offshoot of the Portuguese word choroes or “weepers”
because of the melancholy character of the music brought over from there. These mixed
with African elements, specifically “varied melodic and rhythmic patterns performed
with deliberate indolence and indetermination, a sort of stalling for time.”11
The first group to really popularize this form in Brazil was called Choro Carioca.
Dating from 1870, the band’s main flutist was Antonio da Silva Calado. His solos
feature spectacular leaps and key changes. It was said he could create the illusion of two
flutes playing together, simultaneously, an octave apart.12 He was also known for playing
in ganha-tempo – or literally “stalling time”.
Carioca’s style gave rise to many choro bands that played all night, frequently
moving from house to house. Most bands consisted of the flute, guitar and cavaquinho
format where the flutist soloed. There was a sense of competition among the players.
Frequently, the soloist and other instruments would form a dialogue until one of the
accompanying musicians could no longer follow the unpredictable rifts and drops out.
This dropping out is called derrubada
Some important composers of choro were Pixinguinha and Chiquinha Gonzaga. Her
style of choro included chromaticism and wide leaps and repeated notes in the melodic
line. By now, the clarinet, was also in use in these ensembles.
6
Typically, the choros were divided into three parts, in three different tonalities,
repeated in the sequence of ABACA with a medium to fast tempo.
Cantoria
Cantoria is sung poetry and singing contests of bards in Northeastern Brazil. It is
improvised poetry, dating back to the colonial times when bards served as the main
sources of information for rural areas. It is a very popular form today in NE Brazil and is
primarily a form of the lower class.
Subjects of songs in cantoria can be anything from history, current affairs, myths and
legends, political criticism and most importantly, the situation of the poor –
homelessness, poverty, etc. It is especially used during election season when singers will
align with political candidates and perform at the public rallies, praising them or
criticizing opponents. Some of the music is recorded and some of it is banned by the
Federal Board of Censorship. There are also radio stations devoted to this form of music.
Singers are evaluated for verbal rather than musical skills. It typically involves
improvised song duels by two singers that also play a viola or percussion instrument such
as the tambourine or ganza (shaker).
One form of the cantoria that is quite interesting is the “ABC” so called because the
beginning letter of the first word of each line music follow the sequence of the alphabet.
Toada
The toada is sung with a guitar accompaniment with a lyric or melancholy style
consisting usually of four lines with a stanza and refrain. Like the embolada, it consists of
several choruses that are repeated often. The toada is known in many different parts of
7
Brazil, with each part giving its own name to where it originated from. There are many
styles coming out of the culture of specific areas of Brazil:
1. Caboclo or cabocla refers to a person of mixed blood (usually
Portuguese/African) from the interior northern states of Brazil. In this style,
the guitar has an individualized part to play beyond a simple accompaniment.
2. Sertanejo or seraneja usually refers to a person with little education from the
ranch and farm areas of north eastern Brazil. This style is often played with a
viola sertaneja, a small home made guitar similar to a ukulele. Sometimes a
regular guitar is used also.
3. Vaqueajada is semi-professional or professional cowboy singers that
participate in competitions at rodeos. These songs are usually sung in parallel
thirds by two singers with a high falsetto, glides between tones and imitations
of cattle sounds and cowbells. In this style, each guitarist tunes his instrument
to his own liking. This is common in the interior areas of Brazil, lending itself
to what may seem slightly out of pitch.
A musical example of the vaqueaiado would be “The Christmas Story”, attached
example #4. The accompaniment is written to try and imitate this tuning of the guitar.
Odd notes appear in seemingly random places, especially the D# in measure 8 and G#
later in the piece. The text contains six verses in the repetitive fashion as well as some
soaring vocal leaps at the end of the piece. The harmonies between the two voices often
hit thirds, but there are also some interesting seconds and fourths.
8
Samba
No study of the folk music of Brazil would really be complete without including
the samba. The samba is Brazil essentially, developing into many forms throughout the
years. The samba is a form created by the black and mulatto working class in Rio, but all
of Brazil embraces it. It came into its own musical form in the early 20th century.
My first encounter with the history of this music came from a visit to Termpero
Do Brasil. One of the owners, Antonio Ribeiro talked about this one night when I was
there with my wife having dinner. The Samba was African in form but “born in Brazil”.
It was brought there by African slaves on Portuguese ships. The original form was called
samba de roda and was exclusively done with percussion instruments (such as the
pandero, timbale and tambourine) and handclaps. It was a traditional dance that was a
double circle with women in the middle improvising their moves based upon the beat.
The word samba comes from Angola referring to an invitation to dance. There
are many who say that the lundu is a parent of the samba. Others theorize that the samba
was brought to Rio from the northern province of Bahia. Several songs from the region
100 years ago may point to its origins, specifically “Naranjas da Sabina” (Sabina’s
oranges) and “A Morte do Marechal” (Marechal’s Death) from 1888 and 1893
respectively. In 1888, slaves from the Bahia region migrated to Rio because of the
abolition of slavery. They brought with them the rhythms of the music they used.
So, in the early years of the 1900’s, samba legends gathered in Rio for making
music. Among them were Pixinguinah, Donga, Joao da Baiana. They played folk songs
of lundus and choros. They formed the samba from these and other influences into a
style with 2/4 meter, emphasis on the second beat, responsorial singing, stanza-refrain
9
form and many interlocking lines in the melody and accompaniment. Originally the
samba would use dozens of different drums and percussion instruments and slowly added
in were guitar, brass and a four string cavaquinho.
In the 1920’s came sambisatas such as Bide, Ismael Silva and Armando Marcal.
They took the samba for their own language and styles, introducing longer notes and two
bar phrasing, making the tempo slower. Over the next two decades, a host of singers
made this new form popular, among them Carmen Miranda.
One of the most important of these was Moreira da Silva. He would sing a
samba, stop the music, then elaborate on the lyrics or dramatize the situation. This came
to be known as the samba de breque “break samba”.
During this period there also emerged the Samba-Cancao. This was a samba that
had a much greater emphasis on the melody than the rhythm, added more complex
harmonies and more sophisticated lyrics because it was music of the middle class. This
was really the trend of the music in Brazil until the advent of the bossa nova in the
1950’s. One of the most famous composers of this style was Ary Barroso. He wrote
many popular sambas, among them “Aquarela do Brasil” which actually started the genre
of samba exaltacao: songs that praise the richness of Brazil.
The 1930’s saw the development of Escola de Samba – samba schools. As these
schools developed, they began presenting sambas in themed parades. This led to the
development of the samba-enredo, samba with a narrative text. There would be several
uniformed dancers and each would represent part of the story presented. Floats also were
added with people dressed up in character as part of the overall theme.
10
Politicians quickly latched onto these schools, seeing the value of the enredo.
Samba schools were quickly becoming known for being capable of organizing the urban
popular masses. Getulio Vargas came into power in 1930 and by 1937 he had instituted a
nationalist regime that co-opted the samba schools as part of a nationalist project. These
themes would remain in place and be seen especially in Carnival through the next four
decades. By the 1980s the country was facing redemocratization and the schools began
using the parades as a venue for issues of inflation, poverty, ecological devastation,
discrimination and economic issues.
By the 1950’s, samba had been mixed with boleros, fox-trots and cha-cha-cha. So
the middle class once again changed things up with the bossa nova. However, the poor of
Rio, having been forced to leave central Rio for development up into the hills or morros
the samba kept its original flavor. The media labeled it samba de morro and in its more
percussive form, samba-de-batucada. However, the samba de morro became too great of
a manifestation to stay in the hills and it slowly found its way into every part of Brazil.
This form of the samba denounced the poverty of Brazil.
Being based originally only in rhythms, it is important to understand just what
that rhythm is. In Musica Brasileira, the rhythm is described as this: Two beats divided
into sixteenth notes with accents on the subdivide:
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 - so the accent is on 3, 6 and 8 in the subdivided beat. 13
However, Bryant Urban from Termpero do Brasil would say something different.
Bryant is a musician that plays samba every week at the restaurant. When asked what the
rhythm of the samba is he said that it can change from song to song. “The swing is the
thing” he said. A rhythm from “Desde Que O Samba E Samba” would indicate that the
11
actual rhythmic pattern changes with the song itself. (“A” in Example #5). In another
song “Atravessia”, the rhythm switches slightly but with similarities in syncopation
running across the bar line (“B” from Example 5). Finally, Bryant helped me to
understand that essentially rhythm is inherent in the melodic contour of the music. For
example, the song “Estate” has a melody that is straight quarter notes. By placing a
longer dotted half note on beat two, the melody contains a syncopation that comes across
even without the use of percussion. (See “C” of Example #5).
Bryant said that the samba is still solely percussion oriented in parts of Brazil and
spoke of going to a bar to the city of Salvador to play samba music at the invitation of a
family he knew. Showing up at the bar, he discovered 12 drums on the stage and no
guitars or piano. So, he and a few others got up and sang while locals played the
polyrhythmic figures that made the samba fit together.
Bossa Nova
Though it evolved fairly recently, the bossa nova has its roots in samba rhythms
and hence African music. A study of Brazilian music would require this genre of music
simply because this is what put Brazil on the international music scene with its infusion
of jazz flavorings and laid back styles. Bossa Nova emerged onto the Brazilian music
scene around 1959. Up until then, singing style of samba and other forms of music in
Brazil was dominated by an slightly operatic style. Bossa Nova, or a “new fashion” or
“new way”, was a new style of music with unusual harmonies, syncopations and a
simplicity that broke away from the prevailing samba styles of the day. It was so simple
that a single guitar and singer were the preferred style.
12
Out of this strong vocal style came Joao Gilberto with the release of
“Desafinado”. His style was casual, quiet and subtle and incorporated a new kind of
swing. It had use of the tritone (+4) which was very difficult to accept at the time. It also
had a harmonic complexity that was found more in classical music and jazz than the folk
styles of Brazil. In fact, the bossa nova was the first music of Brazil to really receive
international acclaim. It provided the jazz world with a new style that was full of
lyricism, musical simplicity and harmonic sophistication.
Of all the musicians known for the bossa nova, two are exceptionally worth
noting: Joao Gilberto and Tom Jobim. Gilberto developed the bossa nova style for the
guitar by plucking the chords and making them “stammer”.14 Gilberto’s style was to have
the thumb of the right hand play a bass line and the fingers pluck out the complex chords
above. There was almost a duel going on between what he was representing with the
guitar and what was happening in the musical life of Brazil at the time. Gilberto was
considered unusual when bossa nova began emerging. His vocals were considered “antishow business, cozy and conventional”.15
Fortunately for Gilberto, there was Tom Jobim. Jobim was a flourishing musician
at the time that was quickly gaining notoriety for his style as well. Jobim was known for
adding new twists to the samba, creating new harmonies. He was classically trained but
had a love of African rhythms that translated to his music in the subtlest of ways. Jobim
arranged Gilberto’s first album, Chega de Saudade which was written by Jobim himself.
It was considered to be the first bossa nova recording.
Jobim’s lyrics were as effective as his musical styles. An example of his use of
poetry for a purpose are found in the songs Aguas de Marco (Waters of March) and Boto
13
(Amazonian Porpoise), songs that celebrate nature and life or in “Borzeguim”, calling for
the protection of Amazonian life, including the indigenous people. He would also
incorporate many of the musical styles of Brazil such as capoeira rhythms.
Rhythm is the thing that carried the bossa nova over from the samba. Example
#6 shows three rhythms from three songs that are classically bossa nova. The first is
“Chega De Saudade”, the second from “The Girl From Ipanema” and third from
“Desafinado”. As one can see, the basic rhythm of the guitar changes from song to song,
but there is a common pattern of dropping out on beat two to create the syncopation. Of
course, the rhythms are filled out in “The Girl From Ipanema” and “Desafinado” by other
instruments in the band. “Chega De Saudade” is a solo guitar. The notes with a
downward stem indicate a bass note and upper stems indicate a higher range.
Zabumba and Forros
Another form of music that is a blending of cultures is the zabumba and the forro.
These are forms we studied in class and as such do not require as much material here as
they may deserve. The history of the zabumba is somewhat sketchy. The composition of
flute, drum and cymbals was one found in Portugal and West Africa but some musicians
in modern day Brazil hold to the theory that the music developed among the native tribes
of Brazil.
The forro is a dance form that is focused upon the accordion which was brought
to Brazil by Italian immigrants in the mid-nineteenth century. It moved to the Northeast
after that. During this time, other European dances were introduced and peasants of the
Northeast area began using the accordion to accompany these other dances and several of
the indigenous forms.
14
CONCLUSION
As can be seen, the folk idioms and music of Brazil provide a dialogue of a nation
trying to interpret itself. The blending of cultures – Portuguese and African in this paper
- can be seen in just about any form of music that is now called Brazilian. This is not
surprising in light of the cultures and traditions that have crashed together to make Brazil
the melting pot that it is today. Not only that, but so many of the forms describe people
still trying to define themselves, especially when it comes to the classes of the poor and
the rich and their lifestyles. The music of the nation provides a dialogue between cultures
and classes that try to establish their voice in a virtual melting pot of languages and
customs.
15
NOTES
1. This story in its original form is from “The Great Snake: Stories From the
Amazon” as listed in the bibliography to follow.
2. Schechter: Music in Latin America – Regional Traditions by John Schechter , page
192. Literally, marrying or cohabitating with a person of another race.
3. Schreiner, Music Brasileria, page 23.
4. Schreiner, in Musica Brasileira quotes Alfred Friedenthal’s 1913 essay entitled
‘Musik und Dichtung bei den kreolen Amerikas’ on page 23. Schreiner himself
calls the work a “racist characterization”.
5. Ibid, page 23. While I certainly don’t like the wording of these two quotes, I do
feel it reveals some of the racial struggles that have gone on in Brazilian culture
over the years and therefore the differing musical styles and texts that have come
out of that struggle.
6. This photocopy and the others that follow are from Brandao’s book, Folk Songs
of Brazil.
7. Brandao, Folk Songs of Brazil, pg. 9.
8. Ibid, page 16.
9. Appleby, The Music of Brazil states: “The modinha has been cited as the only
genuine Brazilian popular form that dos not have a folk origin.” (page 26).
10. Schreiner, Musica Brasileira, page 33.
11. Appleby, The Music of Brazil, page 72.
12. McGowan, et al, The Brazilian Sound, page 159.
13. Schreiner, Musica Brasileria, page 106.
14. McGowan, et al, The Brazilian Sound, page 62, 63.
15. Ibid. Time proves all things. Today he is a quiet musician that sells out large
venues wherever he appears.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Brazil: Northeast Area by Larry Crook from Garland Encyclopedia of World Music,
Volume 2: South America, Mexico, Central America and Caribbean. Edited by Dale
Olson and Daniel Sheehy. Garland Publishing Inc., New York and London, 1998
Brazil: Central and Southern Areas, by Suzel Ana Reiley from Garland Encyclopedia of
World Music, Volume 2: South America, Mexico, Central America and Caribbean.
Edited by Dale Olson and Daniel Sheehy. Garland Publishing Inc. New York and
London, 1998
Folk Songs of Brazil arranged by Jose Vieira Brandao, A World In Tune, Book V. Neil
A. Kjos Music Co., Chicago, IL, 1947.
“I Really Must Be Gone” from The Great Snake: Stories From the Amazon, Sean Taylor,
illustrated by Fernando Vilela. Frances Lincoln Children’s Books, 2008.
Musica Brasileira: A History of Popular Music and the People of Brazil by Claus
Schreiner, Published by Marion Boyers, New York and London, copyright 1977.
Music in Latin America – Regional Traditions by John Schechter (General Editor)
Schirmer Books, New York, 1999.
The Brazilian Sound – Samba, Bossa Nova and the Popular Music of Brazil by Chris
McGowan and Ricardo Pessanha, Temple University Press, Philadelphia, 1998.
The Music of Brazil: David P. Appleby, University of Texas Press, Austin, 1983.
RECORDINGS
Getz, Stan nd Gilberto Joao featuring Antonio Carlos Jobim. Verve, a division of
PolGram Records, Inc., 1997.
Gilberto, Joao, “EuSei Que Vou Te Amar” Sony Latin Jazz, 1995.
Fieldword conversations and transcriptions done at Tempero Do Brasil with Antonio
Ribeiro and Bryant Urban February, 2009.
Daude, “Daude”, Tinder Records, 1995
17