We have all come across Brazil’s bossa nova or samba when we talk of Brazillian music but what about choro? Recently made official, the urban popular music genre belongs to Brazil as much as a samba beat does. Last month end, the Institute of National Historical and Artistic Heritage finally recognised the instrumental genre as Brazilian cultural heritage.
Originated in the 19th century in Rio de Janeiro, choro also popularly called chorinho (“little cry” or “little lament”), in spite of its name, often has a fast and happy rhythm. It is said to be the first characteristically Brazilian genre of urban popular music.
Choro – How has it survived all these years?
So what’s keeping the music alive? We got to owe that to that to the choro circles or jam groups that play at bars and clubs in Brazil’s cities. In Rio, for example, the Santa Teresa neighbourhood bring their instruments to Serginho’s Bar every Monday or alternate Sundays. Japanese flautist Naomi Kumamoto is a regular. Been living in Brazil for the last 20 years due to her love for the music, Naomi used to be a classical musician back in Japan.
“So I started searching and searching and I listened to popular music from many different countries. I was in Japan so I made my way down and listened to Mexican, Cuban, Colombian, Peruvian, many things and then I got to Brazil and discovered choro,” says Kumamoto.
Mandolin player Pedro Aragão is another member of the circle. Not only did he research on the music, he also played a part in getting it recognised as a part of Brazil’s heritage. “We wrote a research ‘dossier’ supporting this point, that choro, though born in Rio de Janeiro at the end of the 19th century, became a nation wide music in the twenties and thirties and is now played all over Brazil,” he says.
Teaching choro: How music schools and universities help
The UNIRIO university campus near Sugarloaf Mountain is another hotspot for the music. Students can get weekly lessons of all choro instruments. One of the most popular among students is the four-stringed “cavaquinho.” As teacher Ana Rabello says, “Cavaquinho is small and that’s an advantage, it can be easily transported and it has lots of swing like our own Brazilian music.” The clarinet is another such instrument. Students get to learn pieces by the earliest of the choro composers, like, Joaquim Callado.
Reactions from the students have been quite positive. The UNIRIO university courtyard is becoming a traditional choro gathering circle. Guitar teacher Rafael Mallmith‘s session is used for more advanced students.
The recently given title to the genre should mean a rise in demand to learn the music. The Portable Music School is leading the way when it comes to choro. Rather than playing in classial style, they encourage students to play in a choro,
“Choro is not only a music genre, it’s also a school. We must remember choro was born from musician’s ingenuity here in Rio at the end of the 19th century. They heard the music that came from Europe in a two-dimensional paper score. They heard and recreated the music, playing by ear at popular gatherings. They’d listen to the music from the windows of the houses of the aristocracy and then went to lower class gatherings to play and re-invent this music, creating a new genre,” says Jayme Vignoli, a director of the school.
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‘Bandão’ – Students come together
After the students have practiced hard all morning, the next step is playing live. Many students get together in the university courtyard.
“The ‘bandão’ or big band is a gathering of all the students at the school, beginners and more advanced, all together,” explains director Paulo Aragão.
The concert at UNIRIO is open to the public. Every Saturday choro music comes alive, keeping the city’s instrumental music tradition breathing!
