In the Naxos release of a second volume of Chôros * by the late Brazilian composer Camargo Guarnieri the listener is treated to quintessentially Brazilian music that taps into that country’s intoxicating dance rhythms: baiao **, maracatu *** and embolada***

Five Chôros can be heard in this superb recording, startring with a single movement Chôro for Clarinet and Orchestra, fiercely played by Ovanir Buosi, in which the composer flirts with an accessible brand of atonality.

Labeling the movements of his Chôros in Portuguese, Guanieri for example titles the three sections of the Chôro for Piano and Orchestra: Cômodo (comfortable), Nostálgico (nostalgically) and Alegre (lively), providing the elegant pianist Olga Kopylova with three contrasting moods, which she plays with sensitivity and flair.

The album also offers a Chôro for Viola and Orchestra, played by the excellent Horácio Schaefer, and a Chôro for Cello and Orchestra, with the excellent Matias de Oliveira Pinto as soloist.

An additional work, Flor de Tremembé is a brief orchestral homage to a neighborhood in the City of São Paulo.

There is no better orchestral ensemble in the world to bring this music to life than the Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo brilliantly conducted by Roberto Tibiriçá.

This fan of Latin American music looks forward to more NAXOS releases featuring the rich music of Brazil.

Rafael de Acha © 2022

*Choro or chorinho, is a popular rhythmic instrumental Brazilian music genre which originated in 19th century Rio de Janeiro.

** The baião is a kind of “laid-back” dance from the Northeast of Brazil usually accompanied by flute, accordion, and rhythm instruments.  

*** The sensuous maracatu often danced by mixed groups of men and women at Carnival time has its roots in the religious practices from the Brazilian state of Penambuco.

**** The embolada is a kind of Brazilian “rap” usually involving a back-and-forth exchange between two males who challenge each other in rhythmic verses accompanied by pandeiros (tambourines.)