Brazilian Rhythms for Guitar, Samba, Bossa Nova, Choro, Baião, Frevo, and Other Brazilian Styles
By Carlos Arana
Series: Guitar Masters Series
Category: Guitar Method or Supplement
Format: Book & CD
Instrument: Guitar
Here we will look at a few additional characteristics of each of the styles, a bit of their history, and their typical formations. SAMBA is the style generally considered most characteristic and representative of Brazilian music. Since the end of the 1870s, samba parties were frequent events in the houses of the "Bahian Aunts," women that had moved from Bahia in the north to Rio de Janeiro, which at that time was the national capital.The actual samba style originated in 1917 at the house of "Tia Ciata" ("Aunt Ciata"), a candy vendor who was one of the famous "Bah fan Aunts." The first samba recorded was "Pelo Telefone" ("By Phone"), by Donga e Mauro de Almeida, also in 1917. Samba had several influences including lundu, la habanera, the max;xe, and even tango, bits of which remain in its unique sound. The first major proponents of the style, Donga and Ismael Silva from the group Estacio (which is also the first samba school in Rio de Janeiro), were largely responsible for defining its sound. By the 1930s, the middle class had caught on to the new music, and it transformed from music played by the poor people for Carnaval into a more popular style. The major figures in this second era were Enrique Forreis (0 Almirante), Joao de Barro, and Noel Rosa the last of whom was responsible for the development of the new style called urban samba. The duo of Ismael Silva oel Rosa defined the format that samba still uses today. Others who followed these original masters include Ataulfo Alves, Wilson Batista, and Geraldo Pereira. Each gave his own particular vision of what the style was to sound like and left a body of work that has been played countless times. During the 1930s, samba. influenced by the growth of radio as a medium of communication, enjoyed a surge of growth in terms of both popularity and variety of interpretation, many of which came to have distinctive characteristics and actually evolved into new styles in their own right such as samba cancao and samba de breque. In the 1950s, samba came into contact with the new style of music called bossa nova developed by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Joao Gilberto, two young men from middle-class upbringings who lived in the southern section of Rio De Janeiro. In order to survive, samba evolved once again, this time at the hand of Cartola, an excellent composer who had written a few songs for Noel Rosa. Beginning from the time that Cartola arrived on the scene, musicians such as Paulinho da Viola and Martinho da Vila began careers that continue on to this very day.These musicians began incorporating harmonies and sounds that were closer to bossa nova (it is interesting to note the cross pollination that occurred between these styles) in their use of alterations and chord extensions in composing, which was markedly different from that which was used in the classic compositions. From that moment on, many new artists began to appear, some banding together and forming different styles, while others worked to maintain the more traditional sound. From that point on, the progression was practically non-stop with new groups of artists appearing all the time. Some artists returned to the original format while others moved on to the urban sound of Noel Rosa and his followers (passing through the style of Antonio Carlos Jobim and Chico Buarque). Some of the more notable names include Beth Carvalho, Alcione, Zeca Pagodinho, Claudio Jorge, and Aragao.
Educator and performer Carlos Arana captures Brazil's rich musical heritage with impeccable stylistic, historic, and technical analyses. The first section of this book covers the fundamental rhythmic and harmonic characteristics of samba, bossa nova, and choro styles followed by practical applications on the guitar. The practical applications break each of the styles down to their historic and regional roots combined with examples that capture the essence of each style. The next section takes you to the northeast of Brazil with the rhythm figures of baião, toada, xote, afoxé, frevo, Marcha, and Marcha Rancho. Over 60 examples, written in standard notation and tablature, are demonstrated on the included CD. TABLATURE
I would like to begin this book by explaining a few basic facts that played a major role in shaping Brazilian music. Brazilian society is extremely easygoing and carefree, and musicians tend to place a great deal of emphasis upon artistic expression rather than on technical expertise and precision. The same holds true for other art forms, thus it is not surprising that Brazil is the home of the world's biggest party: Carnival in Rio! It is there, during Carnival, where you can experience some of the best examples of spontaneous artistic expression such as samba. The main influences on Brazilian music are the traditional Portuguese music brought by the Conquistadors, the exotic rhythms of the African slaves, and the native music of the indigenous inhabitants. Other influences such as American jazz also played a role in the way the music evolved. This can be seen, for example, in composer Antonio Carlos Jobim's use of harmonic structure. He often borrowed certain aspects of Claude Debussy's vertical harmony dating back to the late 19th century. Jobim's characteristic use of alterations and extensions created a kind of tonal complexity which, when combined with certain rhythmic patterns, defined the style of music that has come to be known as bossa nova. It is this fusion of styles which created the definitive sound of Brazilian music, and consequently left its mark on a variety of other musical genres which developed later. For a musician attempting to understand and assimilate the sound of Brazilian music, it is important to understand how all of these complex forces, so deeply rooted in Brazil's popular culture, worked together to form the music. This book uses a thoroughly tested method for providing the reader with a practical understanding of how to play Brazilian rhythms, so that over time the execution can become second nature and playful in terms of the general feel. The first portion of this book provides an in-depth look at the most common rhythmic patterns and syncopations used in samba and the other styles we will study. Following this, we will begin to look at the harmonic structure, including the typical chords and the characteristic chord progressions used by Brazilian guitarists that are unique to this kind of music. In Chapter 3, we will begin to look at practical applications of the chords and rhythms, in most cases using progressions from well-known songs which form the basis of the classic samba and its derivative repertoire. In Chapters 4 and 5, we will study baiao, frevo and other styles originating from the northeast of Brazil.l have recorded all of these examples on the CD so that you will be able to hear first-hand how the music should sound. As always, when learning to playa new style of music, it is highly recommended that you listen to as many different examples as possible in order to really begin to get a feel for the sound. Words and music notation are not always sufficient for describing music and there are many aspects that can only be understood by hearing them played. My goal in writing this book was to help guitarists understand and playa wonderful style of music that has not received the widespread popularity that it deserves. I sincerely hope it proves to be useful for you.
Contents
INTRODUCTION .
Chord Symbol Notation
SECTION 1: SAMBA, BOSSA NOVA AND CHORO
CHAPTER 1: RHYTHM
Example 1
Example 2
Rhythmic Independence Exercises
Example 3
Part I: Examples 4–5 .
Part 2: Examples 6–7
Part 3: Examples 8–9
Part 4: All Combinations
Playing the Groove Components on the Guitar
Examples 10–11
Syncopating the Chord Changes
Examples 12–13
Rhythmic Independence Exercises -Application
Examples 14–15
Syncopating the Bass Line
Example 16
CHAPTER 2:HARMONY
Characteristic Chord Progressions of Samba, Bossa Nova, and Choro
Inverted Chords
Four-Voice Chords with Extensions andAlterations
Open Chords
Characteristic Chord Progressions
Major and MinorVamps with Line Clichés
IV – ivTurnaround to I
CHAPTER 3: PRACTICALAPPLICATION OF RHYTHMIC PATTERNS
Examples 17–28: Samba Patterns 1–12
Variations of the Samba Style
Example 29: Samba Canção
Examples 30–31: Partido Alto Patterns 1–2
Examples 32–33: Samba-Rock/Funk Patterns 1–2
Example 34: Samba-Reggae
Example 35: Samba Exercise 1
Example 36: Samba Exercise 2
Page CD Track
Bossa Nova .
Examples 37–44: Bossa Nova Patterns 1–8
Examples 45–46: Bossa Nova Exercises 1–2
Chord Melody
Example 47: Chord Melody/“Gentle Rain”
Choro
Basic Choro Pattern
Choro Variations 1–5
Examples 48–52: Choro Patterns 1–5
Example 53: Choro Exercise
Final Considerations for Section I
SECTION 2: RHYTHMS FROMTHE NORTHEAST OF BRAZIL
CHAPTER 4: BAIÃO
Basic Rhythm Patterns
Exercises 1–10
Application on the Guitar
Example 54: Baião Pattern
BaiãoVariations:Toada,Xote andAfoxé
Example 55: Baião Pattern 1
Example 56: Baião Pattern 2
Example 57: Xote Pattern 2
Example 58: Afoxé Pattern
CHAPTER 5: FREVO
Basic Rhythmic Patterns
Exercises 1–7
Application on the Guitar
Example 59: Frevo Exercise
Example 60: Frevo Pattern
Example 61: Marcha Rancho Pattern 1
Example 62: Marcha Rancho Pattern 2
APPENDIX:Additional Style Considerations
Samba
Bossa Nova
Choro
Baião
Frevo
Discography
Bibliography
Italiano
English
