One of the most recognizable forms is the Samba. Samba is best known for its connections with Carnival, the pre-Lenten celebration. Think Mardi Gras. Samba societies abound in Rio de Janiero and they spend all year preparing for the parades of Carnival. A well-known example is heard in this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0wt-NSv2ao. More information can be found at http://worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/view/page.basic/genre/content.genre/samba_782/en_US
Another common form of music from Brazil is the Bossa Nova. It dates from the 1950's and has enjoyed world-wide popularity coming from the pens of such noted composers as Jobim. A sample video is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32_tkje6NjU (this is fun) and more information can be found at
http://worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/view/page.basic/genre/content.genre/bossa_nova_697/en_US
The last major musical form of Brazilian music is Choro. This is not as popular as the other two and so I had to look a bit to find some videos. I found some imbedded in a blog at
http://choro-music.blogspot.com/2007_08_01_archive.html
An overview of Brazilian music and these forms can be found at
http://www.coastonline.org/mml/topic/topicsSearch_detail.php?id=288
Have fun! This stuff is great!
I watched the video of the Bossa Nova. The video is hilarious. They are all playing air instruments and their facial expressions are great. I also love the dramatic pause in the middle and then they start playing again. This is so repetitive that the pause is great.
ReplyDeleteI just love the Samba! The video just made me want to dance. It just has a great beat and keeps your body going, even if you're sitting down. I like the fact that you also put in some information about each video. It really helps to understand what's going on.
ReplyDeleteI love the bossa nova video. I like this video, because its not still pictures like the first one. I like how you can't see what they're playing, but the way they move, you just know. I like the saxophone part the best.
ReplyDeleteBossa Nova was pretty cool!! the lady who does this thing with her mouth making noises...I don't know why but I laughed so hard...!!!hahahahahaha!! Bossa Nova to me kind of sounded like....elevator music.. or the lounge/ lobby music when you go to a hotel, but still It was really good!! I think I am gonna show my brother this too because he plays saxophone and I know that he will enjoy it too!!
ReplyDeleteThe Samba or the youtube brazilian series was awesome. The call and responses of the drums and the percussion were so unique. Everything is so extravagant. It makes me want to go visit brazil during the festive. =D
ReplyDeleteThe Samba reminded me of a percussion section of a marching band. Considering it was in a parade, that should not be too unusual. I thoroughly enjoyed the Bossa Nova. It was interesting how the voice was used as part of the rhythm section. The Choro piece was the most fascinating to me. The rhythms were so complex that at times I lost the feel of the meter. I heard some jazz and ragtime in it, also.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the Bossa Nova and Samba links. They were both very fun to listen to. I love the rhythms of the samba. Even without watching the parade, it sounds like a parade. It has the impressive drums, then the vocal music. Each act comes along in succession.
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