Brazil -- Afro-Brazil
by Derk Richardson
Brazil, the fifth largest country in the world, puts out more than
its share of fine music. Much of the music in the heavily populated
coastal areas shows a remarkable combination of African, Native
Indian, and Iberian influences. Forro, an accordian driven music
popular in the Northeast of Brazil bears remarkable similarities
to Zydeco. Samba derived from the older
form of Choro can take many forms from the vivacious call response
of samba de enredo, the music of Carnaval to samba-cancon or song
samba, a more relaxed guitar and rhythm variant. Bossa Nova, which
translates to New Wave, hit America big time in the Sixties with
hood ornament extraordinaire, "The Girl From Ipanema" this song
by the legendary composer Antonio Carlos Jobim became a classic
in jazz and elevator music.
Brazil Top Ten
by Derk Richardson
Various Artists, Beleza Tropical Brazil Classics 1 (Luaka
Bop). The tip of the iceberg, a perfect place to start collecting
Brazilian music. The variety from funky (Jorge Ben) to delicate
(Maria Bethania and Gal Costa) richly assembled by David Byrne's
eclectic world music label, Luaka Bop. The artistry of the songs
and performers preserves this as a classic. You can definitely fall
into a groove on this one. Check out Jorge Ben's Fio
Maravilha.  Includes Gilberto
Gil, Caetano Veloso and Milton Nascimento among other luminaries.
Various Artists, Brasil, A Century of Song (Blue Jackel).
A marvel of licensing, this four-CD compilation quarters its panoramic
view into "Folk & Traditional" (from Carmen Miranda through berimbau
music to Quarteto Negro's 1980s samba), "Carnaval" (a virtual rainbow
of samba), "Bosa Nova Era" (the lilting jazz- influenced sounds
of Joao Gilberto, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Baden Powell, and others),
and MPB, or "Musica Popular Brasileira" (Nascimento, Clara Nunes,
Simone, Ivan Lins, and more).
Various Artists, Brazil Forro: Music for Maids and Taxi Drivers
(Rounder). The connection between Forro, the party music of northeastern
Brazil, and Louisiana zydeco, Tejano polkas, South African pop,
and European folk dances becomes contagiously obvious in this rousing
accordion-driven compilation.
Various Artists, Brazil Samba Roots (Rounder). Wilson
Moreira, Nelson Sargento, and others from the "old guard" of Rio
de Janeiro's Portela favela (slum) give us the undiluted, unsweetened,
and unsentimental acoustic samba from which less soulful mass-merchandized
pop varieties derive. It's syncopated, light and airy, but unabashedly
earthy.
Various Artists, Yele Brazil (Hemisphere). These sixteen
tracks from such artists as Ara Ketu, Marisa Monte, Paralamas, Umbanda,
Clementina & Clara Nunes, and Dorival Caymmi make the most convincing
argument for the unbroken connection between the black music of
Bahia, in northeastern Brazil and the musical traditions of west
Africa, whether in explicit cross-continental fusions or such indigenous
variations as samba-reggae and Candomble drumming.
Various Artists, Axe Brazil: The Afro-Brazilian Music of Brazil
(World Pacific). Overlapping significantly with Yele Brazil, this
musical eruption of black, Afrocentric pride weaves the afoxe rhythm
of Bahia into derivations of reggae, ska, calypso, and highlife
through the songs of such high-profile performers as Gilberto Gil,
Clara Nunes, Djavan, Simone, Marisa Monte, and Paralamas.
Various Artists, Brazilliance: The Music of Rhythm (Rykodisc).
With samba as the cornerstone, this charming collection gathers
some of the foremost (yet still solidly grounded) popular performers,
such as Beth Carvalho, Gal Costa, Joao Bosco, Joanna, and Martinho
Da Vila, and enough musical variations (bossa nova, choro, agogo
rhythm from Bahia) to help illuminate the seething diversity in
these African-based but distinctly Brazilian styles.
Badi Assad, Solo (Chesky)
What happens when the younger sister of a famous guitar duo (Sergio
and Odair Assad) is left at home to accompany her father's bandolim
playing. The answer: she accedes to conservatories, wins competitions
and holes herself up at age 22 to invent a new style equal parts
classical, Brazilian, and Badi (pronounced Ba-Jee). The opening
song "Num Pagode em Planaltina" originally by Marco Pereira is a
remarkably graceful, dextrous and rhythmic adaptation worth the
price of the disc alone. An added bonus is the Chesky label's customary
recording quality par excellence.
Joao Gilberto, The Legendary Joao Gilberto (World Pacific)
Gilberto along with frequent collaborator Jobim are the kingpins
of Bossa Nova, a music which distills Samba down to a deceptively
simple, seductive rhythm. Landmark songs included on this collection
which gathers Gilberto's first three records onto one superlong
(the music in the background all evening) cd include originals of
"Desafinado," "O Amor Em Paz" ,"Insensatez," and "Corcovado."
Various Artists, Ritual Music of the Kayapo-Xikrin, Brazil
(Smithsonian Folkways).
For those who take their roots investigations seriously and want
to hear the sounds that pre-date colonialism and slavery, this 1988
field recording digs into the truly indigenous peoples of the Brazilian
Amazon. Considered "savages" just a few decades ago, the Kayapo
indians express their cultural identity through stirring rhythmic
chants for important tribal ceremonies.
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