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GUITAR HISTORY

"Yes, Im Brazilian - very Brazilian. In my music, I

let the rivers and seas of this great Brazil sing. I
dont put a gag on the tropical exuberance of our
forests and our skies, which I intuitively transpose to
everything I write."
Heitor Villa-Lobos
For classical guitarists, the guitar music of Heitor Villa-Lobos
(1887-1959) provides an important and indispensable part of the
repertoire. His Suite Popular Brasilienne, Etudes, Preludes, and
Concerto achieve musical and technical possibilities that, until the
time of their creation, had not been thought possible. This guitar
music is uniquely original and truly a world unto its own, and it is a
world almost always inspired by the music of Brazil. The word
choro is associated with several of Villa-Lobos guitar works, so it
is important to know its meaning and significance in the life of this
great composer.
Choro is derived from the Portuguese chorar (to weep, lament
or cry), and refers to a type of popular music, primarily
instrumental, that first appeared in Rio de Janeiro in the latter part
of the nineteenth century. This music was performed by chores,
which were serenading ensembles that always included guitars. The
chores, would perform at night in the streets, cafes, theatres, and at
social events. Their music was very spontaneous with elements of
improvisation and virtuosity. Some scholars have compared these
chores, to early American jazz bands, although these choro groups
appear before the beginnings of jazz.
In the early development of the choro, the popular Brazilian pianist
Ernesto Nazareth (1863-1934) stands out as the important originator
of this style of music. Like Villa-Lobos, Nazareth was primarily
self-taught. And, like Villa-Lobos, Nazareth was very much a
nationalistic composer he composed music that was inspired by
the music and culture of his native country. To Villa-Lobos,
Nazareth was a true incarnation of the soul of musical Brazil. The
composers became close friends. Influenced by the works of
Chopin and other Romantic composers, Nazareths piano works
fused European musical forms and elements of jazz and ragtime
with syncopated Brazilian rhythms and, at times, guitar-like
accompaniments. On first hearing, it is tempting to classify this
music as Brazilian ragtime music.
In his youth, Villa-Lobos was attracted to the music of Nazareth
and the chores. Villa-Lobos experiences playing in these groups
would provide an important and unique part of his musical
education. These experiences would later be the inspiration for a
series of fourteen compositions titled Choros, which would make
him internationally famous.
We see the word choro first used by Villa-Lobos in his Suite
Popular Brasilienne, most of which was composed between
1908-1912. The five dances in this suite include Mazurka-choro,
Schottish-choro, Valsa-choro, Gavotta-choro, and Chorinho. The
first four pieces show the influence of nationalism, which was
sweeping Europe and Latin American at that time. The Chorinho is
distinctly Brazilian in name and in thematic material.
Villa-Lobos would return to composing for the guitar in 1920 with
his Choros - No. 1 for solo guitar, which he dedicated to his friend
Nazareth. This work, destined to be a favorite among classical
guitarists, would become the inspiration for the Choros series. In
his biography Villa-Lobos A Life,, the eminent musicologist
David Appleby writes: The idea of using the title Choros was an
earlier concept, expressed in Choros No. 1, for guitar, written in
1920. In the Choros series he sought to amplify the idea of
providing a panoramic view of the improvisatory techniques of
street musicians. The fourteen Choros, thirteen of which were
composed between 1924-29, are considered Villa-Lobos most
original and innovative compositions. These works, composed
when Villa-Lobos was in Paris, were inspired by the music of the
chores but utilizing the compositional language prevalent at that
time in Europe, particularly in Paris. Paris was considered the

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artistic capital of the world, and its audiences were hungry for the
sounds and rhythms from far-off exotic lands like
Brazil.Villa-Lobos was quick to realize that he could make his fame
with this type of music.
Villa-Lobos composed his fourteen Choros for a variety of
performing media. Among these fourteen works, several stand out
for their uniqueness. Choros No. 2, for flute and clarinet, is a
conversation between two virtuoso street musicians. A Brazilian
Indian song is the inspiration for Choros No. 3; the song is sung in
the Parecis Indian language by a male chorus accompanied by
seven woodwind instruments. Choros No. 5 for solo piano, titled
Alma Brasileira (Soul of Brazil), displays the expressive qualities
of a serenade with its pulsating and melancholic themes, perhaps
inspired by the piano music of Nazareth. Considered to be one of
his masterpieces (if not his greatest work), Choros No. 10 utilizes
the forces of an orchestra augmented with native Brazilian
instruments and chorus to create a monument of nationalistic
Brazilian music. Choros No. 11 is an immense panorama of Brazil
in the form of a piano concerto, utilizing some of Villa-Lobos most
daring orchestration. It should be noted that the full scores for
Choros No. 13 and No. 14 are presumed lost these two works
have never been performed.
After completing the fourteen Choros, Villa-Lobos composed
Introduction to the Choros for guitar and orchestra, which
incorporated many of the themes found in the Choros series. In this
unique work, the guitar plays a very prominent role with several
extended solos. At the beginning of the printed score, Villa-Lobos
lists the instrumentation, clearly specifying guitar with
microphone - obviously Villa-Lobos realized that an unamplified
guitar would not be heard over the full sound of an orchestra. From
an historical perspective, Introduction to the Choros, composed in
1929, should be considered a groundbreaking work; it demonstrates
that the guitar can be effective in an orchestral setting. It lays the
foundation for the great guitar concertos of Mario
Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Joaqun Rodrigo, and Manuel M. Ponce,
which would appear in the 1930s and 1940s. In addition,
Introduction to the Choros sows the seeds for Villa-Lobos
Concerto for Guitar, completed in 1951, which many considered
the culmination of all his works for guitar.
The great Mexican composer Manuel M. Ponce (1882-1948)
became acquainted with Villa-Lobos in the 1920s when both
composers were in Paris. In a letter to his wife, Ponce wrote about
his first meeting with the Brazilian composer and their discussion
about the Choros. yesterday I was working at the office and
Edgar Varse came looking for me. He had been there twice
already without finding me. He invited me to his house; naturally, I
accepted. Roussel, Florent Schmitt, the pianist Teran, Heitor
Villa-Lobos, Cotapos the Chilean composer were there, with
writers, painters, sculptors, etc. Among the women there was
Madame Roussel who remembered you and sends greetings. There
was also the Countess of Polignac, the lady who invited us to a
concert at Versailles, you remember? Villa-Lobos was very amiable
to me, invited me to visit him. The whole world knew me by name
either through Segovia or the Gaceta.
Villa-Lobos, in his curious trilingual dialect (French, Spanish,
Portuguese) tells me that his music comes directly from the
Brazilian forests. It evokes his far-off Amazonas, the violence of the
savage rhythms, negro melodies twisted in their bodies
syncopations, in the frenzy of dances which the composers genius
has managed to link together in the prodigious choros, one of
which caused a scandal in the Pasdeloup concerts.
Choros, explains Villa-Lobos, means weeping, and this name
applies to the serenade of a lover as well as to the native
ceremonies
More than any of his other works, the Choros are considered
Villa-Lobos most daring masterpieces. The series originated with a
singular guitar work, Choros No. 1, and concluded with a large
orchestral work, Introduction to the Choros, which featured the
guitar in a most prominent role. In the Choros series, Villa-Lobos
synthesized the popular music of Rio de Janeiro to create what has
been described as one of the most important manifestations of
Brazilian musical folklore. The eminent classical guitarist Jess
Silva (1914-1996), who knew Villa-Lobos and played for him on
two occasions, wrote: The music of Heitor Villa-Lobos has
revealed to me an unexpected dimension of life. It is clear that his
music is that of a great composer; inspired and beautiful, very
spontaneous. His wisdom and great musical technique are present,
without effort, like that of the great Masters of music. Villa-Lobos
Choros are magnificent creations, full of craftsmanship and
emotion, from the mind and soul of one of the twentieth centurys
greatest and most original composers.

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SOURCES FOR THIS ARTICLE

Appleby, David P. Heitor Villa-Lobos A Life (1887-1959).
Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, Inc., 2002..
Bhaque, Gerard. Heitor Villa-Lobos: The Search for Brazils
Musical Soul. Austin: The Institute of Latin American Studies,
University of Texas at Austin, 1994.
Otero, Corazon. Manuel M. Ponce Y La Guitarra. Mexico
City: Fondo Nacional para Actividades Sociales, 1981.
Peppercorn, Lisa. Villa-Lobos. London: Omnibus Press (a
division of Book Sales Limited), 1989.
Slonimsky, Nicholas. Music of Latin America. New York:
W.W. Norton and Co., Inc., 1945.
Villa-Lobos web-site:http://www.rdpl.org/villa/index.html
Villa-Lobos museum web-site:
http://www.alternex.com.br/~mvillalobos/index0.htm

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