Choro Das 3

Choro contemporâneo (contemporary choro) is the modern evolution of Brazil’s foundational instrumental popular genre, choro. It preserves the genre’s rigorous counterpoint, virtuosic melodic lines, and buoyant dance-derived grooves, while expanding harmony, form, and instrumentation with ideas from jazz, MPB, and contemporary classical music. Typical ensembles still feature bandolim (mandolin), flute or clarinet, cavaquinho, 6- and 7‑string guitars, and pandeiro; but modern groups frequently add saxophones, piano, percussion set, and even chamber instruments. The result is a conversational, highly rhythmic music that balances tradition with exploratory reharmonization, metric play, and extended improvisation.

Brazilian jazz is the meeting point of Brazilian popular music and North American jazz, blending samba and bossa nova rhythms with jazz harmony, improvisation, and ensemble interaction. The style typically features syncopated Brazilian grooves (samba, bossa, partido‑alto) under extended jazz chord voicings and lyrical melodies. Acoustic guitar or piano often supplies a gently propulsive, off‑beat rhythmic bed, while bass and drums translate samba’s surdo and pandeiro patterns to the jazz rhythm section. Timbres range from intimate (nylon‑string guitar, brushed drum kit, flute) to expansive (full percussion batteries, horns, and electric keys). The overall feel can be both laid‑back and danceable—romantic yet harmonically sophisticated.