Berkeley Choro Ensemble – October 18, 2015

Berkeley Choro Ensemble

Jane Lenoir, flute; Ricardo Peixoto, 7-string Brazilian guitar; Brian Rice, pandeiro/percussion; Harvey Wainapel, clarinet
with special guest Paul Hanson, bassoon

The Berkeley Choro Ensemble (pronounced “shoro”), is a group of world-class musicians from the San Francisco Bay Area that made its debut in 2010 at the Berkeley Public Library. The group celebrates the music, culture and history of Brazil, with a special emphasis on the Choro genre, a style of music which emerged in the 1800’s in Brazil, fusing the music of Brazil’s European immigrants and the native music of Brazil’s indigenous and African-Brazilian population. In particular, the choro sound is somewhat akin to a combination of European classical music, ragtime, and blues. Historically, the choro style influenced Brazil’s most famous classical composer, Heitor Villa Lobos, to compose some of the world’s most hauntingly beautiful music, the Bachianas Brasileiras. This program will feature choro along with baiao and samba by composers including Pixinguinha, Jacob do Bandolim, Ximbinho, Joventino Maciel, and ensemble members Ricardo Peixoto and Paul Hanson. For more information please visit berkeleychoroensemble.com.