Villa-Lobos: Chôros No. 7 'Settimino' for winds, violin & cello

Villa-Lobos was a composer of astonishingly prolific creativity, though most of his works are little-known and his discography is meagre. An autodidact, he developed a personal system of composition, inspired by Brazilian folk music (cf. Chôros VII which mixes winds and strings in a direct evocation of the streets of Rio), contemporary European music, and Bach (in the Bachiana brasileira nr. 1 which employs the special sound of an orchestra of cellos). The focal point of this record, Chôros XII, described by the composer as "strong, big and robust as an old elephant" is a monumental work that develops a structure based on variation form. Villa-Lobos displays an consummate art of orchestration. The publication Les indispensables du disque compact classique (Fayard) refers to this recording as "to be marked by a white stone: we had no idea these musicians from Liège could pick up Brazilian rhythms so naturally. A success" - one that is updated for the greater pleasure of listeners.

The life and music of Villa-Lobos is intimately linked with the emergence of Brazil as a nation and cultural force during the first half of the 20th century. This applies especially to the two great cycles that he composed between 1920 and 1945: the 12 Choros and the 9 Bachianas Brasileiras. In the Choros the composer’s stated aim was to achieve a synthesis of the various musical influences of Brazil: the popular urban music (such as the dances of European origin performed by chorões or street musicians), the music brought from Africa by slaves, and the chants and rhythms of the native Indian tribes. The Choros range from solo pieces with durations of a couple of minutes to large-scale scores for expanded symphony orchestra, sometimes comprising choir or solo instruments.

This collection also includes a performance by the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet of Quinteto em forma de choros (a work often mentioned in connection with the Choros even if it does not form part of the cycle) as well as a separate disc containing Anders Miolin’s recording of the complete music for solo guitar, much of which Villa-Lobos composed for the legendary Andres Segovia.

“The Brazilian players sound as if the music is in their blood … and their ensemble is in no way inferior to that of any of their rivals” (Gramophone) and “a world-class ensemble providing an assured blend of lush colours, pulsating rhythms and supple phrasing” (International Record Review).