Souza is a master of choro, a Brazilian popular and instrumental music genre that can be traced the arrival of the Portuguese Royal Family in Rio de Janeiro in 1808. With the Portuguese influx, Brazilian musicians, already strongly influenced by African rhythms, were suddenly more exposed to European musical styles; choro is the lush result of this musical merger.
In this 2014 video, Souza and accompanists play “Retrato Brasileiro”:
Rogerio Souza will perform at Jazz Forum in Tarrytown, New York, on November 5 at 6pm. Tickets are $10 and $15. For more information, call (914) 631-1000 or visit http://jazzforumarts.org/.