During a concert, the Brazilian singer Lysia Condé recounted an anecdote about Chiquinha Gonzaga’s ‘Corta-Jaca’. The song was performed at a reception hosted by the Brazilian First Lady, Nair de Teffé, as a defiant gesture against the conventions of her time.
The provocation was threefold: the song had folk origins, and was distinctly Brazilian. The guitar itself was considered a ‘lowly’ instrument, fit only for criminals and vagabonds. Finally, the song had been composed by a woman, Chiquinha Gonzaga, known for having defied the conventions of the time. The musician had even gone so far as to separate from her husband in order to pursue her musical career freely – a scandalous act for Brazilian high society in the late 19th century.
The following day, the opposition senator Rui Barbosa delivered an indignant speech:
““This Corta-Jaca I heard about so long ago – what on earth is it, Mr President? The lowest, the most vulgar, the crudest of all wild dances, the twin sister of the batuque and the samba!”
On this blog, I have occasionally tried to trace the origins of Brazilian folk music – for example, when discussing the composer Noel Rosa – but I had never gone back so far in time. Chiquinha Gonzaga’s music shows us just how rich the Brazilian musical tradition already was in diverse influences, and how capable it was of synthesising them into original and innovative musical forms and rhythms.
Listening to explanations from Brazilian musicians, I learnt that this piece belongs to the subgenre of Brazilian tango, or ‘maxixe’. It is a very short composition with a very simple harmony. Yet the strange alchemy between the chords, the maxixe rhythm and a fiery, never-boring melody gives rise to a piece of crystalline, timeless beauty.
The first part is in the key of D minor. The most astonishing thing about this section is the space the composer has left for the rhythm alone. In the score, I have highlighted in yellow the bars without melody, which account for no fewer than 12 of the 23 bars!
This space, however, is anything but empty, because it builds tension and anticipation for the two melodic phrases: the first is heard in bar 5, the second in bar 13, repeated twice.
In the second section, the piece modulates to the relative major key, moving from D minor to F major. In this section, we can hear a series of ascending melodic leaps; the first is a ninth interval between C and D, followed by denser descending phrases, which I have highlighted in yellow in the score.
I’ve listened to several versions of the track; on YouTube and Spotify you can even find an early 20th-century version, conducted by Chiquinha Gonzaga herself, which, for obvious reasons, is of very poor audio quality. I’ve chosen to open this article with a performance by the Brazilian pianist Hercules Gomes, a true specialist in Brazilian choro.
The pianist highlights the song’s rhythm and its hypnotic, driving and almost carnal character. It is music that seems to beg to be enjoyed and listened to with one’s whole body, allowing oneself to be swept up in the ‘wild dance’ of the maxixe.
As a pianist myself, I cannot help but be thrilled by Hercules Gomes’s marvellous left hand. I invite my readers to watch or rewatch the video of ‘Corta-Jaca’, focusing specifically on the left hand. Isn’t the precision, clarity and naturalness with which the left hand carries the maxixe rhythm – leaping from the lower register to the middle register – simply astonishing and marvellous? A truly remarkable display of mastery!
Hercules Gomes possesses other qualities besides being an excellent pianist. He is, in fact, a great populariser of Brazilian music, and much of what I have learnt about Chiquinha Gonzaga I owe to his video entitled “PRIMÓRDIOS DO PIANO NO BRASIL”, dedicated precisely to this great Brazilian musician.
Chiquinha Gonzaga’s music has been a real discovery for me. I hope this article will spark my readers’ curiosity and help to spread the word about the music of Chiquinha Gonzaga, the pianist Hercules Gomes and the talented musicians he interviewed.
Here is my transcription of Chiquinha Gonzaga’s song ‘Corta-Jaca’; click on this link to download the sheet music. If you have any questions about the song, I’d be more than happy to try and answer them. As always, I’d really appreciate a comment from you at the bottom of the page! Thanks in advance.