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Brazilian Choro Mandolin
with Ian Coury
 
 
About This Course
 
Learn to play Brazilian choro music on the mandolin with young Brazilian virtuoso Ian Coury, from the classic sounds of Jacob do Bandolim to the modern style of Hamilton Holanda. Includes play-along tracks with Ian’s Brazilian backing band.
 
 
Try a Sample Lesson
 

Ian walks you through the melody of the A part of “Naquela Mesa” in this video.

 
 
 
Meet the Instructor
Ian Coury
 
 
Ian Coury has been accruing professional awards and accolades since 2014, when he shared a stage with Brazilian choro legends Armandinho and Hamilton de Holanda at the age of 12. Today, he’s one of Brazil’s most-respected virtuosos of the ten-string mandolin. As he continues to push the boundaries of the instrument and of the choro genre, he has performed with such luminaries as Paquito D’Rivera, Claudio Roditi, and Toninho Horta, and has recently received two important awards: “Best Instrumentalist” in the National FM Radio Festival (2020), and second place (by popular vote) in Brazil’s eFestival (2021), both for performances of original compositions.
 
 
 
Peghead Play-Along Tracks
 
Peghead Nation is creating a library of accompaniment videos (and downloadable MP3s) for songs and tunes that are taught on the site, classics that you'll find at many jams and picking parties. As a subscriber, you have access to this library and can use the tracks to practice playing tunes and songs at a slow or medium tempo with guitar accompaniment. New songs will be added regularly.
 
 
Brazilian Choro Mandolin Source Material

Check out these songs featured in the Brazilian Choro Mandolin course.


The Brazilian Choro Mandolin Subscription Includes:
  • 25 in-depth lessons on playing Brazilian choro music on the mandolin
  • 22 complete arrangements of popular choros
  • High-quality video with multiple camera angles so you can see close-ups of both hands in action
  • Detailed notation and tablature for each tune
  • Play-Along Track videos so you can play along with Ian
  • Downloadable Play-Along audio tracks of Ian’s Brazilian choro band playing each tune so you can play along (with or without Ian)
 
 
$20/Month For One Course
 
Additional courses only $10/month each!   •   Save 20% with an annual subscription
 
 
Get started now!
Use promo code IanLand at checkout
and get your first month free or $20 off an annual subscription.
 
 

Learn to play Brazilian choro music on the mandolin with young Brazilian virtuoso Ian Coury, from the classic sounds of Jacob do Bandolim to the modern style of Hamilton Holanda. Includes play-along tracks with Ian’s Brazilian backing band.

 
 
Brazilian Choro Mandolin Course Outline
 
Intro to Brazilian Choro Mandolin
 

In this introductory video, Ian talks about the importance of the mandolin in choro music and about some of the characteristics of the music that make it unique.

 
Naquela Mesa
 

In the first Brazilian Choro Mandolin lesson, Ian shows you the beautiful D minor choro “Naquela Mesa,” written by Sérgio Bittencourt, son of the legendary Jacob do Bandolim, who was the most influential choro mandolinist. “Naquela Mesa” is a popular Brazilian choro and is often played (as a song and instrumental) at rodas de choros (choro jam sessions).

 
Benzinho
 

“Benzinho” is a traditional two-part choro in the key of D minor written by  the great choro mandolinist Jacob do Bandolim. It’s not one of the most popular choros, but it is well known at rodas de choros (choro jam sessions) and it's a good tune for players new to choro, because the harmony is very clear, and it’s not too difficult technically.

 
Carinhoso
 

“Carinhoso” is one of the most popular Brazilian choros and was written by the legendary composer, flautist, and saxophonist Pixinguinha. “Carinhoso” is a beautiful, emotional tune, and in addition to being played as an instrumental, it’s also often sung.

 
Eu Quero é Sossego
 

The title of the choro “Eu Quero é Sossego” means “I just want peace” in Brazilian. Written by the choro composer and saxophonist K-Ximbinho, it’s a beautiful melody in D minor that can be interpreted in many different ways.

 
Assanhado
 

The choro classic “Assanhado” was written by Brazilian mandolin icon Jacob do Bandolim. It’s in the key of A and has two parts. The first part is melodically very simple but highly syncopated, while the second part has a lot of long, flowing lines and a circle-of-fifths chord progression.

 
Receita de Samba
 

“Receita de Samba” is another Jacob do Bandolim composition, and is a favorite at  rodas de choros and wherever choros are played. The title translates as “samba recipe.” It’s in the key of G and has an eight-bar chordal intro.

 
Vibrações
 

“Vibrações” is a beautiful slow choro in the key of D minor written by Jacob do Bandolim. Jacob uses a lot of ornaments and tremolo on his recording. Ian starts by showing you the basic melody, and then demonstrates how to play Brazilian-style tremolo and some typical mandolin ornaments.

 
Pedacinhos Do Céu
 

The beautiful, slow choro “Pedacinhos Do Céu” (“Little Pieces from the Sky”) was written by Waldyr Azevedo, a very successful and important choro conductor, composer, mandolinist, and cavaquinho player who composed 130 pieces during his lifetime (1923–1980). “Pedacinhos Do Céu” is in the key of G and goes to the key of E minor in the second part. 

 
Noites Cariocas
 

The Jacob do Bandolim tune “Noites Cariocas” is a traditional choro classic. If you play choro mandolin, you play it. There are many versions, but Ian teaches you the original version played by Jacob.

 
Bora Brasil
 

“Bora Brasil” is one of Ian’s own compositions (the title means “Let’s go, Brazil”). He wrote it for ten-string mandolin, but it can be played on eight-string (notation and tab for both ten-string and eight-string mandolin are included).

 
Ornamentation, Embellishment, and Picking
 

In this lesson, Ian talks about ornamentation, embellishing a melody, and phrasing as well as his picking technique. He uses a piece of the Jacob do Bandolim tune “Doce de Coco” to demonstrate all of the things he does to embellish and enhance a choro melody.

 
Um Tom Pra Jobim
 

“Um Tom Pra Jobim” is a baião written by Sivuca and Oswaldinho do Acordeon. Baiãos have a different, more syncopated, underlying feel than choros, but “Um Tom Pra Jobim” has a melodic and harmonic style similar to the choros you’ve been learning. It’s in the key of G and has intro, A, and B sections, as well as an ending. The form is AABA with an intro and coda.

 
Chorinho Na Gafieria
 

“Chorinho Na Gafieira” is a beautiful choro/samba written by Astor Silva. It’s in the key of C and has more of a samba groove than a traditional choro.

 
Choro Rhythm Patterns
 

In this lesson, Ian shows you three rhythm patterns you can use when playing backup in choro music: the choro pattern, the choro/samba pattern, and the samba/choro pattern.

 
Remeleixo
 

The choro “Remeleixo” was composed by Jacob do Bandolim in response to criticism that his music was too difficult. Jacob decided to compose something with a groove, and the result was “Remeleixo” which means something like “dancing in a groovy way.”

 
Santa Morena
 

“Santa Morena” is a beautiful waltz written by Jacob do Bandolim. It’s not a choro but it’s very popular among choro musicians.

 
Doce de Coco
 

“Doce de Coco” (“Sweet Coconut”) is another tune written by the legendary choro mandolinist Jacob do Bandolim. It’s in the key of G major and is usually played at a medium tempo (65 bpm).

 
Brasileirinho
 

“Brasileirinho” is one of the most well-known choro tunes around the world. It’s a two-part choro written by Waldyr Azevedo, one of the most important cavaquinho players in choro history. The first part is in the key of A major and the second part is in A minor.

 
Perigoso
 

The choro “Perigoso” (“dangerous”) was written by Orlando Silveira and Esmeraldino Salles. It’s a beautiful but advanced-level choro with numerous 32nd notes. There are two parts, both in the key of G.

 
Carioquinha
 

“Carioquinha” is another great choro standard written by Waldyr Azevedo. “Carioquinha” means “little carioca,” and a carioca is someone born in Rio de Janeiro.

 
O Bom Filho à Casa Torna
 

“O Bom Filho à Casa Torna” (“The Good Son Goes Back Home”) was written by Bonfiglio de Oliveira, a trumpeter and composer who played with the great Pixinguinha in the 1930s. “O Bom Filho à Casa Torna” is a maxixe in the key of D minor and has three sections.

 
Cadência
 

“Cadência” (“Cadence”) was written by mandolinist and composer Juventino Maciel. It’s not that common in the choro repertoire but there’s a beautiful recording by Jacob de Bandolim.

 
Feira de Mangaio
 

“Feira de Mangaio” was written by Brazilian accordionist Sivuca and Glorinha Gadelha and is very popular in the Brazilian music repertoire, not just in choro circles. It’s a baião in the key of A minor and has three parts. It’s a good tune to use to work on your alternating picking.

 
O Vôo da Mosca
 

“O Vôo da Mosca” (“The Flight of the Fly”) was written by Jacob do Bandolim and is one of the most challenging choros because of its constant eighth notes. It’s a waltz in the key of G and has three parts.

 
 
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