In his excellent article on Villa-Lobos’ Choro, John Patykula writes the following:

Choro is derived from the Portuguese chorar (to “weep”, “lament” or “cry”), and refers to a type of popular music, primarily instrumental, that first appeared in Rio de Janeiro in the latter part of the nineteenth century. This music was performed by chorões, which were serenading ensembles that always included guitars. The chorões, would perform at night in the streets, cafes, theatres, and at social events. Their music was very spontaneous with elements of improvisation and virtuosity. Some scholars have compared these chorões, to early American jazz bands, although these choro groups appear before the beginnings of jazz.

In the early development of the choro, the popular Brazilian pianist Ernesto Nazareth (1863-1934) stands out as the important originator of this style of music. Like Villa-Lobos, Nazareth was primarily self-taught. And, like Villa-Lobos, Nazareth was very much a nationalistic composer – he composed music that was inspired by the music and culture of his native country. To Villa-Lobos, Nazareth was “a true incarnation of the soul of musical Brazil.” The composers became close friends. Influenced by the works of Chopin and other Romantic composers, Nazareth’s piano works fused European musical forms and elements of jazz and ragtime with syncopated Brazilian rhythms and, at times, guitar-like accompaniments. On first hearing, it is tempting to classify this music as “Brazilian ragtime music.” In his youth, Villa-Lobos was attracted to the music of Nazareth and the chorões. Villa-Lobos’ experiences playing in these groups would provide an important and unique part of his musical education. These experiences would later be the inspiration for a series of fourteen compositions titled Choros, which would make him internationally famous.

In his biography, “Villa-Lobos – A Life”, the eminent musicologist David Appleby writes: “The idea of using the title Choros was an earlier concept, expressed in Choros No. 1, for guitar, written in 1920. In the Choros series he sought to amplify the idea of providing a panoramic view of the improvisatory techniques of street musicians….” The fourteen Choros, thirteen of which were composed between 1924-29, are considered Villa-Lobos’ most original and innovative compositions. These works, composed when Villa-Lobos was in Paris, were inspired by the music of the chorões but utilizing the compositional language prevalent at that time in Europe, particularly in Paris. Paris was considered the artistic capital of the world, and its audiences were hungry for the sounds and rhythms from far-off exotic lands like Brazil. Villa-Lobos was quick to realize that he could make his fame with this type of music.

Villa-Lobos composed his fourteen Choros for a variety of performing media. Among these fourteen works, several stand out for their uniqueness. Choros No. 2, for flute and clarinet, is a conversation between two virtuoso street musicians. A Brazilian Indian song is the inspiration for Choros No. 3; the song is sung in the Parecis Indian language by a male chorus accompanied by seven woodwind instruments. Choros No. 5 for solo piano, titled ‘Alma Brasileira’ (Soul of Brazil), displays the expressive qualities of a serenade with its pulsating and melancholic themes, perhaps inspired by the piano music of Nazareth. Considered to be one of his masterpieces (if not his greatest work), Choros No. 10 utilizes the forces of an orchestra augmented with native Brazilian instruments and chorus to create a monument of nationalistic Brazilian music. Choros No. 11 is an immense panorama of Brazil in the form of a piano concerto, utilizing some of Villa-Lobos’ most daring orchestration…The full scores for Choros No. 13 and No. 14 are presumed lost – these two works have never been performed.

The great Mexican composer Manuel M. Ponce (1882-1948) became acquainted with Villa-Lobos in the 1920s when both composers were in Paris. In a letter to his wife, Ponce wrote about his first meeting with the Brazilian composer and their discussion about the Choros. “…yesterday I was working at the office and Edgar Varèse came looking for me. He had been there twice already without finding me. He invited me to his house; naturally, I accepted. Roussel, Florent Schmitt, the pianist Teran, Heitor Villa-Lobos, Cotapos, the Chilean composer were there, with writers, painters, sculptors, etc. Among the women there was Madame Roussel who remembered you and sends greetings. There was also the Countess of Polignac, the lady who invited us to a concert at Versailles, you remember? Villa-Lobos was very amiable to me, invited me to visit him. The whole world knew me by name either through Segovia or the Gaceta.

“Villa-Lobos, in his curious trilingual dialect (French, Spanish, Portuguese) tells me that his music comes directly from the Brazilian forests. It evokes his far-off Amazonas, the violence of the savage rhythms, negro melodies twisted in their bodies’ syncopations, in the frenzy of dances which the composer’s genius has managed to link together in the prodigious ‘choros’, one of which caused a scandal in the Pasdeloup concerts. ‘Choros’, explains Villa-Lobos, means weeping, and this name applies to the serenade of a lover as well as to the native ceremonies…” More than any of his other works, the Choros are considered Villa-Lobos’ most daring masterpieces.