Chiquinha Gonzaga stands as a monumental pioneer in Brazilian music. Born in 1847 in Rio de Janeiro, she emerged in a society where the idea of a woman composer or conductor was almost unthinkable. As a pianist, composer, and the first woman to conduct an orchestra in Brazil, she broke countless barriers. Her importance lies not only in being the first, but in shaping the very foundations of Brazilian urban music: choros, lundus, modinhas, serenades, and even the early carnival marches.

I would venture a personal reflection: while her instrument was the piano, one could argue that the guitar would have been an even more natural voice for her expressive, richly Brazilian idiom. Serenades, modinhas, and lundus seem to find a more intimate and direct vehicle on the guitar than on the piano — and I deeply believe that.

Now, with the talented Brazilian guitarist Octávio Deluchi preparing to publish his set of twelve arrangements of Chiquinha’s music with the Canadian publisher Les Productions d’Oz, we witness a beautiful act of re-interpretation. His arrangements are faithful to her melodies, harmonically fluid in the guitar’s language, and truly worthy of her pioneering legacy.

Sérgio Assad