Old First Concerts: Choro from Canta, Violino!

Canta, Violino! musicians Edinho Gerber, Andrew Finn Magill, and Clarice Cast (screen shot from the YouTube video of the performance)

Late yesterday afternoon Old First Concerts presented a performance by a Brazilian trio called Canta, Violino! (Portuguese for “Sing, violin!). The group was led by American violinist Andrew Finn Magill, who moved to Brazil in 2014. His Brazilian colleagues were Brazilians Edinho Gerber, playing a seven-string guitar, and Clarice Cast on percussion.

None of the selections on the program were familiar. Some were composed by Magill. All the other selections probably had Brazilian sources. This made for a more than generous journey of discovery of the choro repertoire, but any listener wishing for at least one hint of familiarity was disappointed. Thus, while Magill tended to provide an informative verbal introduction for each selection, the program began to feel like “one damned thing after another” by the time it hit the halfway mark.

While all three of the trio members had a solid command of their instruments, neither ensemble nor solo work did much to seize and maintain the attention of a serious listener.