Nó em Pingo d'água

by Alvaro NederThe Nó em Pingo d'água are a choro group who renovated venerable language through the use of uncanny sonorities. Formed in 1978 by flutist/saxophonist Mário Seve and percussionist Celsinho, the Nó em Pingo d'água began their activities in an orthodox setting with mandolin, seven- and six-string viol?es (acoustic guitars), and cavaquinho, along with the aforementioned instruments. Experimenting in several different formations throughout the years, they adopted several resources taken from Camerata Carioca regarding the elaboration of arrangements and the sophistication of execution (dynamics) and instrumentation (solos taken in turns by different instruments). After having shared the tribute album to Jo?o Pernambuco with pianist Ant?nio Adolfo, they recorded the album Salvador, which yielded the Sharp prize as Best Instrumental Group of 1988. This was followed by another change in their instrumentation, with the inclusion of the electric bass and the departure of the seven-string viol?o and the cavaquinho. Moreover, the steel-string acoustic guitar and the electric guitar became regularly adopted by the group, who also began to explore a more weighted percussion. The influence of pop music is evident in these changes. Receita de Samba is the result of this iconoclastic approach, being a re-reading of some works by the classic Jacob do Bandolim. The album yielded mixed reviews, separating purists from experimentalists. In the late '90s, the formation of the Nó em Pingo d'água consisted of the two founders along with Rodrigo Lessa (mandolin, viol?o, electric guitar), Papito (bass, acoustic bass guitar), and Rogério Souza (viol?o). Including their solo performances, the Nó em Pingo d'água have accompanied other artists like Guinga, Ivan Lins, and Leila Pinheiro.