Baião, by Andréa Huguenin Botelho

"My compositions and transcriptions are sound sculptures. The music translates my identity, what I think and believe." (Andréa Huguenin Botelho)

Composer, choir and orchestra conductor, pianist, music researcher, and curator Andréa Huguenin Botelho was born in 1973 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She completed her studies in piano and orchestral conducting at Georgia State University in Atlanta, pursued postgraduate studies at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe, and specialized in opera conducting at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg. Based in Berlin for many years, she has worked as a choir and orchestra conductor and piano teacher and has founded several ensembles. Her research explores Brazil's diverse traditions, including indigenous influences and elements brought from Africa through slavery, such as languages, cultures, religions, dances, songs, and rhythms.

Another focus of Andréa Botelho's work is women in music and female composers. In her concerts, she frequently performs their works, creates repertoire lists, and arranges pieces for less common ensembles, such as double bass and piano. These efforts can be seen in her CD recordings and concert videos, which are available on her website or YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/@maestra.andreabotelho. Botelho is a member of the International Working Group Woman and Music and the Forum for Vocal Diversity.

Her works include piano compositions, orchestral and choral pieces, and innovative arrangements that create a dialogue between tradition and modernity.

In 2024, Botelho composed Baião for a two-hand piano, based on a 2023 version written for four-hand piano. I was honored to perform the two-hand version’s world premiere on February 22, 2025, at the Britz Castle Hall in Berlin, as part of the Composer! concert series curated by Botelho.

The term Baião refers to a Brazilian dance with its distinct, strongly accented rhythm. This dance originates from northeastern Brazil, a region known for extreme heat and prolonged droughts. Life in this area is filled with challenges, as vegetation withers and animals often perish until the long-awaited rains revive the landscape.

Botelho’s Baião translates this cycle into vivid mental images and colors, playing out like a movie before the mind's eye. The piece begins with a brief Lento introduction marked Melancholy, featuring an improvisational, rhapsodic gesture that hints at the signature rhythm. Following a suspenseful fermata on a D minor chord, the dance emerges: electrifying through overlapping rhythms and unexpected accents. It remains vibrant and joyful, yet relaxed and free of strain. Pianists unfamiliar with South American music may find this particularly challenging.

The contrasting Adagio section symbolizes the suffering and sorrow during the drought. The movement starts softly, with a cantabile melody accompanied by gentle syncopations. It builds in intensity until it transitions back to the lively dance, celebrating the joy of life. The conclusion resembles a stretta, using repeated chords and glissandos to drive the music toward its dramatic ending, which concludes with a high A minor chord enhanced by a low sub-bass A.

Technically demanding yet rich in the percussive flavor of original baião instruments, this approximately seven-minute-long piece presents an excellent opportunity to explore South American rhythms and offers an intriguing addition to concert repertoire.

The sheet music is available at the Archiv Frau und Musik, and a recording of the premiere can be found on YouTube (link provided).

Audience Reactions:

“Dear Ms. Walther,Thank you so much for introducing me to this composer and her fantastic work. Such wonderful music, with captivating rhythms that make the oppressive heat bearable and lift you out of lethargy. I can’t wait for your next article.Best regards,H., Frankfurt am Main.”