2018 Centrum Choro Workshop Registration Now Open

For the 9th year, Centrum has opened the registration to the Choro Workshop! They have brought back the same great team from last year, which includes musical director Dudu Maia on bandolim, Douglas Lora on 7 string guitar, Alessandro Lora on panderio, Anat Cohen on clarinet and Daniella Speilman on saxophone and flute.

Having attended all 8 of the years of this workshop, it is always fun to see the level of musicianship that shows up. Last year was probably the most overall advanced class of musicians ever. That doesn't mean that a newbie to choro should not attend. This is one of the only places in North America to get a grounding on ensemble playing over three and a half full days and one extra evening.

I also attend Brazil Camp in Cazadero, and love it, but that focuses more on those already able to play the music, it's not really a place for beginners, and it's also a cultural event that encompasses dance, food, samba, choro, bossa etc. At Centrum, it's about *how* to learn it stylistically for your instrument, how to *play* it in an ensemble, and the camaraderie of the whole group focused just on choro, not a wide range of Brazilian music. The late night jams have gone into the wee hours with both students and teachers performing, the location on Admiralty Inlet is beautiful. On Thursday night we take the class to a local bar and hold a public roda which non Choro friends have described as superb. The final night of the workshop is a public instructor's concert, which you can view one song of it below. All students get a free ticket to the public concert as part of the registration. The concert, in a hall with about 280 seats, has sold out every year well in advance.

If you have been on the fence I hope you can come, if you have come before, I know you'll hope to make it again. Please forward to your non-mandolin friends, including percussionists!

We throw a great party up here, and I just want to add a great deal of thanks to all the students in the past who have made this successful, and the great instructors who have also participated, from Mike Marshall & Choro Famoso, Jovino Santos Neto, Henrique Neto and others. I wish Centrum could bring them all back every year, each has their own unique perspective to this wonderful music. Obrigado to all of you.

From two years back, here's the line up in 2015, doing Noites Cariocas.
Jovino Santos Neto (piano)
Eduardo Neves (flute)
Alexandre Lora (pandeiro)
Douglas Lora (7 string guitar)
Dudu Maia (10 string bandolim)
Anat Cohen (clarinet)

https://vimeo.com/127999082