Viola da Samba

Viola da Samba is an ensemble creating a bridge between Renaissance music and Brazilian music. This group uses the pure sounds of early instruments to revive the past while embodying the rich and vivacious harmonies and rhythms of samba and bossa nova.

The subtle timbres and the versatile sounds of the clavichord together with the viola da gamba fit perfectly with the spirit of Brazilian music, revealing the connection between the musical elements (scales, rhythm and temperament) of popular and early music.

Viola da Samba offers a repertoire, which extends from music of the Renaissance up to Bossa nova, passing through Afro-Brazilian and indigenous music. Brazilian composer, Jean Kleeb, brilliantly arranges Samba and Bossa for these exquisite instruments.

The viol strings, made exclusively of natural gut, create a pure and organic sound. This sound, in combination with a specific technique developed by gambist Fernando Marín, offer a new experience for the world of jazz and bossa. Nadine Balbeisi’s delicate and refined voice, Jean Kleeb’s mastery of playing bossa chords on the clavichord and Fernando Marin’s skillful bowing of the viola gamba create a perfect musical simbiosis.