Bossa nova
A Brazilian style combining samba rhythm with jazz harmony, usually played on nylon-string guitar with syncopated chord patterns.
Bossa nova guitar is almost entirely about the right hand: a steady thumb pattern imitating the surdo drum while the fingers play syncopated chords against it, so the accompaniment sounds like two parts at once. Harmonically it is sophisticated, full of extended and altered chords, and the rhythm is understated rather than driving. It is one of the best exercises available for fingerstyle independence, since the thumb and fingers must maintain separate patterns throughout.
Example: A quiet song with a nylon-string guitar playing a syncopated chord pattern under a soft vocal is bossa nova.
See also
Related
- PageComping
- PageVoicing
- PageClassical guitar
- PageAmericana
- PageBebop
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- PageAaron Dessner
- PageAce Frehley