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Edvaldo Cabral: Toada e Xaxado



Toada with Jaelson Farias
(Text extracted from the introduction to the edited work)

The toada is a slow tune genre with a narrative and melancholical character. This term is much used in rural regions, sometimes just as a synonym of song.

The xaxado (pronounced "shashado") is a dance typical of the inland region of Pernambuco which became known as the dance of the "cangaceiros" [Brazilian Northeasterner outlaws] because it was spread by Lampião and his Gang.

The word "xaxado" (an onomatopoeia) describes the noise (sha) produced by the sliding of leather sandals on the ground, which is the characteristic of the dancers' tap dance.

In the present Xaxado by Edvaldo Cabral there is a reference to such tap dancing, whose rhythm is present throughout the piece, mainly - and in a more direct way - in the percussive effects of the right hand, including the "sliding" of the index finger down the instrument bridge.

The two pieces were composed around 1989, initially in an independent way (both for the 6 string guitar). In this present version by the composer, from 2002, Toada and Xaxado have definitely become a musical unit.

Napoleão Costa Lima
Recife, December 2004

Related links:

Edvaldo Cabral: Baião

Edvaldo Cabral: Frevo

Edvaldo Cabral: Nuances

Edvaldo Cabral: Toada e Xaxado

Vida e Obra de Edvaldo Cabral by Napoleão Costa Lima

List of Works by Edvaldo Cabral (with audio examples)