Brazilian music springs from the cultural collision and interaction between Indians, Europeans and Africans. Brazil's population today reflects the mixed roots of African, Portuguese and Indian and nearly everyone has a bit of each in their ancestry.

When Portuguese explorers first arrived in Brazil in 1500 they encountered a diverse indigenous population estimated at 2 million. The native population quickly declined because of disease, warfare and assimilation, but some of their instruments and cultural legacy remain part of today's Brazilian music.

The Portuguese brought their music with them to Brazil, including instruments such as the cavaquinho, violin, accordion, clarinet, piano and flute. Portuguese music was dominated by the melodic ballad and melancholy forms such as fado had a strong impact on the lyrical nature of Brazilian music. North Africa also influenced Portuguese music, thanks to centuries of cultural interaction with the Moors.

African slaves, imported to work on sugar, tobacco and cotton plantations, left the biggest mark on Brazilian music. The Africans came from a diverse range of cultural and linguistic groups and brought their own music, language, religion and traditions to the New World. These traditions survived in a much purer form in Brazil than they did in the United States, largely because of differences in Portuguese slavery practices. Intermarriage was much more prevalent in Brazil and the Portuguese were more tolerant of African culture. Another factor that helped the survival of African culture was the development of quilombos, colonies of runaway slaves who were able to fend off domination by whites for many years.

The impact of African culture on contemporary Brazilian music cannot be overstated. It is felt in the rhythms, the lyrics, the imagery, the instruments and in the fundamental role of music in the daily life of Brazilians.

While the range and diversity of Brazilian music rival that of any country in the world, the best known styles internationally are samba, bossa nova and a difficult to define genre known as MPB (música popular brasileira). These and many other forms have had a tremendous impact on international music. Brazil rivals the United States and Cuba as one of the countries that have most influenced popular music around the world. From the maxixe in the 1920s, samba in the 1940s, bossa nova in the 1960s and the lambada in the 1980s, Brazilian music has been the source of many international fads that have left their mark on the global music scene.

Ask the average person which music they most associate with Brazil and the answer will invariably be samba. Carmen Miranda and her famous fruit headdress first introduced the rest of the world to the driving rhythms, intricate melody and poetic lyricism of samba. Samba conjures up images of the Carnaval celebration of thousands partying in the streets. During the early 1900s, samba sprung from the working class districts and favelas, the impoverished slums that cover the hillsides overlooking Rio De Janeiro.

Bossa nova is another of Brazil's best known genres. It also developed in Rio and derived much of its rhythmic and melodic structure from samba. Jazz and classical influences helped turn samba into a cool, sultry style. Bossa nova's soft swing, laid-back melodies and rich lyrics made it an international sensation in the 1960s and compositions such as "The Girl from Ipanema" by Antonio Carlos Jobim and other works by bossa nova composers are now standards of jazz repertoire.

MPB stands for música popular brasileira, or popular Brazilian music, and it describes the post-bossa nova popular music of the late 1960s to the present. Many different musical influences can be felt in the work of MPB artists, including foreign styles like rock, jazz, funk, reggae and salsa. Several songs on this collection demonstrate the influence of reggae on MPB.

The music on this CD offers just a taste of the Brazilian musical feast. Some of the artists are huge stars in Brazil. Others are little known. The title of this collection, Brasileiro, means simply "Brazilian." It is a tribute to a people whose musical passion and creativity are unsurpassed.