Bossa Nova music is the fusion of South American rhythm elements with North American jazz harmonies. The founder of the genre is Antonio Carlos Jobim, a Brazilian musician who worked as a bar pianist in Rio de Janeiro when he was young. He appropriated the light music that was common at the time – American jazz – and merged it with the music of his childhood and youth – Brazilian Samba, Choro and similar styles.
The choro can be described as the original Brazilian folk music, the music that ultimately gave rise to the styles that are so popular around the world today, such as samba and bossa nova. The choro, in turn, arose from the fusion of European influences such as polka and waltz and the traditions of the African-born population.
While the choro is primarily instrumental music, a large culture around rhythm, music and dance has subsequently developed with the samba. Often characterized by many percussion instruments and driving rhythms, samba is still the best-known Brazilian music style. The Samba rhythms Batucada and Partido Alto are important building blocks for many songs and accompaniment styles. Listen to guitarist Luiz Bonfa interpreting the Batucada:
The Heartbeat of Bossa Nova
The soft and warm chords of Bossa Nova are tempting to start with. But being able to play the bossa nova rhythm fluidly is the most important foundation. João Gilberto shaped the modern Bossa Nova guitar style. He often played a simple rhythm, that he destilled from the more complex patterns of Samba music. His playing combines a steady bass pulse (thumb) with off-beat, syncopated chord plucks (fingers).
Understanding this pulse and its syncopated accents is essential for developing a natural Bossa Nova feel. Practise tapping the bass pulse while clapping the syncopated rhythm to internalize the feel before moving to the guitar.
Practice Steps
- Tap the steady pulse with your foot.
- Clap or tap the upper rhythm separately
The Application on Guitar
João Gilberto shaped the modern Bossa Nova guitar style. His playing combines a steady bass pulse (thumb) with off-beat, syncopated chord plucks (fingers).
The classic bossa nova accompaniment alternates a steady bass line with syncopated upper-string plucks. Practising this rhythm in a clear 4/4 grid helps beginners understand the placement of accents and the flow of the phrase.
- Transfer to guitar: thumb plays the pulse; fingers play syncopated plucks.
- Start with one chord; later practise chord changes while keeping the rhythm stable.
The First Variation
The “João Gilberto Rhythm” as a simple rhythm pattern. Gilberto often took it as a starting point for variations and improvisations. Here is a variation he will almost certainly play at one point in a song. It is also perfect to deepen your feeling for the typical off-beat rhythms of Jazz and Bossa Nova.
Between this variation and the original “João Gilberto Rhythm” you can play almost any Bossa Nova song. You are now ready to look at the first chords and put it all together!
The “Basic 8” Open Chords
The well-known chords for song accompaniment on the guitar form an excellent basis for learning the typical Bossa Nova seventh chords. You will encounter these chords again and again – by using the barré technique also in the higher positions of the fretboard. In this chapter you will be introduced to a core set of beginner-friendly chords built on the seven root notes A, B, C, D, E, F, and G, each with common seventh variations.
- A family: AMaj7, A7, Am7
- B family: B7, Bm7
- C family: CMaj7, C7
- D family: DMaj7, D7, Dm7
- E family: EMaj7, E7, Em7
- F family: FMaj7
- G family: G, G7
If you are unsure whether you have mastered the eight basic chords of guitar playing, you should first familiarize yourself with a basic fingering chart and some basic songs.
Maj7, m7 & Friends –
What are 7th chords?
In addition to the three basic chord tones (root note, third and fifth), four-note chords contain a fourth tone, the so-called seventh. You can see the difference between a triad and a seventh chord illustrated in this example.
Each seventh chord is identified by a 7 in the chord symbol. The important four note chords in Bossa Nova are:
- major triad with a major seventh (maj7)
- major triad with a minor seventh (7)
- minor triad with a minor seventh (m7)
- diminished triad with a minor seventh (m7b5)
- diminished triad with diminished seventh (dim7)
For now, we will only deal with Maj7, 7 and m7 chords as they form the basis for the common chord progressions.
The Chord Shapes
These A-based seventh chords are essential early Bossa Nova shapes. Practise maintaining the bass motion while the fingers pluck upper-string syncopations.
Practice Examples
As seen in the picture, the A minor 7th is changed to an E minor 9th chord by moving it up two frets. The fingers now pluck the D, G and B strings while the thumb plays the bass note on the A string. With these chords and the rhythm you already have a nice intro for a song.
The Chord Shapes
The EMaj7 chord only sounds good to a limited extent due to an unfortunate interval structure, while Em7 hardly differs from a pure E minor in this position. The E7 chord on the other hand is used frequently.
Practice Example
The Chord Shapes
D7 and DMaj7 are relatively easy chords. The Dm7 chord, similar to the “little” F major chord, is often fingered as a partial barre and may require some practice.
Practice Examples
Colour Notes will become an important addition to your chord repertoire. Try adding the famous Colour Note 9 to the D-Family chords and hear the difference!
The Chord Shapes
C7 is one of the most commonly used dominant shapes. CMaj7 adds a soft color in many progressions. Two very commonly used chords. The C7 chord shape is also movable across the fingerboard and you will find it in many song arrangements! The Cm7 chord is not included as it is usually implemented as a barré chord.
Practice Examples
Here is a simple Exercise: changing between a regular C-Shape and the CMaj7. I added The Joao Gilberto Rhyhtm Variation to make this a more challenging exercise.
G and G7
Although wide to finger, G7 appears in several Bossa progressions. Practise economical voice-leading.
B7 and Bm7
B7 is a widely used dominant chord; Bm7 provides a strong minor color. Both appear regularly in Bossa Nova progressions. These are actually not part of the “Basic8” but very useful to know and rather easy to play. If you are familiar with basic Folk & Blues Guitar you have surely come across the B7 chord already. Add the Bm7 to your repertoire too!
Practice Examples
Colour Notes will become an important addition to your chord repertoire. Try adding the famous Colour Note 9 to the B-Family chords and hear the difference!
FMaj7
FMaj7 is an important color chord that appears in many Bossa Nova tunes. Learn a comfortable voicing and practise transitions.
Besame Mucho is a popular song by Mexican composer Consuelo Velazquez. It is based on a melody by pianist Enrique Granados, whose pieces on classical guitar have become well known. Joao Gilberto covered the song on his 1977 album Amoroso. The following arrangement is a simplification of this version and helps in learning the first bossa nova guitar chords and the rhythm typical of the style. The core harmony revolves around Am, Dm, and E (or E7), with occasional use of A7 and B7. The melody stays close to the A minor scale with a raised leading tone (G#) in some phrases.
Before learning the arrangement
- Review the core chord shapes used in the piece
- Practise the bossa rhythm with slow chord changes
- Isolate the Dm and B7 shapes if they feel challenging
Besame Mucho – Learn the Arrangement
This lesson walks you through the simplified accompaniment of Besame Mucho. Work phrase-by-phrase, focusing on the combination of thumb bass motion and syncopated upper-string plucks. Maintain relaxation and evenness.