Richard Boukas

Richard Boukas is a choral singer, composer, arranger and conductor for five decades. His extensive experience in Brazilian contemporary (MPB, Jazz, folkoric) genres, instrumental repertoire (Nazareth, Gnattali, Hermeto), and Early Music inform his organic approach: 

• Brazilian polyrhythmic grooves melded with prima practica contrapuntal textures, often expanding a piece's original formal boundaries

• Linear integrity in independent part-writing 

• Broad harmonic and stylistic range which both combine and juxtapose choral eras from the Renaissance to contemporary. 

• BRAZILIAN CHORAL Adaptations

MPB legends Milton Nascimento, Sérgio Santos and Guinga.

Boukas has arranged repertoire from Minas Gerais (Sérgio Santos, Milton Nascimento),  Jobim and Guinga.

He has also created “scat-singing” choros by Ernesto Nazareth (1863-1934), Pixinguinha (1897-1973) and Radamés Gnattali (1906-1988). 

Inquiries from choral conductors worldwide are most welcome. 

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MPB (música popular brasileira)

• Abertura    • Sincretismo*       • Áfrico*    (Sérgio Santos/ Paulo César Pinheiro)
• Travessia (Milton Nascimento)
• Senhorinha (Guinga)

* guitar accompaniment

Instrumental Scat Choros

• Odeon (Ernesto Nazareth)
• Remexendo (Radamés Gnattali)

Four of these arrangements were premiered by the Queens College Vocal Ensemble (QCVE) under the direction of James John, Director of Choral Activities at the Aaron Copland School of Music. He is also artistic director of Cerddorion Vocal Ensemble. Boukas joined QCVE as guitarist on two Sérgio Santos compositions.

The audio player below features four arrangements of works by Minas Gerais composers Sérgio Santos and Milton Nascimento by the Queens College Vocal Ensemble.

Boukas considers these Brazilian choral works to be much more than a pedestrian "arrangement"- they aim to be more transformational, broadening the realm of possibilities that transcend the boundaries of the original recorded versions.

The music by Sérgio Santos offers a rich invitation to embed the intrinsic harmonic sophistication of Minas Gerais composers. Boukas sets the original Portuguese texts by legendary poet, lyricist and ubiquitous collaborator Paulo César Pinheiro. 

Boukas's other adaptations to date include “Senhorinha”, the beautiful ballad by Guinga, and two “instrumental scat” choros by Ernesto Nazareth and Radamés Gnattali.

Choral directors and educators interested in performing/recording Boukas’s Brazilian arrangements and commissioning original works CONTACT Richard Boukas directly.

View a summary of all Richard Boukas activities during the Queens College Year of Brazil.
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• BEATLES MOTETS

Boukas's most comprehensive choral endeavor between 1987-94 was his transformations of eighteen (18) Beatles pieces. Informally known as “The Beatles Motets”, they were not  commissioned by a particular choir, publisher or recording project. They were written simply to explore what Boukas calls "choral hedonism"– exploiting idiosyncratic choral devices which are the food upon which choral singers feast: madrigal word-painting, complex contrapuntal textures and "legitimate dissonances" achieved through meticulous part writing and voiceleading. Boukas's assimilation of 500 years of choral history galvanized from his own performances and study of English masters Tallis, Byrd, Weelkes, Purcell to Italian madrigalists Marenzio, Monteverdi, Gesualdo, German Baroque masters Schütz, Buxtehude, Bach and Romanticists Schumann and Brahms.

His Early Music training (prima pratica), Baroque, Romantic classical repertoire and Jazz is a pan-stylistic reflection and potentiation of the original Beatles' melodies through liberal reharmonizations, motivic fragmentation and totally new episodic material. In fact, were the lyrics not sung, the original melodies of some of these motets would not be readily recognizable. The pieces range from four to six independent parts: SATB and ATTB to SATTB and SATTBarB.

The most ambitious of the Beatles Motets is the three-movement work “Cantata: Please Please Me” (15 minutes in duration)- a tribute to Bach's contrapuntal opening choruses from the cantatas. This live performance is by the acclaimed Cerddorion Vocal Ensemble under the direction of James John (who has also collaborated in the Brazilian Choral Works. The Finale (movement #3) is featured in the audio player. The first two movements appear at the end of the audio player.

Framing the Cantata are two Beatles Motets, all voices studio multitracked by Boukas:

She's Leaving Home (AATB) and And I Love Her (ATTTB)

Choral conductor inquiries are welcome regarding Brazilian Choral Works and thed Beatles Motets.
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