Forró Playlists We Use in Classes, Festivals, and Social Dancing
- Rafael Piccolotto de Lima
- 3 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
Over the years teaching, organizing events, and building the Forró New York community, music selection gradually became an important part of the work itself.
Different environments ask for different kinds of playlists.
A beginner class functions differently from a crowded social dance floor. A practice session at home asks for different musical qualities than a late-night festival party. Over time, I started organizing some of the playlists we use most frequently in classes, workshops, festivals, and social dancing events here in New York.
These playlists include many of the artists, rhythms, and musical styles most associated with contemporary social forró dancing, including pé-de-serra, universitário, and different roots-oriented repertoires.
They are not intended as definitive collections of “the best forró songs,” but rather curated selections connected to the way we experience and teach forró inside our community.
Main Forró Playlist for Social Dancing and Brazilian Forró Music
This is the broadest playlist we currently use inside the Forró New York ecosystem.
It contains more than 50 hours of music and close to a thousand tracks connected to different generations and styles within the universe of forró.
The playlist moves between classic artists such as Luiz Gonzaga, Dominguinhos, Jackson do Pandeiro, Sivuca, Anastácia, and Flávio José, alongside contemporary names strongly present in today’s social dance scene, including Falamansa, Bicho de Pé, Forroçacana, Trio Dona Zefa, Mestrinho, Ó do Forró, Mariana Aydar, and Trio Macaíba.
It also expands into adjacent areas of Brazilian music through artists such as Alceu Valença, Elba Ramalho, Geraldo Azevedo, and Zé Ramalho, while including musicians connected to rabeca and instrumental forró traditions such as Cláudio Rabeca and Nicolas Krassik.
Rather than focusing only on famous classics, the playlist also includes live recordings, lesser-known tracks, instrumental music, and different rhythmic atmospheres frequently heard in our classes and events.
You can explore the full playlist through Spotify using the link above or listen to selected excerpts directly through the embedded player below.
Forró Practice Playlist for Beginners and Dance Training
Not every great forró song works equally well for practice.
Some songs are rhythmically dense, heavily syncopated, or simply too fast for someone still organizing the relationship between rhythm, timing, and movement.
This playlist was created specifically for practice, beginner classes, and musical training.
It contains medium and slower tempo tracks with clearer rhythmic structures that help students hear pulse, groove, phrasing, and timing more comfortably.
The selection includes many xotes and baiões frequently used in beginner and intermediate classes.
Today the playlist contains more than 200 songs and over 10 hours of music, and many students also use it while practicing at home.
The complete playlist is available on Spotify through the link above. Below, you can also preview part of the musical selection used in many of our beginner classes and practice sessions.
Forró Party Playlist for Social Dancing and Festivals
This playlist is closely connected to the atmosphere of our parties, workshops, and festival weekends.
It is one of the main playlists we use during social dancing moments, warm-ups, guided practice sections, and transitions between live music sets during Forró New York Weekend.
Compared to the practice playlist, the energy here is broader and more dynamic, moving more freely between tempos, grooves, and dance floor atmospheres.
The playlist reflects the type of music frequently heard during contemporary forró social dancing events connected to the international forró scene.
Like the other playlists, this is also a living collection that continues evolving as new music and discoveries enter the rotation.
Some of the tracks frequently played during our parties, workshops, and festival practice sessions can also be heard directly in the player below.
Understanding the Music of Forró
For people who want to explore the musical side of forró more deeply, I also have other articles on the site discussing rhythms, genres, and the relationship between music and dance.
These are good starting points:
And for students interested in more structured musical training, the Musicality Course inside the online learning program includes curated listening sections organized by rhythm and style, helping students gradually recognize and differentiate xote, baião, arrasta-pé, xaxado, and other rhythmic structures commonly found inside forró music and Northeastern Brazilian musical traditions.
Learn, Practice, and Dance With Us
If you are in New York City and would like to experience these playlists inside classes, workshops, social dancing events, and festivals, you can explore our weekly classes and events here:
And for those learning remotely, the online learning platform also includes guided practice structures, curated musical selections, musicality training, and additional listening recommendations connected to the dance.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rafael Piccolotto de Lima is the Founder and Educational Director of Forró New York, as well as a Latin Grammy-nominated composer, arranger, and music director.
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