The hugely prolific Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos was fiercely independent of any one compositional style or influence, yet his work is unified by a unique synthesis of Brazilian and Western cultures. The present volume offers three single works and four cycles or suites. Bachianas Brasileiras No. 4, heard on this recording in its original version for piano, interprets the legacy of J.S. Bach in the light of very specific features of Brazil’s traditional music. Children’s Carnival and Francette et Piá, the story of a little Indian boy from Brazil who went to France and met a French girl, are two of several collections inspired by or written for children.