Brazilian Music
April 26th, 2025
7:30 PM

Christ United Methodist Church​
Featuring 
Choro Borealis
Pat O’Keefe, clarinet
Tim O’Keefe, percussion and mandolin
Robert Everest, 7-string guitar and vocals
John Croarkin, flute
David Burk, cavaquinho
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Program
TBD
Choro Borealis brings together some of the Twin Cities’ finest musicians who share a deeply rooted passion for Brazilian music: Pat O’Keefe on clarinet, Tim O’Keefe on percussion and mandolin, Robert Everest on 7-string guitar and vocals, John Croarkin on flute, and David Burk on cavaquinho. These talented musicians have been performing and studying Brazilian music across the globe for over 30 years. Choro is a lively instrumental music genre native to Rio de Janeiro with strong European and African roots, and which developed at the same time as Ragtime and Dixieland Jazz in the United States. Performing both choro standards and original compositions, the magic of Choro Borealis is the playful interplay among the musicians, and the many varieties of instruments they employ in bringing choro music to life for their audiences.

​Pat O’Keefe

Pat O'Keefe is a multifaceted performer who is in demand in a wide variety of musical genres. He has performed as a soloist with symphony orchestras and wind ensembles, wailed away for belly dancers, and rocked samba in the streets. He draws upon this multiplicity of experiences and interests in his performances, which have been described as "passionate," "explosive," and "breath-stoppingly exquisite." He is currently the woodwind player for the new music ensemble Zeitgeist, based in St. Paul. Pat is also drawn to the music of other cultures, and has studied Brazilian, Turkish, and Korean music with acknowledged masters. He performs regularly on both woodwinds and percussion with the groups Batucada do Norte, Choro Borealis, The Maithree Ensemble, and Di Bayke Klezmer in the Twin Cities. Pat has received grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, and in 2015 he was awarded a Performing Musician Fellowship from the McKnight Foundation. He currently teaches at the University of Wisconsin, River Falls.

​John Croarkin

Multi-instrumentalist and Emmy award winning composer John Croarkin plays bass flute, flute, pifano, sax and harmonica. He is a winner of the National Flute Association's Jazz Flute Master Class and Jazz Flute Big Band Competitions. John's playing has been featured on over 40 CD's, and many soundtracks. He attended the University of Wisconsin Madison & Truman University in Missouri. A lifelong student of music he has studied with many renowned artists: jazz improvisation with Roscoe Mitchell and Richard Davis; flute with Gro Sandvik and Robert Dick; baritone sax with Ronnie Cuber; and Brazilian music studies with Jovino Santos Neto.

​David Burk

Aside from cavaquinho, David Burk plays a variety of stringed instruments including guitar, oud, cümbüs, banjo, ukulele, bass, and lap steel. Having studied various African, Latin, Middle Eastern and other indigenous musical traditions, he has performed live with numerous groups and artists including The Rose Ensemble, Voices of Sepharad, Yair Dalal, Georges Lammam, Vanessa Paloma, Nirmala Rajasekar, Ethnic Dance Theatre, Lau Hawaiian Collective, Robayat and many others. Aside from live performance, he has composed and recorded music for numerous music production libraries and his music and arrangements can be heard worldwide in various commercials, films and television programs.

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