Heitor Villa-Lobos is one of the greatest Brazilian composers of all time. His compositions are more than two thousand, which is inconceivable for a man that lacked formal training. Villa-Lobos did work ranging from devising a graphic method of composition, using material geometrical contours of drawings, shapes, structures to mastering and improving upon the art of authentic Brazilian folk music.

Villa-Lobos, born in 1887 in Brazil, showed great interest in music as a child. At six, he began studying cello with his father. Eventually, he learned to play most, if not all, the instruments in an orchestra. When his father died, Villa-Lobos, only eleven, was forced to quit school to perform in small theater orchestras to support his family. He continued to teach himself and study in his own spare time.

In 1905, Villa-Lobos' interest in Brazilian folk music led him on a trip through northern Brazil, gathering traditional folk...