As the leader of Nova Collective, Bossa Nova maestro Louis Ryan is bringing Brazilian vibes to a new audience, backed by a revolving lineup of some of the finest jazz and Latin musicians Ireland has to offer. Past members include Fiachra Kinder (of Stomptown Brass), Rob Kearns (director at Ensemble Music Company) and Andrew Hozier-Byrne (we probably don’t need to tell you who he is).

For Ryan, it’s all about the show. Nova Collective gigs are always a little special. Performances are frequently accompanied by capoeira display, Samba dancers, and interpretive dance by Aaron Heffernan (who has also worked on videos with the group). In this edition of My Kinda Music, we spoke to Ryan to find a little more about Ireland’s Bossa Nova scene.

Tell us about your background

My background is a pretty classical one: I started taking formal lessons in piano when I was about eight or nine, and also took up the cello around this time.

I had an interest in composing music from a pretty young age, and so people often describe me as quite a “classical guy”. Playing in bands is really a recent thing for me. I’m learning so much from each new musician I collaborate with and hugely enjoying the whole process.

When did you develop a passion for Brazilian music?

I suppose it would have been when I was about 21, I remember listening to a few tracks from Getz/Gilberto, and being really blown away by the lusciousness of that album. At the risk of sounding like a miserable music geek (and maybe I am one!),

I also felt that there were some fairly traditional compositional features that Antônio Carlos Jobim was using in his music for this album (melodic sequences, cadence points, even-bar phrasing), and that interested me.

What is the Samba / Bossa Nova scene like in Ireland?

It’s undeniably quite a specific, niche thing, so I’m not sure if you could describe it as a “scene” as such, but nevertheless there are a significant amount of very talented Brazilian musicians and groups who play exciting, unique shows across the city: BaqueSoul, LR Duo, Choro Hy-Brasil, Morro 16, Percussaction – which is just a small selection.

For someone wishing to explore this genre who would you recommend they listen to?

I think Antonio Carlos Jobim is probably quite a good starting point; together with lyricist Vinícius de Moraes he penned the bulk of the best-known Bossa Nova standards – The Girl from Ipanema, Águas de Março, Agua de Beber, Wave, Insensatez.

There are also a number of really great singers from this period who are definitely worth checking out: Elis Regina, Caetano Veloso, Gal Costa, Astrud Gilberto, Wanda de Sah, to name a few.

You are very busy with Nova Collective, what have you been up to recently?

We’ve just launched into rehearsals for our new EP, which is shaping up nicely and is scheduled for release early 2016.

We’re also looking forward to, but also half-dreading, our first ever live TV appearance, which will be broadcast on BBC 2 Northern Ireland’s “I Lar an Aonaigh” on 9 November at 10pm.