Viola de cocho
The viola de cocho is a singular plucked string instrument from Brazil. It is typical in the states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul and has been designated a part of Brazil's intangible national heritage by IPHAN, the Brazilian institution responsible for the preservation of the national cultural heritage. It is unusual in that although it has only three frets at most and is left unvarnished.
Also recorded as Viola-de-cocho
Viola de cocho

Brazdaviola · Public domain
- Name
- Viola de cocho
- Field
- plucked string instrument
- Region
- Brazil
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Documentary summary
The viola de cocho is a singular plucked string instrument from Brazil. It is typical in the states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul and has been designated a part of Brazil's intangible national heritage by IPHAN, the Brazilian institution responsible for the preservation of the national cultural heritage. It is unusual in that although it has only three frets at most and is left unvarnished.
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Authority files
gnd · 113918914X · wikidata · Q3560503 · wikipedia · Viola de cocho
In this article
Overview
Overview
The Portuguese word cocho, used by farm labourers, refers to a hollowed-out log forming a sort of container. The cocho is widely used, for example, to provide salt for cattle on grassland farms.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Viola de cocho • Background — string • Classification — String instrument • Hornbostel Sachs Desc — Composite chordophone • Developed — Mato Grosso, Brazil. • Related — Viola caipira, Mejoranera, Viola De Buriti
Design
Design
The viola-de-cocho is a musical instrument of the group of short lutes, produced by master craftsmen. After choosing the wood, cut the trunk into two flat parts. With a cast the wood is scratch and on which is carved a sounding board. Once carved the body of the instrument, the soundboard is glued and then the bridge, fingerboard and pegs are placed, and, finally, the frets and strings. Some instruments have a small circular hole on top, sometimes not. The viola without hole is something new. Some viola players justified that the viola with hole gave a lot of work, because always came by this hole, spiders or other animals, damaging the instrument's sound. Some former viola players prefer it to the hole because, in the words of one, the hole gives a better sound.
Gallery
Gallery
• Illustration — A traditional viola de cocho • Illustration — Viola de cocho in a museum in Osaka, Japan. • Illustration — Viola de cocho, Front view. • Illustration — Viola de cocho, Back view.
Tuning
Tuning
With unique shape and sound, the viola-de-cocho has always five orders of strings, called prima, contra, corda do meio, canotio and resposta. The strings are tuned in two different ways, canotio solto (open) and canotio preso (stopped): bottom-up, re, la, mi, re, sol, and re, la, mi, do, sol. • Illustration — canotio preso • Illustration — canotio solto (Tunings sound one octave below than notated.)
Notable performers
Notable performers
Braz da Viola, besides being a virtuoso instrumentalist is also a maker of beautiful violas-de-cocho. Another well known performer of the viola-de-cocho is the Brazilian instrumentalist Roberto Corrêa.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
- Brazil
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q3560503: Viola de cocho
Reputable secondary · Wikidata
- “Viola de cocho”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority file
- Gemeinsame Normdatei 113918914X, Viola de cocho.
Unverified · Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
authority file
Gemeinsame Normdatei 113918914X, Viola de cocho.Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Partially resolvedreference work
Partially resolvedreference work
Partially resolved
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Collectables
20,755 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
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- Viola de arameTerminology
- viola de buritiTerminology
- Viola de QueluzTerminology
- viola organistaTerminology
- viola pomposaTerminology
- viola sertanejaTerminology
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