Dama-da-Noite (Cestrum Nocturnum - a highly perfumed Brazilian flowering tree) is a Modinha Imperial dedicated to the composer's mother Maria de Ornelas Bellinati. During the First Brazilian Empire (1822-1840), the Modinha was essentially a classical music style - its relationship with the Italian opera, irrefutable. With the Second Empire (1840-1889), the Modinha passed from the aristocracy to the common people and gained a stronger Brazilian character. The guitar replaced the piano accompaniment and enriched the Modinha with a much more typical instrumental base.