When I relocated to New York from Brazil, I must confess that I wasn't that interested in the music from that country. Sure, I had a handful of records by Caetano Veloso, Rita Lee and Chico Buarque, but at the time - in October 2000 - my record collection contained more soul, blues, jazz and English rock.
It wasn't that I didn't admire the music. Just a few years earlier, I had been in the process of rediscovering bossa nova, a genre that was enjoying a revival in Brazil at the time since the publication of Ruy Castro's Bossa Nova: The History of the Brazilian Music That Seduced The World.
That and the dedicated efforts of younger musicians like Leila Pinheiro, Rosa Passos and Caetano Veloso, who kept the genre alive in its native land by constantly recording and performing songs by Jobim & Co. in their albums and live shows.
At this point I must confess that my own renewed interest in the genre came via my girlfriend at the time (who went on to become my ex-wife), who was so obsessed with the music that she even wrote a dissertation about it for college.
Anyway, at the time I left Brazil, you couldn't find much quality music in the radio, especially in Fortaleza, where mass-produced forró, pagode and axé music dominated the airwaves to the point of absurdity.
Some bands even recorded their own version of international hits adapted for their own needs. Last time I was there, I heard their take on a religious song my church band plays during communion - go figure. I had no idea what kind of Brazilian music was being made in other markets.
Sure, I often got to hear some great artists and bands like Djavan, Pato Fu, Paralamas do Sucesso, Skank and Barão Vermelho (all of whom are still active today), but they were an exception to the general rule. I personally couldn't stand what I heard on the radio there.
When I came back to the US and started writing about music, suddenly I started being exposed to artists I had barely heard about before - cats like Bebel Gilberto, Duduka da Fonseca, CéU, Monica Silva, Trio da Paz, Badi Assad, Anna Caram, The Ipanemas, Ricardo Silveira and countless others.
In the meantime, several other acts I didn't care for before matured and refined their act so much - Daniela Mercury is one that comes to mind - that I now have their albums in my collection.
What I couldn't believe was that these artists have a dedicated non-Brazilian fan base outside their own countries, even though some of them are pretty much unknown back home.
Bebel Gilberto was selling out venues in New York and London before she was even taken seriously in Brazil. Heck, I have attended at least ten of her shows over the years, but only recently have I begun hearing Portuguese spoken around me.
In the end, I had to leave Brazil in order to have a renewed appreciation and respect to its music. Today Brazilian CDs dominate my CD rack (yes, I still have those - no way I'm going to trust to have all that stuff as digital files).
I now play in a bossa band and have become more knowledgeable about Brazilian music than I was when I was actually living there. Heck, I even go to the occasional axé show when they come around town.
Ernest Barteldes is a freelance writer based on Staten Island, New York. He can be reached at ebarteldes@yahoo.com.
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yeah, brazilian music has a lot of buried treasure.... written by asp,
April 02, 2011
it runs extremly deep and powerful, but , you really have to get past the media to find it. you have to dig for it.
lets face it. people can have differant tastes.someone might not like pagode and someone else might. i like folklorico coco from pernambuco but done like forro or sertaneja.
this author mentions some great people.but, he doesnt even scratch the sufice of how many fantastic musicians there are in brazil.
gilson peranzzetta, luis avelar, luizao maia, rafaele vernet, itamar assiere, paulo russo , rafaele barata, jose luiz maia and many many more are just a few names of fantastic intrumentalists just in rio .
all over the world , the corporate media is interested in only getting a few people out there and pushing them down everyones throat and trying to make it feel like they are the only ones and the best.
you can not see any of these wonderful players on tv or radio in brazil , except on rare occasions
its really sad , all the great treasure that is lost in the shuffle
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thank you brazzil dot com for hearing my plea written by asp,
April 02, 2011
yeah, lets talk more about brazilian music and dance
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Parabens ASP! written by wiseman,
April 02, 2011
I am truly impressed with your knowledge of Brasilian music....some of the richest & most unique musical sounds in the world. I agree with you 100%.
Here's an idea for you if you want to pursue it (assuming you have the time). Create a website containing music organized by all the various genres to include the multitude of original artists you have mentioned on this thread & a previous 1. Then link it to the search engines.....I'm sure you'll be surprised by the # of hits the site gets....who knows at some point, you could even monetize it.
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wiseman written by asp,
April 03, 2011
that is a great idea
my problem is i am not very good on the computor
by the way , i made a typo , what i meant to say was " i like folklorico coco and dont like sertanega or forro "
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but here is a youtube channal i found that has some of the people in it written by asp,
April 03, 2011
it isnt devoted exclusivly to those artists, but, if you look at all the youtubes and the favorites section, some of these artists show up, like paulo russo, luizao maia, and coco raiz. there are a fair amount of dance shots also
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Thanks for the link ASP written by wiseman,
April 03, 2011
I'm sure there may be alot of kids from your son's generation who are good with IT/Computing that can be made interested in helping you on a project like this.......
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well, it is a good idea.... written by asp,
April 03, 2011
both of us have had some dificult experiances with web sites and myspaces
for , though, that is a great idea
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its really hard for intrumental music to get recognintion written by asp,
April 04, 2011
brazil has a rich history of intrumental music , whether is the history of choro, or , origins of coco's, maracatus, samba da roadas , or , classical music . brazil has one of the great classical composers in villa lobos.
but, right now, instrumental music represents 0.something of sales in brazil. its only about 2 percent in the states , with its incredable history of jazz.
its really pathetic and shameful , considering how extraordinary the contribution of the musicians is. and im including the drumers and percusionists as valuable musicians .
brazil has some of the most incredible drum and percusion music as anywhere
and, quiet as kept, you can just ask the other musicians to take a walk and just listen to the incredable drum orchestras you have in brazil, like escola da samba, timbalada groups, maracatu groups, tambor da creola etc. you see, they all have songs and melodies that go with them. but, they also have dances that go with them and you can just let the drums blast and the dancers go , and that is some of my favorite things in brazil....the drummers and dancers
i saw a monster reaffirming example of that recently when , luckily, and out of charactor for where i live, mangueira bateria dnd passistas came through. sure , they had the cavacinho and were singing some songs, but, they would let the dancers and drummers go alone sometime....and it was the best thing in the night....just sent chills and goosebumps up my spine and raised the hair up on the back of my neck.
music and dance are some of the greatest parts of the culture here, and can you beleive it, there are some idiots that are embarrased by it and think its a bad thing for brazil
+1
jesus, amoral, doesnt your long winded ass want a peice of this ? written by asp,
April 04, 2011
why dont you come on in here and weigh in on some brazilian music and dance, and how powerful your culture is.....if you actualy know your culture....
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BRAZILIAN FANFARE - in the philharmonic setting! written by jan z. volens,
April 04, 2011
The most recent classical composition from Brazil, which is conquering philharmonic programs is BRAZILIAN FANFARE - by the "carioca" composeress Clarice Assad. A unique youtube video shows the U.S. philharmonic director(ess) Dawn Harms - almost dancing the composition while she relays the cues to the musicians of the San Francisco Conservatory (youtube: Brazilian Fanfare). One of my favorite philharmonic orchestras (in Brazil) has youtube videos on the net of popular compositions which are national treasures, see youtube videos: "orquesta sinfonica itabaiana aquarela" and "orquesta sinfonica itabaiana cheiro da mata". In current brazilian music try "fundo do quintal nao quero mais" - keeping the Samba tradition! Only on records - one of Brazil's finest musical geniuses - who was active about a half a century ago (including in the USA) -FAFA LEMOS, try his selections, especially of the album "Dinner in Rio".
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elza soares and luizao maia written by asp,
April 05, 2011
i found that clip with elza and luizao written by asp,
April 05, 2011
that clip is a compilatio of elza in one part (with upright bass genius, paulo russo ), luizao and monster two time world music billboard charting artist edi machado and an instrumental by gilson peranzzetta .
elza is one of the greatest most powerful singers of all time anywhere in the world. voted singer of the millenium by the bbc, with a huge history documented on records , anyone who really wants to hear the cream of brazilian music should check her out.i got her boxed set and beleive me, many songs that are associated with other singers , were done by her first.
luizao is a genius innovator and unrecognised monster composer . those who were lucky enough to catch his group , "banda bonzai" , saw some of the most advanced braziilian writing outthere.
he even colaborated with gilson peranzzetta, another monster composer and player who just doesnt get the exposure he deserves.
paulo russo plays the upright bass like nobody in the world , and is a wonderful composer also
edi machado is an "encyclopedia of afro brazilian dance" and was a two time world music billboard charting artist
you cant find these extraordinary talents on the brazilian tv that often . its a pity, they are all treasures
the legendary banda black rio written by asp,
April 05, 2011
(im writing seperate posts so the youtube lincs go directly to the clips)
this band is a legend. i got to see the trumpet player, the late barrozinho, play in rio back in the late 80's , and he is just another monster player and composer who gets way too little recognition.
when is brazil going to recognise its instrumentl geniuses after choro ?
it didnt stop with choro. some really incredible players were making spectacular music in the late 60's , 70's and 80's, but its lost in the dust
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hamilton hollanda and daniel santiago written by asp,
April 05, 2011
How nice to see brazilian music being discussed. Brazilian music has a blend and a borogodó that is so pleasing. I am a brazilian musician with an african experience. Never played there thow, just lived. Ivory Coast, Senegal, Angola and Mozambique.
I hope in a short future to colaborate with them all...
Emiliano,
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rare footage of banda bonzai on the show of jo soares written by asp,
April 07, 2011
yeah, that is rare footage of banda bonzai , the incredible group of luizao maia that featured his extra ordinary song writing.
most people know luizao as the bass player with ellis regina, and, there was a period that he recorded with just about all the main artists in mpb. the guy is phenominal
but, very few people know a lot about him as a composer, and , this guy is just the top of the line. his compositions are sophisticated, incredibly groovy and feature his innovation on the bass and its aproach to samba
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emilio, great combination, brazil and africa written by asp,
April 07, 2011
what a mix that is
good luck on your tragectory
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To be or NOT to be ( brazilian ) written by Planet Brasil,
April 30, 2011
So typical of Brazilian Boneheads like this individual. Brazilians need outsiders "Gringos" to make them feel valued while (they ) brazilians give no respect, have a lack of transparency, do no consultation, dialogue is non existent, no fair negotiation, and participation, plus no appreciation for each other and other " gringos " who are in a sense more "brazilian" at heart than these brazilian boneheaded losers..shame on you sir!
Brazilian Music is absolutely beautiful, magical and wonderful to hear and feel.
Now, and given that to say your starting to realize how nice brazilian music is...to me it sounds like you've matured just a " little" so wake up and stop smelling your own ass and smell the beautiful and amazing brazilian coffee - loser!
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Brazilian music is a bore written by From Hollywood 2 Bollywood,
May 16, 2011
Brazilian music is a bore
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More Brazilian music written by David McLoughlin,
June 08, 2011
There's a whole new generation of Brazilian artists creating great music. You can check some of it here: http://bmabrazil.bandcamp.com/.
When I relocated to New York from Brazil, I must confess that I wasn't that interested in the music from that country. Sure, I had a handful of records by Caetano Veloso, Rita Lee and Chico Buarque, but at the time - in October 2000 - my record collection contained more soul, blues, jazz and English rock.
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lets face it. people can have differant tastes.someone might not like pagode and someone else might. i like folklorico coco from pernambuco but done like forro or sertaneja.
this author mentions some great people.but, he doesnt even scratch the sufice of how many fantastic musicians there are in brazil.
gilson peranzzetta, luis avelar, luizao maia, rafaele vernet, itamar assiere, paulo russo , rafaele barata, jose luiz maia and many many more are just a few names of fantastic intrumentalists just in rio .
all over the world , the corporate media is interested in only getting a few people out there and pushing them down everyones throat and trying to make it feel like they are the only ones and the best.
you can not see any of these wonderful players on tv or radio in brazil , except on rare occasions
its really sad , all the great treasure that is lost in the shuffle