Samba is Brazil's most influential music and dance, representing a fusion of mainly African and European traditions and encompassing myriad variations. Embodying the joy and exuberance of Brazilian culture, samba inspires people everywhere to participate in its life-affirming sounds and movements.
With its roots in circle dances from the Congo-Angola region of Africa, samba developed into an independent form of music among the Afro-Brazilian communities of Rio de Janeiro in the early 20th century. A dynamic blend of irresistible rhythms and poignant lyricism, samba soon became Brazil's national sound and a favorite music for Carnaval.
Possibly the world's most famous annual celebration, Carnaval in Rio brings people together in a four-day festival of music, dance, and revelry before the more pious period of Lent in the Catholic calendar. Each year during Carnaval, dozens of neighborhood-based social clubs called "escolas de samba," or "samba schools" – whose origins date back to the late 1920s – compete in a massive parade competition with floats, costumes, and samba songs, rhythms, and dance. At the heart of each samba school is the "bateria," a powerful percussion ensemble that drives the festivities with its rapturous, African-based polyrhythms. The top samba schools present their pageants in an enormous outdoor avenue with paying spectators called the "Sambadrome." Involving tens of thousands of participants, Rio's samba school parades serve as an important symbol for Brazil worldwide.
The phenomenon of the samba school has already traveled around the world. There is now a veritable international samba community, and numerous cities in Europe, the U.S., Japan, and elsewhere feature their own homegrown samba schools that perform for local parades and shows. Joining this tradition, Samba New York! has come onto the scene as New York's newest and most dynamic samba school!
With its roots in circle dances from the Congo-Angola region of Africa, samba developed into an independent form of music among the Afro-Brazilian communities of Rio de Janeiro in the early 20th century. A dynamic blend of irresistible rhythms and poignant lyricism, samba soon became Brazil's national sound and a favorite music for Carnaval.
Possibly the world's most famous annual celebration, Carnaval in Rio brings people together in a four-day festival of music, dance, and revelry before the more pious period of Lent in the Catholic calendar. Each year during Carnaval, dozens of neighborhood-based social clubs called "escolas de samba," or "samba schools" – whose origins date back to the late 1920s – compete in a massive parade competition with floats, costumes, and samba songs, rhythms, and dance. At the heart of each samba school is the "bateria," a powerful percussion ensemble that drives the festivities with its rapturous, African-based polyrhythms. The top samba schools present their pageants in an enormous outdoor avenue with paying spectators called the "Sambadrome." Involving tens of thousands of participants, Rio's samba school parades serve as an important symbol for Brazil worldwide.
The phenomenon of the samba school has already traveled around the world. There is now a veritable international samba community, and numerous cities in Europe, the U.S., Japan, and elsewhere feature their own homegrown samba schools that perform for local parades and shows. Joining this tradition, Samba New York! has come onto the scene as New York's newest and most dynamic samba school!
