Samba
is a Brazilian music genre that originated in the Afro-Brazilian communities of
Rio de Janeiro in the early 20th century. It is a blend of West African and Brazilian
folk traditions (Souza, 2), whose instruments consist of percussion,
tambourine, cuíca, tamborim, ganzá, surdo, guitar and the cavaquinho (Souza, 3). The music is mainly tied to the Rio de
Janeiro and Bahia states in southeast Brazil.
Samba
is highly known for its dance movements, or “popular ballet”. The dance incorporates various elements of
umbigada of West African origin (Souza, 4).
Xiba, fandango, catereté, cambomblé, and Bahian are other dances that
the samba borrowed from. Samba dancing
involves heavy rhythmic movement by swaying the hips and extending arms, often
with ostentatious costumes (example below).
Famously,
samba is performed at high profile festivals in the Rio de Janerio area,
including Carnival and the Festa de Penha.
Among the most famous samba performers were Carmen Miranda, Cartola, and
Clara Nunes. The genre is immensely
popular in Brazil (Souza) and is most famous internationally for its derivative
bossa nova, which globalized a softer sounding version of it. Souza (2) states that many other subgenres
evolved, including pagode, high party, samba breque, samba-song, the samba
enredo and the terreiro samba.
I
am personally fond of bossa nova and will provide a link to the song that first
globalized this genre, “Chega de Saudade” (Antonio Carlos Jobim’s instrumental
version). I love how it takes me to
another world, or a tropical paradise far removed from the city. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2VxDmP6X4E
Billie
Eillish recently wrote a great song with a bossa nova flavor: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbqdgmiiY3E
Here
is a more traditional recording from Carmen Miranda, “Cunta de Gusta”, from A
Date With Judy (1948): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEy3KaXJUdk
Here
is some modern Samba dancing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUfZkTqmqb0
Source:
SOUZA, A. C.. The
origin of samba in Brazil. Humanum Sciences, v.3, n.1, p.1-13, 2021. DOI:
http://doi.org/10.6008/CBPC2674- 6654.2021.001.0001
No comments:
Post a Comment