Ailton Nunes, director of the Mangueira samba school, tours the U.S.

Ailton Nunes, the director of Rio's oldest samba school still in competition, Mangueira, is touring the U.S. as a guest instructor, bringing Mangueira's style of samba to percussion schools in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, among other places. This is the first time these cities have had a visit from a samba instructor of his stature visiting in this capacity; samba enthusiasts therefore consider his visit a milestone in the States.  He was part of the faculty at last year's Brazil Camp California, where for two one-week sessions he taught Mangueira's rhythms and breaks to a highly advanced group of samba percussionists.  The subsequent performance of the Advanced Bateria class was phenomenal. 

Advanced Bateria class with Ailton Nunes - California Brazil Camp 2012, Week #1

Ailton's stop in New York City is being hosted by Samba New York, and is almost sold out even though it's still almost two weeks away.  The fact that there are enough advanced players in the U.S. to fill up master classes in more than three cities speaks to the vitality and maturity of the samba percussion scene in this country.  Even though samba is not an instrinsic part of the culture here the way it is in Brazil, it's a scene that, while still small, has clearly come a long way.  This workshop tour by such a high-profile director will further strengthen this small but very active and vibrant community.

I did not hear back from Ailton in time to include his comments in this piece -- he just finished his class at the Samba da Mudança school in L.A., and is probably really busy -- but Mangueira is a highly respected part of the Grupo Especial, the elite group of samba schools at the forefront of Rio's Carnaval.  Based in the heart of Rio's working-class North Zone, Mangueira is known for a lot of "firsts".  Their full, official name, "Estação Primeira de Mangueira" refers to the neighborhood of Mangueira's place as the first stop on the railroad, right after Central Station.  But they were also the first to win a Carnaval championship, the first to use a surdo in the bateria, and the first to create a theme or "enredo" around their parade.  They are also, now, the first to send a high-level instructor on a workshop tour to the United States. 

Mestre Ailton Nunes will be in Chicago on April 6, and in New York City on April 14.  Places in the New York City workshop are limited, mostly because physical space is limited.  Anyone interested is encouraged to contact Philip Galinsky immediately at Samba New York at info@sambanewyork.com.

Remembering Emilio Santiago

Emilio Santiago has died from complications of a stroke that left him hospitalized in Rio de Janeiro for almost two weeks.  The singer, who some in the United States nicknamed "the Brazilian Nat King Cole", had a silky baritone voice that charmed audiences all over Brazil and around the world.  He was 66. 

Santiago recorded his self-titled first album in 1975, on the CID record label, with a collection of little-known songs by famous composers.  The following year he signed a contract with Phillips-Polydor, with whom he remained until 1984, recording ten albums.  But his big break came in 1988, with his inclusion in the Aquarela Brasileira collection, a seven-volume set by Som Livre dedicated to the Brazilian repertoire.  Santiago was the featured artist in disc #4 in the series, and sales exceeded all expectations.  He went on to gain both national and international attention, both as a soloist and a collaborator.  He worked with some of the greatest names in Brazilian music:  Dick Farney, João Donato, Caetano Veloso, and more recently Bossacucanova and Marcos Valle, among others.  Here he is onstage with Leny Andrade, performing "Uma Batida Diferente":

And here he is singing "Saigon", one of his best-loved signature hits:

Santiago came to New York in 2009 and 2010 as part of Birdland's Bossa Brasil Fest, where I had the privilege to hear him alongside the likes of Sergio Brandão, Marcos Valle, and Cidhinho Texeira.  Those were two magical evenings.  He had a way of doing a ritardo at the end of a song or phrase that just brought all the sadness and beauty of existence together into one moment, and gave new meaning to the phrase "making time stand still".

I was also surprised and delighted to hear Santiago's voice on one of the tracks of Bossacucanova's new album, "Nossa Onda é Essa!", released in December 2012.  He sings João Gilberto's tune "É Preciso Perdoar".  As far as I know it's the last song he ever recorded:

 Definitely, we will never hear a voice like that again in this world.  Rest in peace, Emilio Santiago.

R.I.P. Chorão

The Brazilian music scene was saddened this week by the news that Alexandre Magno Abrão, fondly known as Chorão, was found dead in his São Paolo apartment on Monday.  He was 42.  Chorão (literally "big cry") was an original member of the band Charlie Brown Jr., a Brazilian rock band heavily influenced by alternative rock.  They've been compared with Coldplay, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and other punk-influenced bands on independent record labels that had their heyday in the 1990s.  The story goes that Chorão originally took to the stage in a São Paolo rock club during another singer's bathroom breaks, attracted the notice of other musicians in the audience, and soon found himself frontlining his own band.    When Chorão crashed his car into a coconut stand named Charlie Brown, the band got its name.  Their first album, Transpiração Continua Prolongada, was very successful, and won the band a Brazilian MTV music video award.

Charlie Brown Jr. is an example of the way many Brazilian musicians can take foreign influences and make them their own.  The lyrics are in Portuguese, but the music is heavily influenced by American styles and culture.  Chorão himself loved skateboarding -- he sometimes performed onstage with his skateboard, and his forearms were tatooed with slogans reflecting his obsession with the sport.  

His voice  sounds to me like a Brazilian Kurt Cobain or Anthony Kiedis, and is perhaps at its best here:

Meanwhile, the distinctively Brazilian qualities of some of Charlie Brown Jr's music can be found here:

The cause of Chorão's death is not yet known, but drugs were suspected.  More will likely be known in the next few days.