The experience of Samba is
as various as is the diversity of the Brazilian people, a mescla
(mixture) of beauty and soul with an affinity towards romance and
sensuality. With amor, Alison Costa sends root these personal experiences...
From her dearest
Brazilian friends (in an effort to help them “mata a saudade”!)
“So sei de um sambinha
antigo que tem uma das minhas linhas favoritas: quem ja passou por
essa vida e nao viveu, pode ser mais sabe menos do que eu, porgue a
vida so se da pra quem se deu, pra quem amou, pra quem chorou, pra
quem sofreu” (who has just passed through this life, has not
lived, could be more than I but no less than I, because life only
gives to those who give, to those who love, to those who cry and to
those who suffer”, from an old samba song.
Denise, originally from Sao Paulo, Brazil
Mix
Media Performance Artist, San Francisco
“When Carnaval came we
always went out of the city to a Church camp.
My family was Christian
and we not allowed to do any type of dance, especially Samba because
it was a very sensual dance and when you dance Samba you are adoring
the musicians, because when you dance you agree with what they say.
Most of the Samba songs talk about “I love you so much, I want to
make love to you, I want you to be the only girl.” Around twelve,
my sister and I always liked to dance. It was during the time of
Lambada. One day my sister and I totally forgot and started dancing
in our front yard. Our neighbor saw us, came over and told my mother
that we danced so well. We were mortified! My mom was like, “Oh
really, I didn’t know they do that, as duas vao dancar no cinto do
meu marido! (those two are going to dance with the belt of my
husband!”) Samba was so unique and it wasn’t just about learning
the steps. You had to own your own steps. You had to come out with
your own unique thing, from inside you. My sister and I would try to
get it inside the bathroom, practicing, “I think it was like this!”
Eventually I got it after a few showers! Of course my parents never
knew this.”
Juliane,
originally from Sao Paulo, Brazil
(resident
of San Francisco)
“The music is outgoing
and a good spirit. I participated at the Carnaval parade in San
Francisco. Because I’m a foreigner, I liked it and got a group of people together. I
made my own group, gathered a group of friends and put everybody on
the street. I arrived here in America and I was surprised to see the
San Francisco Mission street parade and I said lets go!
My favorite Carnival was in Bahia and
Recife. They don’t play samba there. They are all different. In
Rio, the music is mostly samba. People come from all over the world
to participate in the samba parade. Someday I’d like to do that
too!”
Celinha,
originally from Rio de Janeiro,
Brazil
“Samba is for Brazil
what Blues is for American……”
Shamba,
originally from Minhas Gerais
(Musician,
resident of San Francisco)
“I never listened to
Samba until I came here. I liked more MPB and English Rock ‘n
Roll. Carnaval is Samba, once a year, but Samba everyday, not a good
idea. Ah, because it’s not a very poetic deep type of music you
want to enjoy everyday, it’s just for dancing. It’s for the fun,
to drink, with a lot of people. When I came here, things start to
change and you go back to your roots, and that’s one of the parties
that brings you back to your roots. With friends, in general, Samba
is a party.”
Mauro, originally
from Belo Horizante,
(Hair Stylist, San
Francisco, CA)
“I grew up listening to
Samba. I learned from my babysitter and her family who were my
neighbors. I spent half my day at their house after school, from age
seven to eleven. Everybody was a dancer in that house. It was my
first authentic experience with Samba. They were very talented Samba
dancers and singers. They
played music all the time. Dancing was a major part of my time
growing up. That was my first exposure to the music and to me it meant a lot about
sharing, connecting, enjoy the music. Most of the Sambas are
happy, singing about the joy of living. That is what I remembered
most about the lyrics! Paulinho da Viola is a great Samba singer and
Bete Carvalho, she is the Queen of Samba!"
Silvia, originally
from Sao Paulo,
(Social Worker, San
Francisco, CA)
“I love Samba. When my
husband plays Samba, he plays the old samba, like Martinho da Vila
(Samba singer from Rio de Janeiro.) I grew up listening to that. We
had lots of parties in our house and happiness! Samba reminds me of
being in the kitchen. We played and danced all night. Seu Jorge is
bringing Samba back to the young people. He’s amazing. Samba was
lost. Brazil became so Americanized. We grew up listening to U2,
you know lots of Rock ‘n Roll. When I got older I started to enjoy
Samba more.”
Aparecida,
originally from Sao Paulo (resident of San Francisco)
“Thirty years ago,
recently divorced with three kids I took my first job with a large
French company. One day I was one of the students scribbling, what
looked like symbols and if I had not asked him to explain to me what
they ere I would have missed a beautiful part of my life. The signs
were Candomble marks. My friend was drawing Orixa signatures. I
asked to be taken to the Pai de Santo, the religious chief of that
community. One of the male novices became my companion. He took me
for the first time to a Samba School, Mangueira. Breathtaking! The
strong pink and green colors of the school everywhere seemed to take
me to another world. My ear and whole body vibrated under the beat
of the deep-rooted Samba drums. The dancers were not
rehearsing for the next Carnaval parade. It was just a regular
Saturday! The girls swayed and spinned and the men danced around
with hummingbird agility!”
Maria Luiza,
originally from Rio de Janeiro,
former resident of
San Francisco,
resides in
Terresopolis, Brazil
“Memoria de Samba e
querer matar imigrante…Bom vamos la a minha memoria mais loca de
Samba e estar cruzando o Deserto apos a queima do Burning Man e numa
destas instalacoes enormes no meio da playa um DJ solitario tocava
manha de Carnaval Remix. Algo muito surreal Samba no Carnaval
Galatico.” (the memories of samba is a way to torture a Brazilian
immigrant, Good, lets go there to the most crazy memory I have of
Samba. I was cruising around the desert behind the Burning Man and
one of those huge installations, in the middle of the playa, a lone
DJ was playing a Carnaval remix. Something really surreal for me,
“Samba in the Galaxy.”
Fausto, originally from Porto Alegre
(Landscape Designer, resident of San Francisco)
“Samba is pure energy,
raw, futuristic music and an uninhibited celebration of life. This
visceral sound is complimented by ecstatic dancing. Originally
created by African Diaspora on pots and pans, this sexy kitchen
ritual, overtime, spilled onto the streets as a powerful protest
against Colonial rule. Later it became the driving force for an
annual Brazilian festival attended by millions. When the
quica cries, pandeiro shuffles, cavaquino strums, hepique cracks and
the surdo throbs, the Samba has begun and all nearby sings along.
Every pelvis gyrates, children and elders soar like the phoenix, the
cripple walk again, not a soul stands still.”
SOULSALAAM, DJ, San
Francisco, Sao Paulo
“Sempre demonstrei
habilidades com esporte como judo, tennis and soft tennis.
Entretanto, danca e musica eu nunca consegui acompanhar direito. So
que uma vez, tirei uma namorada que adorava sambar. Ela era bonita e
naquele ano do nosso namoro foi convidada por uma Escola de Samba
Conceituada de Sao Paulo a ser destaque na avenida (no desfile.)
“I have always been keen
on sports such as judo, tennis and softball. Therefore, dancing and
music could never follow. One time I had a girlfriend who loved
dancing Samba. She was pretty and once was invited by a famous
Escola de Samba of Sao Paulo for the parade during Carnaval.
“Na
hora do desfile ela queria muito que eu fosse junto, mas isso nao
seria possivel pois eu nao sabia sambar e nao era integrante da
escola. Entretanto, quando o carro alegorico comecou a sair, me
ocorreu de ajudar o pessol a empurrar o veiculo. Deu certo,
atravessei toda a avenida contando o samba enredo, vi o publico me
aplaudindo .”
“At
the time of the parade, she wanted me to go with her, but that was
not possible because I did not know how to dance and was not part of
the group. However, when the parade started I ran and helped the
people start up the float (carro alegrorico). It worked! And as I
crossed the avenue, I started singing the Samba and saw people
clapping and applauding me.”
Luis, residente de
Sao Paulo
Psychologist
E agora, life in Brazil is
kinetic, naturally that’s why I’m off again to Brazil, perhaps to
discover something more about myself, or to inhale the spirit of
Carnaval, or to just drink a damm good caipirinha on the beach.
Really, for me, to be near the sea and earth… that will make my
heart sing again (maybe a samba tune!) Ate logo!
de Alison Costa
psychotherapist, dancer,
e brasileira de coracao