Capoeira is a Afro-Brazilian martial art and game that includes elements of dance, acrobatics, music and spirituality.
Samba is a name or prefix used for several rhythmic variants, such as samba urbano carioca, samba de roda, amongst many other forms of samba, mostly originated in the Rio de Janeiro and Bahia states. Samba is a broad term for many of the rhythms that compose the better known Brazilian music genres that originated in the Afro-Brazilian communities of Bahia in the late 19th century and early 20th century, having continued its development on the communities of Rio de Janeiro in the early 20th century. Having its roots in Brazilian folk traditions, especially those linked to the primitive rural samba of the colonial and imperial periods, is considered one of the most important cultural phenomena in Brazil and one of the country symbols. Present in the Portuguese language at least since the 19th century, the word "samba" was originally used to designate a "popular dance". Over time, its meaning has been extended to a "batuque-like circle dance", a dance style, and also to a "music genre". This process of establishing itself as a musical genre began in the 1910s and it had its inaugural landmark in the song "Pelo Telefone", launched in 1917. Despite being identified by its creators, the public, and the Brazilian music industry as "samba", this pioneering style was much more connected from the rhythmic and instrumental point of view to maxixe than to samba itself.
Bossa nova is a relaxed style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a calm syncopated rhythm with chords and fingerstyle mimicking the beat of a samba groove, as if it was a simplification and stylization on the guitar of the rhythm produced by a samba school band. Another defining characteristic of the style is the use of unconventional chords in some cases with complex progressions and "ambiguous" harmonies. A common misconception is that these complex chords and harmonies were derived from jazz, but samba guitar players have been using similar arrangement structures since the early 1920s, indicating a case of parallel evolution of styles rather than a simple transference from jazz to bossa nova. Nevertheless, bossa nova was influenced by jazz, both in the harmonies used and also by the instrumentation of songs, and today many bossa nova songs are considered jazz standards. The popularity of bossa nova has helped to renew samba and contributed to the modernization of Brazilian music in general.
The music of Angola has been shaped both by wider musical trends and by the political history of the country. while Angolan music has also influenced the music of the other Lusophone countries and Latin American countries. In turn, the music of Angola was instrumental in creating and reinforcing "angolanidade", the Angolan national identity. The capital and largest city of Angola — Luanda — is home to a diverse group of styles including kazukuta, semba, kizomba and kuduro. Just off the coast of Luanda is Ilha do Cabo, home to an accordion and harmonica-based style of music called rebita.
Samba is a lively dance of Afro-Brazilian origin in 2/4(2 by 4) time danced to samba music.
Capoeira music is the traditional musical accompaniment used in Afro-Brazilian art capoeira, featuring instruments like berimbau, pandeiro, atabaque, agogô, and reco-reco. The music plays a crucial role in capoeira roda, setting the style the energy of a game.
The Carnival of Brazil is an annual festival held the Friday afternoon before Ash Wednesday at noon, which marks the beginning of Lent, the forty-day period before Easter. During Lent, Roman Catholics and some other Christians traditionally abstain from the consumption of meat and poultry, hence the term "carnival", from carnelevare, "to remove meat."
Kizomba is a social dance and music genre that originated in Angola during late 1970s to early 1980s. Kizomba is a national heritage of Angola and means "party" in Kimbundu. Traditionally, kizomba was danced with family, friends, and acquaintances in social settings such as parties and weddings, but is nowadays also enjoyed in clubs as well as other settings such as Kizomba Na Rua that are popular in Luanda.
Samba rock is a Brazilian dance culture and music genre that fuses samba with rock, soul, and funk. It emerged from the dance parties of São Paulo's lower-class black communities after they had been exposed to rock and roll and African-American music in the late 1950s.
José Adelino Barceló de Carvalho, better known as Bonga, is an Angolan folk and semba singer-songwriter. He was born in Kipiri in Luanda in 1942.
Semba is a traditional type of music and dance from Angola. Semba has its roots in Massemba and means "a touch of belly buttons" - one of the most recognizable and entertaining movements in semba.
Paulo Flores is a musician from Angola.
Ngola Ritmos was a musical group created in 1947 in the home of Manuel dos Passos by a group of young men called Domingos Van-Dúnem, Mário da Silva Araújo, Francisco Machado, Liceu Vieira Dias and Nino Ndongo who formerly comprised a group named "Os Sambas". They sang in kimbundu with the purpose to spread and divulge cultural and political awareness to the peoples of Luanda during the Portuguese Empire era. They felt a need to create something new. To spread and divulge folkloric themes that were fading away due to colonialism so Ngola Ritmos, still a small group, appeared with Liceu Vieira Días as the main guitar player and the rest playing with drums and acacia sticks as rattles.
Angolanidade is the national identity of Angola. It can also be described as Angolan cultural patriotism. Much of what is today considered angolanidade was created by Angolan intellectuals as a conscious effort to highlight an idealized vision for what it means to be Angolan.
Angola–Brazil relations are the bilateral relations between Angola and Brazil. As former Portuguese colonies, Angola and Brazil share many cultural ties, including language and religion. Both nations are members of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries, Group of 77 and the United Nations.
Humberto Cavalcanti de Albuquerque Teixeira was a Brazilian lawyer, politician, musician, and composer, mostly known for his partnership with musician Luiz Gonzaga. Together, they wrote one of the most important songs of their era, Asa Branca, in 1947. Teixeira is recognized as a specialist in baião as well as "master of costumes and popular North-Eastern trends."
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Luanda, Angola.
The Kalunga Project was a project initiated by the Angolan government to reconnect with those of the diaspora within Brazil. This tour was not only political but also a social commentary connecting Brazil and Angola through music as well as through pop-culture. Brazilian performers were invited to tour Angola, performing as an act of solidarity to the communist party during the Angolan Civil War. The tour took place in the cities Luanda, Lobito, and Benguela. All of the more than 60 performers and artists supported the MPLA in their fight for independence; many singing about anti-colonial struggles through Semba.
Artur Nunes was an Angolan musician, composer, and activist. In his time, Nunes was one of the most influential voices and composers in the pre-independence days of revolutionary Angola. Nunes, along with David Zé, Urbano de Castro and many others, was a part of a group of musicians called the FAPLA-Povo Alliance who had the role to spread and divulge awareness to Angolan citizens helping a movement of revolution. He was nicknamed "O Espiritual" due to his expertise in manifesting his feelings in a rather contagious way as if he could communicate with souls.
Angola Soundtrack is a two-volume compilation album series released by German record label Analog Africa. The albums compile music recorded between 1968 and 1978 in Angola, a period bridging the second half of the Angolan War of Independence and the beginnings of the Angolan Civil War, and which roughly coincides with the "golden age" of Angolan music. The first volume (2010) is focused on Angolan popular music of the 1960s and 70s, which drew from traditional styles including rebita, kazukuta, and semba, as well as Latin and Congolese influences. The second volume (2013) compiles more experimental music from the same period.
