Archive for February, 2010
Carnaval!
During carnaval in Fortaleza most people leave town and head for the beach. But those who stay get to witness one of Fortaleza’s most captivating traditions. Groups of musicians and dancers spend the year rehearsing for the city’s carnaval parade, where participants slowly process down a grandstand-lined boulevard, drumming maracatu cearense, a rhythm unique to Ceará.
Here’s my video of Maracatu Nação Fortaleza’s final rehearsal, led by composer/musician Calé Alencar, only three days before this year’s carnaval parade. It was part rehearsal, part block party:
And here’s Maracatu Nação Fortaleza performing in downtown Fortaleza during carnaval:
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Beneath The Stigma
Beautiful Lake Malawi - Photo Credit: Kaitlin Houlditch-Fair
Much of this project’s success has been achieved under the auspices of the UNC Malawi Project. They have a fantastic peer educator support group brought together to educate, counsel, and encourage HIV positive and pregnant women undergoing PMTCT (Prevention of Mother To Child Transmission). Last week I arrived at Bwaila Hospital in downtown Lilongwe for a prescheduled meeting with some of these peer educators. Bwaila can be overwhelming. Walking through the gates, I saw a scattering of dusty buildings punctuated by those brightly colored chitenjes (Malawian print cloth) so many of the women wrap around their babies and themselves. There were so many women…and babies. These women patiently sit and wait and wait. Seeing a doctor in Malawi seems to involve a LOT of patience.
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Making Calabash Fiddles
Francisco Ferreira de Freitas Filho, better known as Di Freitas, is a conservatory trained musician who’s played in orchestras around Brazil. In 2002, he settled down in Juazeiro do Norte, a city in the interior of Ceará known for its rich culture, and became enamored with the sound of the rabeca, a kind of folk fiddle. When he began teaching music to local children, many of them couldn’t afford to buy instruments, so he decided to teach them how to make their own rabecas.
Di Freitas recently came to Fortaleza to lead a week-long workshop at the Banco do Nordeste, where we spent our days making rabecas de cabaça (rabecas made from calabash gourds). Watch the video to see how it’s done and to hear Di Freitas playing the rabeca de cabaça in the song “Segura o Coco” from his CD, O Alumioso.
Michael Silvers Discusses His Fulbright-mtvU Fellowship
Michael Silvers Discusses His Fulbright-mtvU Fellowship experience and encourages you to apply. The application deadline for the next round of Fulbright-mtvU Fellowships is March 1st. Click here for more info and to start your application.
“Ready To Fight This War With You”
Photo Credit: Kaitlin Houlditch-Fair
I had heard of the organization World Camp for Kids when I was in North Carolina during this project’s planning stages. I have a few friends who have done their Malawi program and each one came back raving “oh Andrew you HAVE to go meet World Camp!! You have to go see what they do.” By coincidence their American office is in my home town Asheville and their Malawi office is in my “new home” town Lilongwe.
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Up to four awards will be available to pursue projects around an aspect of international contemporary or popular music as a cultural force for expression. Preference will be given to creative projects that are conveyed in a dynamic fashion and are accompanied by a feasible plan. In addition to presenting unique projects on music as a global force for mutual understanding. Deadline to apply is March 1, 2012.