Brazilian Musicians in Residency at WVU; Present Free Concert at CAC Oct. 1
Two musical groups from the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco in Recife, Brazil, will perform a free concert at the WVU Creative Arts Center, Sunday, Oct. 1, as part of a guest artist residency in the College of Creative Arts. The concert begins at 3:15 p.m. in the Lyell B. Clay Concert Theatre and is free and open to the public.
The 15-member choral ensemble, Contracantos , directed by Flvio Gomes Tenrio de Medeiros, regularly performs in music festivals and gives recitals in churches, colleges, music schools and theatres in Brazil. The group also performs with the Recife City Orchestra.
Contracantos will be joined by the popular guitar group, Arabiando , from Northeast Brazil, which is made up of young musicians who have a passion for choro.
The guest artist residency, from Sept. 25 to Oct. 3, is co-sponsored by the College of Creative Arts and the WVU Office of International Programs.
During the week-long residency, the groups will also be giving informal performances and workshops for various WVU music classes and ensembles, including the Jazz Ensemble, guitar studio, and University Choir. In addition, the groups will present a concert at the First Presbyterian Church on Tuesday, Sept. 26, and will give an interview/performance on U-92, the campus radio station, on Thursday, Sept. 28.
Flvio Medeiros will present a workshop for area teachers at Mountainview Elementary School on Saturday, Sept. 30, calledEmbracing Brazilian Rhythms: A Bridge to Brazil,sponsored by the Mountain Laurel Chapter of the American Orff-Schulwerk Association. That evening, the groups will also join local performers at the Friends of Old-Time Music Concert and Dance at the Marilla Center at 7:30 p.m.
Contracantos was formed in 2002 in the music department of the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco by Medeiros, who is professor of music there. His objective was to create anew melodyorcountermelodythat blends new and old in world music. The group is made up of students from the universitys performance program, as well as faculty and alumni.
Members often perform in local opera productions and also perform popular and traditional music in the Northeast region of Brazil. The repertoire of Contracantos consists of music by both Brazilian composers and foreign composers from various periods. The group gives concerts of Brazilian Indigenous music, Maracatus (Black Brasilian Music), Frevo and Ciranda (all northeast styles), and Musica Popular Brasileira. In 2003, the ensemble traveled to France and in 2005 the group was invited to return to participate in the project,2005 Year of Brasil in France. Contracantos performed 15 concerts in France and in Geneva, Switzerland, and also offered workshops for singers and instrumentalists on Brazilian choral and percussion musical styles.
Arabiando also started in 2002, with most of the musicians attending the Universidade Federal Permambuco at that time. Their mission is to research new sonorities and to spread the music of choro throughout Brazil. The name Arabiando is a tribute to Esmeraldino Sales, composer of the choro. Arabiando evokes the great masters of choros, bossa, samba and frevo.Arabiarmeans to sing verses and poems, songs and choros. The sound of this group is unique to its members backgrounds, blending classical, rock and frevo styles. They are well known for playing frevo, and in their five years of existence they have performed street frevo, blocho frevo, and frevo cano. Improvisation has a special place in the group. Arabiando performs throughout Northeast Brazil, often accompanying the choral group Contracantos .
For more information about the concert or the guest artist residency, contact the College of Creative Arts at (304) 293-4841, Ext. 3108.
Members of the Contracantos choral ensemble:
Soprano
Rosemary Carlos
Eliane Chagas
Fbia Cobral
Isadécia Estelita
Tenor
Eriberto Chagas
Jadiel Gomes
Isaac Pedro
Contralto and Mezzo-Soprano
Virgnia Cavalcanti
Geni Katz
Anatcia Rodrigues
Nadja Silva
Waldcelma Silveira
Bass and Baritone
Giovanni Costa
Frana Filho
Riva Gervsio
Members of Arabiando guitar group:
Ricardo Freitas, seven string guitar
Rodrigo Samico, six string guitar
Tadeu, Jr., pandeiro
Bruno Eduardo, cavaquinho
Rafael Marques, bandolin
Anastcia Rodrigues, singer