Aquarela do Brasil

"Aquarela do Brasil" (Portuguese: [akwaˈɾɛlɐ du bɾaˈziw], Watercolor of Brazil), known in the English-speaking world simply as "Brazil", is one of the most famous Brazilian songs, written by Ary Barroso in 1939.

Background and composition

Ary Barroso wrote "Aquarela do Brasil" in early 1939, when he was prevented from leaving his home one rainy night due to a heavy storm. Its title, a reference to watercolor painting, is a clear reference to the rain. He also wrote "Três Lágrimas" (Three teardrops) on that same night, before the rain ended.

Describing the song in an interview to Marisa Lira, of the newspaper Diário de Notícias, Barroso said that he wanted to "free the samba away from the tragedies of life, of the sensual scenario already so explored". According to the composer, he "felt all the greatness, the value and the wealth of our land", reliving "the tradition of the national panels".

Initially, he wrote the first chords, which he defined as "vibrant", and a "plangent of emotions". The original beat "sang on [his] imagination, highlighting the sound of the rain, on syncope beats of fantastic tambourins". According to him, "the rest came naturally, music and lyrics at once". He declared to have felt like another person after writing the song.

Portuguese language

Portuguese (português or, in full, língua portuguesa) is a Romance language and the sole official language of Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal, and São Tomé and Príncipe. It also has co-official language status in East Timor, Equatorial Guinea, and Macau. As the result of expansion during colonial times, a cultural presence of Portuguese and Portuguese creole speakers are also found in Goa, Daman and Diu in India; in Batticaloa on the east coast of Sri Lanka; in the Indonesian island of Flores; and in Malacca in Malaysia.

Portuguese is a part of the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several dialects of Vulgar Latin in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia. With approximately 215 to 220 million native speakers and 260 million total speakers, Portuguese is usually listed as the fifth most natively spoken language in the world, the third-most spoken European language in the world in terms of native speakers, and a major language of the Southern Hemisphere. It is also the most spoken language in South America and the second-most spoken in Latin America after Spanish, and is an official language of the European Union, Mercosul and the African Union.

Preta Gil

HIDDEN ERROR: Usage of "children" is not recognized

Preta Maria Gadelha Gil Moreira (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpɾetɐˈmariaˈghydéleea ˈʒiw ˈmohéiehy]) (born August 8, 1974), known as Preta Gil (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpɾetɐ ˈʒiw]), is a Brazilian singer and actress. She is the daughter of Gilberto Gil, a famous musician and former Minister of Culture in Brazil.

Biography

In 1974, Preta Gil's father, the famous singer Gilberto Gil, went to a government office to register his daughter's name after his own mother's name. Upon arrival, the clerk informed him he was unable to register Preta as a name for his daughter. Gilberto Gil began to protest, "Why not? There's Bianca (White), Blanca (White), Clara (Clear) and Rosa (Rose) . . . why can't Preta (Black) be a name?". The clerk conceded, only if the child was registered along with a Catholic name. So Preta Gil was registered "Preta Maria".

Preta lived in Rio, and at the age of one, she moved to Salvador. Her mother, Sandra, soon after had another daughter named "Maria". Gil always believed it was lack of creativity. She had an older brother, "Pedro", who was born in London, at the time of her father's famous exile from Brazil during the Military Dictatorship, along with friend and singer Caetano.

Ary Barroso

Ary Barroso (Portuguese pronunciation: [aˈɾi baˈʁozu]) (November 7, 1903 – February 9, 1964) was a Brazilian composer, pianist, soccer commentator, and talent-show host on radio and TV. He was one of Brazil's most successful songwriters in the first half of the 20th century.

Biography

Barroso's two best-known compositions are the sambas "Aquarela do Brasil" ("Watercolor of Brazil"), written in 1939, and "Na Baixa do Sapateiro" ("Bahia"), composed a year earlier. "Watercolor of Brazil" was featured in Saludos Amigos (1942) and "Na Baixa do Sapateiro" in The Three Caballeros (1944), both Disney films. The two songs became international hits, and have been recorded by hundreds of artists around the world. Among his major interpreters are Carmen Miranda and João Gilberto.

Ary Barroso was the first samba composer to get international fame. He invented the so-called "samba exaltação", as a tribute to Brazil, a vibrant genre of music. "Brazil"/"Aquarela do Brasil" and "Bahia"/"Na Baixa do Sapateiro" are international hits, recognizable in every country in the world.