Sonhando em Salvador by Julie Hill

Sonhando em Salvador (Dreaming of Salvador) is based on the Samba Reggae rhythms performed throughout the Pelourinho District of Salvador da Bahia, Brazil. Samba reggae, developed in the 1970’s, is a result of the fusion between Brazilian samba and the music of reggae artists such as Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff, and is evidenced by the inherent swing in the style. Salvador da Bahia has the largest black population in Brazil (eighty percent), and the development of samba reggae is just one of the ways in which the local culture has embraced black awareness. The rhythms in Sonhando em Salvador are derived from the composer’s experience with Escola Didá, a fine arts academy in the Pelourinho District of Salvador dedicated to social reform for “at-risk” women and children through percussion. The founder of Escola Didá, Neguinho do Samba, is the former maestro of Olodum. Neguinho do Samba has developed his own style of samba reggae, including innovations in the surdo patterns and the introduction of the timbau drum into the percussion ensemble instrumentation. These adaptations create an infectious groove and are the “trade marks” of the Escola Didá style. Sonhando em Salvador is a tribute to Escola Didá, celebrating the music of samba reggae and their social contributions to the women and children of Brazil. It is common practice for Brazilian percussion ensembles to be choreographed. Performers commonly add dance steps, stick twirls and other visual motions. Sonhando em Salvador should begin with the performers off stage. The solo timbau player walks out alone and begins to play. His solo drumming serves to call the other performers to the stage. In the spirit of this festive music, performers should interact with the audience and each other as they enter the performance area and continue until their cue to begin playing. Singing in Sonhando em Salvador should be rhythmically accurate, but is not restricted to exact pitches, but rather, should fall in a comfortable range of each performer.