By DANIEL COSTA*
Nei Lopes and Leonardo Bruno tell in a non-linear way the trajectory of an association that for more than seventy years has proven that it is neither better nor worse than its sisters, it is just a different school.
It is not new that society has been promoting discussions and fighting for closer relations between the University (especially the public one) and the external public, an issue that should not even raise such a discussion because it is so obvious, after all the tripod that supports the University is precisely teaching, research and extension.
However, in a context marked by accelerated globalization, where the predominant scenario is that of a globalized market, there is basic inequality between 'advanced' and 'less advanced' countries regarding privileges in the world economic market. In this scenario of competition, the role of public universities is highlighted, mainly in the training of critical professional staff. The study points to the need for universities to develop integrated research and education projects that serve areas of social and economic relevance.[I].
Attentive to this debate and aware of the role that should be played by a public university, a group of university professors and researchers decided to show that although samba is not taught in schools, as the poet from Vila wrote, the university should open its doors to the strongholds of this rhythm forged in backyards, small tents and hills.
It was with this spirit that the University Collection of Samba project emerged in the corridors of UERJ, currently coordinated by Professor Andressa Lacerda and with editorial supervision by Professor Luiz Ricardo Leitão. The extension project linked to the UERJ Educational Technology Center (CTE-UERJ) and the University's Social Communications Department (Comuns) has brought to the public reference works to think about samba and carnival, especially the carioca one.
Since the launch of the first volume in 2015, the biography of composer Aluísio Machado, written by Luiz Ricardo Leitão, the project has become a reference for those seeking to understand the development of this festival that, despite everything, can still be considered one of the most democratic and popular in the country.[ii]. With the launch of Salgueiro, the Modern “Quilombo”: drummer, mandingueiro, different, Written by Leonardo Bruno and Nei Lopes, the reader will have the opportunity to follow the process of construction and evolution of the association that would become known as the “Academia do samba”. In an almanac format, the authors review the trajectory of the school founded on March 5, 1953. According to the pair of authors, “from its birth, the Acadêmicos formed, with Mangueira, Portela and Império Serrano, until the mid-1970s, the unbeatable quartet of samba schools, known as the big four”.
The inspiration for the production of this volume came from a curious fact: in November 2001, the then Minister of Culture, Francisco Weffort, awarded the Order of Cultural Merit to the samba schools Vila Isabel, Portela, Mangueira and Império Serrano, inexplicably leaving Salgueiro out. According to the authors, this absence is unjustified when one investigates the history of Rio's carnival in depth.
As highlighted by writer and researcher Rachel Valença, responsible for the publication's preface, “the samba dancers owe the important change in focus on the choice of themes to the Acadêmicos do Salgueiro: Fernando Pamplona, in the early 1960s with his golden squad that brought together Arlindo Rodrigues, Joãosinho Trinta, Maria Augusta, Rosa Magalhães and others bambas of the arts, understood that it was time to leave aside kings, princesses, generals, their battles and an entire history that was now extremely hostile to black people, a past of disguised horrors. After all, the creators and protagonists of that spectacle that was beginning to attract the attention of the world also had a lot to tell. Who had heard of Chica da Silva, of Chico Rei? Who knew enough about the rebellion led by Zumbi in Palmares? Sung in beautiful, unforgettable carnival parades, these stories paved the way for the true owners of the party to give their history of work and struggles, their faith that withstood the crossing of an ocean, the deserved protagonism.”
About the authors of the work, no further introduction is needed. Born in Salgueiro through and through, the composer, singer, writer and researcher Nei Lopes was a member of the composers' wing and the old guard of the association. Versed in the art of composing and producing works that are references for samba and black culture.[iii], Lopes brings to the work reminiscences of those who lived the golden phase of the association. Journalist and writer Leonardo Bruno[iv], a figure who also needs no introduction, represents the association's link with the new generation of intellectuals, continuing the tradition started by names such as Eneida de Moraes, Fernando Pamplona, Haroldo Costa and Nei Lopes himself.
Written as an almanac, over nine chapters, the reader will travel through the geography of Morro do Salgueiro, getting to know the places and founding myths of a school that, from the beginning, carried innovation in its soul, even when driven by necessity. With a lively cultural life, Salgueiro was a meeting point for big names from different parts of the city in the first decades of the 20th century. According to Lopes and Bruno: There were many dances, parties and carnival groups, attended by figures such as Noel Rosa and Geraldo Pereira. Noel, for example, mentions Salgueiro more in his entire work than his own neighborhood, Vila Isabel. Geraldo Pereira, a product of Morro de Mangueira, composed one of his greatest hits in homage to a resident of Morro do Salgueiro.”
The reader will also be able to go behind the scenes of the “Revolução das Belas Artes”, the moment in which the partnership between the association and Fernando Pamplona was sealed. A partnership that would be fundamental for Salgueiro and for the future of Rio's carnival, creating a synthesis between the tradition forged by the samba schools and the expertise scenography that made the carnival parades one of the most beautiful spectacles in the country.
Another highlight of the almanac written by Nei Lopes and Leonardo Bruno is the presentation of the composers, the main leaders of the school and, of course, those who honored and honor the Salgueirense soil, making the Tijucan school a true modern quilombo. Thus, throughout 272 pages the reader will learn, even if in a summarized way, the trajectory of greats such as Anescarzinho, author of two of the greatest sambas in the history of carnival and of the group itself: Quilombo dos Palmares (1960) and xica da Silva (1963), both in partnership with Noel Rosa de Oliveira; Amado Régis, author in partnership with Djalma Sabiá of the memorable, slave ship, samba composed for the 1957 carnival. Also remembered are historic composers such as the aforementioned Noel Rosa de Oliveira, Bala, Caxinê, Geraldo Babão, Gracia do Salgueiro, Zuzuca and other names that made the school's composers' wing one of the main ones in the Rio carnival.
The reader will also be able to follow the trajectory of names such as Fernando Pamplona, Max Lopes, Joãosinho Trinta and Maria Augusta, architects of the Salgueirense aesthetic and undisputed leaders such as Djalma Sabiá, who in addition to being the founder, was the carnival director, secretary, puller and honorary president of the red and white. And more than that, he was the guardian of the Salgueirense memory throughout his life, saving documents and research materials to record the trajectory of the association.
Other names mentioned include Casemiro Calça Larga, one of the great leaders of local samba during the 1950s; Osmar Valença, who was the president of the association when it won titles in 1963, 1965, 1969, 1971, 1974 and 1975. Valença, along with Natal da Portela, was part of the first generation of animal gambling bankers who joined the samba schools. Another point highlighted by the authors is the relationship established between the association and the animal gambling bankers.
If Valença's time at the school left a series of titles, the time of another bookmaker would leave a traumatic episode as its mark for the entire community. In 1976, on the eve of Carnival, the then president Euclides Pannar, known as China Cabeça Branca, was assassinated on Maracanã Avenue, after a meeting at the square. China had fallen out with the famous bookmaker's leadership after reporting irregularities in the counting of results to the press.
Finally, we highlight the figure of another president linked to the world of crime, Waldomiro Paes Garcia, known as Miro, who before arriving at the school was among the biggest bookmakers in Rio de Janeiro. During the almost twenty years that he commanded Salgueiro, he was effectively the president between 1988 and 1993, the year of the title with the unforgettable I caught an Ita in the North. However, it is worth noting that throughout its history, Acadêmicos do Salgueiro has also had leaders outside of the criminal justice system. Figures such as Laila, Manoel Macaco, and Nelson de Andrade are remembered and revered by the authors. It is also worth noting the female presence in the association in positions of reference for the community as a whole, such as the founder Dona Maria Romana, Dona Ana Bororó, Dona Fia, Elizabeth Nunes, and Regina Celi, with the last two being elected presidents of the school.
Finally, we remember those who mark the ground when the school sings its song. From Paula do Salgueiro, to names like Narcisa, Elza Cobrinha and the current queen of the drum section Viviane Araújo, the authors give due prominence to those who defend the colors of the school on the avenue. Let us not forget the emblematic master of ceremonies and flag bearer couples, the drum section and the other wings of the school.
In addition to the historical research so well undertaken by the pair of authors, the volume also features vast iconographic material collected from various collections. Thus, the reader will be able to follow the record of historical parades recorded through the lens of photographers from the now-defunct daily newspaper. Correio da Manhã and magazines like Headline e The Cruise, complemented by illustrations by visual artist Antônio Vieira.
Present in all volumes of the University Collection of Samba, the emotional cartography of Salgueiro was the responsibility of Andressa Lacerda, Daniela Seixas and Ana Carolina Barbosa, professors linked to the Fernando Rodrigues da Silveira Application Institute (CAp-UERJ). The harmonious trio sought to show that in the Salgueiro hill there are insurgent writings and ramifications being created and recreated. The plots are intertwined with the black presence that gives identity to both the association and the map of a school that is simply different. There is no certain north or south, up or down to read the cartography created by Salgueiro. The aquatic roots evoke the ancestry that crossed the Atlantic and reverberates, through the air, its sounds, symbolisms and belongings, thus establishing strong foundations in deep soil that sprout and proliferate. After all, whether they are supporting roots, aerial or aquatic roots, Salgueiro grows strong anywhere.
With Salgueiro, the Modern “Quilombo”: drummer, mandingueiro, different, Nei Lopes and Leonardo Bruno tell the non-linear story of a group that has proven for over seventy years that it is neither better nor worse than its sister groups, it is simply a different school. Recommended for lovers of carnival festivities, the publication will also be of great interest to those who enjoy true popular culture or to those who wish to delve into this universe full of contradictions that are also not left out of the authors' writing. The only flaw in the book in question is that it only has 272 pages, since many stories and characters were left out of this comprehensive research.[v].
* Daniel Costa He is a master's student in History at the Federal University of São Paulo (Unifesp).
Reference
Leonardo Bruno and Nei Lopes. Salgueiro the modern “quilombo”: drummer, mandingueiro, different. New York, New York Times;https://amzn.to/3Bp9DEp]
Notes
[I] See: KAWASAKI, Clarice Sumi. Public universities and society: a necessary partnership. In: Journal of the Faculty of Education, vol. 23, n. 1-2. São Paulo: FE/USP, 1997. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0102-25551997000100013
[ii] For information about previous volumes see: COSTA, Daniel. Carioca samba cartography. Available in: https://dpp.cce.myftpupload.com/cartografia-do-samba-carioca/ ; COSTA, Daniel. Samba, democracy and society. Available in: https://dpp.cce.myftpupload.com/samba-democracia-e-sociedade/ e Kizomba da Vila Isabel – a celebration of black people and samba. Available in: https://dpp.cce.myftpupload.com/a-kizomba-da-vila-isabel-festa-da-negritude-e-do-samba/ .
[iii] As a composer, Nei Lopes created classics that have become part of the gallery of pearls of samba and popular music. Among his collaborators, I would like to highlight names such as: Wilson Moreira, Zeca Pagodinho, Moacyr Luz, Paulo César Pinheiro, Reginaldo Bessa and Toninho Nascimento. As a writer, he highlights the seminal Partido-alto, samba de bamba; Twenty tales and some change; Bantu Dictionary of Brazil, Dictionary of African antiquity and the Social Dictionary of Samba, in partnership with historian Luiz Antonio Simas.
[iv] Among the works written by Leonardo Bruno I highlight: Song of queens, Zeca Pagodinho – Let the samba take me, Beth Carvalho – Standing on the ground e Three samba-enredo poets. He also wrote the script for the film. Andança – The memories and encounters of Beth Carvalho and for the theater, he wrote the musical Leci Brandão – In the palm of your hand.
[v] For more information about the association's trajectory, consult the following works: ANTAN, Leonardo. Salt 60: a revolution in red, white and black. New Iguaçu: Carnivalize, 2021; BRUNO, Leonardo. Explode, Heart: Stories of Willow. Rio de Janeiro: Verso Brasil, 2013; COSTA, Haroldo. Willow. Samba academy. Rio de Janeiro: Record, 1984 and COSTA, Haroldo. Salgueiro: 50 years of glory. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003;
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