YALE ALUMNI SPONSOR CASA SANTA ANA’S CHORUS OF CHILDREN AND TEENAGERS:
VOICES UNITED TO OVERCOME OBSTACLES
O GLOBO
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
November 6, 2006
At the musical event a feeling of integration was stronger than any other. In a hall rented from the Padre Miguel Mocidade Independente, children and teenage members of a chorus from the City of God district welcomed five similar groups from the US and Canada who were on a concert tour through Latin America. They sang songs from the popular Brazilian repertoire and appeared with senior members of their community. At the end, mixed with the young foreigners who were energized to dance to the rhythms of the mirim musicians of the samba school.
The encounter, which took place in July, was one of the most notable in the history of the chorus of children and young people of the Casa Santa Ana, a senior care home in the City of God district of Jacarepagua. About 18 months ago the group, which calls itself New Voices, received sponsoring support from the Yale Alumni Chorus Foundation, an American university located in New Haven, Connecticut.
“We had a visit from the Yale Alumni Chorus on tour. They got to know our work and liked what they saw. Today, we’re sort of a branch of Yale in the City of God,” said social worker Maria de Lourdes Braz who is responsible for the programs of the Casa Santa Ana.
The sponsorship was established thanks to the cooperation of the Brazil Foundation and the contractual agreement is to last for three years. With this help, said Maria de Lourdes, the scope of the project, which had been in existence for some six years, has improved markedly. The chorus has a conductor, a percussion instrumental group, and instructors.
“Besides this”, she added, “we buy musical instruments and offer the youngsters a meal, since many come to the rehearsals directly from school. But it’s not just the money from the sponsorship that’s important. It also opens doors for us and spreads the word about our work, even outside Brazil.”
Maria de Lourdes stresses that the project isn’t limited just to developing musical ability. It has the object also of forming citizens. “The youngsters have opportunities to visit museums and theaters, to widen their perspectives on life, and this is very important. It enables them to understand that the City of God is not their only world. Music breaks down racial and social prejudices and eliminates barriers.”
Priscilla Pimentel, a social worker at the Casa Santa Ana, emphasizes that mastering the music does a great deal for the group members’ self-esteem. Vital too, she asserts, is the bringing together of the generations, an additional reason for the creation of the chorus. The seniors already have their own vocal group, and now, from time to time, they stage joint concerts.
The change that has occurred with the oldest people at the Casa is confirmed by Adriano Henrique da Silva dos Santos, who is 16 and lives in the City of God with his mother and two brothers. A senior high school student, he works as a messenger and often rehearses with his colleagues who are much older.
“Overall, there now exists a closer and more informed relationship of the young with the old.”
New Voices has 30 singers, children and teenagers aged nine to 17. According to the director, singing professor Jose Carlos de Farias, the project gained in interest as the young people saw the work of the seniors’ chorus. Jose Carlos teaches the violin and says that the training is based on correct sound production. In the future, though, there will be training in musical theory. Since the group began receiving the support of the Yale Alumni Chorus Foundation, besides singers, it includes percussion instruments – the agogo, pandeiro, tambourine, and even the berimbau, something very unusual for choruses.
“The percussion instruments add a distinctive color to our performances and allow for a new form of expression, since they have such strong rhythms,” says Jose Carlos.
The repertoire is essentially Brazilian, with titles like Trenzinho do caipira, Amore de Indio, and Feitico da Vila. There is an average of about one performance a month. The group has already raised its voices in places like Concha Acustica of the University of Rio de Janeiro, the Church of the Candelaria, Firjan and Furnas.
“They have a very fervent desire to create something new”, says the director.
Who’s Winning: Adriano Henrique da Silva dos Santos
“I started with the chorus about three years ago. A colleague that was a member of the group invited me to sit in. I went to see what it was like. It was a surprise for me, because I liked it a lot and had never before taken part in a chorus, had never thought of doing anything in the world of the arts. I found it easy to follow the notes and placement and really liked the songs that were in the repertoire, which I’d never before heard. My favorite was the Andanca. On days we performed I get scared and nervous beforehand, of course, but this disappears when the time comes to sing. We start getting carried away, and nothing gives me as much pleasure and being there.
“Because of the project I decided to learn to play the keyboard at the church I go to. I had never thought of becoming a musician. But now I see this passion for music. Before, I thought I would never have a professional future. Now, I want to sing, play, and get involved in everything. My most immediate goal is to be able to accompany the performances of the chorus. Later, I’d like to form a band to play religious music in church.
“In the chorus, everybody is thinking about going to perform in the US, because there’s a chance that we could make that trip within a year or year and a half. But we have to really work to grow professionally. Another great thing about the project is that I’ve developed new friendships and now know many more people”
Osvaldo Soares