Understanding the Portuguese Culture by Discovering the birthplace of Modern Music
Portugal is a colorful country with a rich Portuguese culture. It is very important for Portugal to maintain its cultural heritage, because it has given birth to so many influential artists, writers, and musicians. Many of the dances, songs, and theater works in Portugal came from a Portuguese background, and many of these elements are still there today. In fact, some of the dances and music forms have been incorporated into other cultures as a part of traditional re-use and as a part of their preservation.
Portugal’s music industry is world famous, and the use of Chumbia, which is the dance form of the time, has made it very popular among the young and old alike. Chumbia is one of the most widely used forms of music in Portugal, especially in rural areas. This is a distinct type of dance that originates from the Garifuna community in rural areas and has recently spread into regions like Benidorm and Estoril. There are many types of musical instruments and dances associated with the Chumbia, such as the toxin or the mele cox opera, which is an indigenous type of flamenco, and the casa do Guincho, which is a flamenco dance form that has become very popular in Portugal and is taught in schools all over the country. These dances were popular and were used as a way to entertain the locals.
Portugal’s most well-known composers are Afro-Brazilian musicians, such as Carlos Santana and Leiko Matagi, who have become world famous due to their album and video for “Docto”. Another interesting side of Portugal’s musical history is the fact that one of the most popular television shows in the world is a Portuguese production, called Lisamos. This show, which is similar to Top Gear, features two motorbikes racing around the country, at various points on the route. Each week, one vehicle is forced to go faster than the other, until it finally reaches its death-defying finish. Each episode features a different Brazilian town or city, and the episodes are filmed in different cities throughout Portugal.
Other interesting types of music that have enjoyed commercial success in Portugal include dance, theater, literature and music. Among the Portuguese writers most famous for their work are Afro-Brazilian writer Afro- Paulo and his brother and contemporary, Brice da Costa. The brothers wrote more than 500 works of fiction and were awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1973 for their extensive work on ancient mythology and culture.
One of the most important recording artists from Portugal’s musical history is the songwriter and producer Cipriano de Capoeira. Cipriano created such famed recordings as “Odder” (also known as “Your Little Rose”), “Bodhisattva” and “Capoeira”. Cipriano’s works made him one of the most well-known and influential of modern classical music. He died in a car crash while driving to Rio to record some of his albums. A number of his recordings were recorded by Carlos Santana, who made several acclaimed recordings of Latin music.
Today, a great deal of music is being made in Portugal, much of which is being produced by young people from the Lisbon suburbs. Some of the more popular names in Portugal’s audio industry are producers such as Paco Loves, whom I interviewed recently, and Ricardo Villazoles, whose band, Ambiance, released an album entitled, “Agua Vaquerita”. Both producers fell under the tutelage of well-regarded music producers, Joao Gilho and Gilberto Gil, both of whom have had major breakthroughs and careers in the mainstream music industry. The younger generation in Portugal are producing a great deal of high quality music, both in audio recording and music production. It is this emerging new breed of producers and recording talents which are likely to produce some of the most groundbreaking music of the next decade and beyond.
Another aspect of Portugal’s music scene which I would like to discuss with you in particular is the role of the university and its arts department in promoting the art-music lovers from Lisbon and other regions of Portugal. Many contemporary musicians and DJs owe much of their success to the Lisbon school of thought and their innovative, non-conformist thinking. Lisboa University has, for many years, offered professional DJ and music production programs to both the public as well as private students. In 2004, Lisboa University began offering a specialized degree in electronic music production, thereby laying the groundwork for what would become one of the most well known and respected universities in Portugal.
A great deal of interest in Portuguese music and culture is also generated by the fact that most of the best performing artists of Portugal are also from Lisbon or other major cities within the Lisbon belt of Portugal. There are several prominent performers in this field including the likes of DJ Cipollino, Antigua Musica, Tiago Paiva, Laura Gallo and Joana Gil. In terms of recording, Lisbon is home to numerous recording studios and recording artists such as Tiago Paiva, Laura Gallo, Cipollino and Joana Gil. These recording artists have made a name for themselves playing on radio and TV, as well as recording music for a variety of ad campaigns. This type of exposure has helped these young talents to build a catalogue of music that would go on to become the foundation of bands such as the Beach Boys, Akon and Willy Wonka. The recording pioneers of Portugal’s audio industry, particularly from Lisbon, have gone on to establish names in their own right such as Cipollino (deceased), Tiago Paiva (deceased), Laura Gallo (deceased), Ciro Marchetti (deceased) and Tiago Volandras (deceased).
