Forró

Something that nobody can complain about in Brazil is the wide cultural variety. Not only because Brazil is a huge country, but also because Brazil is just super open-minded about absorbing new cultures, and like I’m used to saying, Brazilians love change and add new things, it is why they are quite creative.

Brazil is fairly well known for samba, carnival and football, but nobody speaks about what for me personally is the best slice of Brazilian culture.

Forró is one of the most interesting genre of music and is also one of the most important sources of culture there.

Basically the genre consists of three main musical instruments, zabumba, triangle and concertina, and the dancing consists of two steps to the right and two steps to the left, dragging your feet. That’s pretty easy! You can do it!!

Forró is closely associated with the Brazilian June Festival, which occurs across the whole country, it is the biggest festival in northeastern exceeding the Carnival. Is a very joyful, colorful party, with delightful meals. The June festival is dedicated to a number of Saints, the most important of whom is Saint John’s Day.

Nowadays despite external influences Forró has its own identity and it is spread widely across the whole country. The lyrics usually talk about love, cuddling or how hard life is especially in a barren land. For that reason I think you must dance with your heart. The song can be very cheerful or extremely sad but it’s impossible to stand still just because the song of the concertina makes you move your body.

Forró has many branches like xote, baião, xaxado, pé de serra and some other. If you want know a bit more about it, follow the link to a nice playlist with some great Forró names such as Alceu Valença, Dominguinhos, Gilberto Gil, Luiz Gonzaga, Trio Virgulino, Zé Ramalho, Elba Ramalho: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWDFrMVrdZA&list=

Fernanda, Upper-Intermediate

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2 thoughts on “Forró

  1. I think Forro is a very nice type of music and dance! I want to join the carnival and dancing. But most Japanese can not be close to the opposite sex because they are shy. So if I join the carnival, I’ll have to dance with boys from other countries.

    1. Don’t be shy Saki! Haha!!!
      Well, yes you may dance together, but you don’t have to dance so close! It is not a sensual dance, but relaxing! So keep calm and dance forró! Xoxo 😉

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