Batuque da Boa Brings 48 Hours of Samba to Rio this Weekend

By Sarah Brown, Contributing Reporter

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – This weekend Rio de Janeiro will celebrate 100 years of samba with Batuque da Boa, an event which sees ten rodas de samba (live samba bands) playing the best of samba from the greatest classics to more recent songs. The bands will set up in various points throughout Rio, bringing the whole city together in celebration of samba.

The event will begin on Saturday, October 8th at 1PM with a traditional feijoada at the Mangueira samba school for only R$20. This classic Brazilian dish marks the beginning of the festivities and soon after, the samba bands will begin their relentless playing, embracing all of the history and energy of Brazil’s samba movement.

There will also be a full cultural intinerey that includes workshops, a guided tour of the city, discussions about music and styles, and an art exhibition of LPs covers made by graffiti artist Elifas Andreato.

The guided tours will be at 3PM and 4:30 PM on Saturday and Sunday, the four tours being led by tour guide, Ludmilla Gottschalk. The tours will explore the iconic points in Rio’s downtown that is considered immensely significant in the growth of samba.

Each tour on Saturday will take two and a half hours with the meeting point at Cinelandia. The tour will explore the cultural sights at Praça Marechal Floriano Peixoto before heading over to Lapa to see the famous Arcos de Lapa and the Escadaria Seláron.

On Sunday the tour will also take approximately two and a half hours with the meeting point at Museu de Arte do Rio (MAR) ay Praça Mauá. The tour will explore all the attractions of Praça Mauá such as Museu de Arte do Rio and the Museu do Amanhã, passing by Eduardo Kobra‘s huge mural before ending up at the birthplace of samba, Pedra do Sal.

On Saturday, the five live samba bands will be Arruda e Art Jr, Samba do Chapéu, Encontros Casuais & Terças Desamplificadas, Criolice and Cacique which will be playing at various venues in the city.

Sunday will see a performance at Pedra do Sal with special participation from Pretinho da Serrinha. “I chose this local [Pedra do Sal] because I haven’t been there”, explained Pretinho da Serrinha to the journal Odia. “And it’s an important place in the history of samba. This event is an achievement.”

Other key acts on Sunday will include Time de Crioulo, Galocantô, Tempero Carioca, Cacique de Ramos and Moacyr Luz e Samba do Trabalhador. To get the full list of venues and times, check the events site for full details.

The Batuque da Boa will begin Saturday, October 8th at 1PM and will continue until Sunday, October 9th. The samba bands and other cultural activities for this event will take place throughout the city.

What: Batuque da Boa
Where: throughout Rio de Janeiro
When: Saturday, October 8th – Sunday, October 9th. Starts at 1PM
Entrance: FREE