Carnival 2011 in Salvador da Bahia, Brazil
(aka "The World's Largest Party"!)*
 Martinho da Cuica |
Carnival in Bahia is it, baby! That is, of course, if parties and crowds are your thing. Nowhere else comes close. Carnival Bahia is not nubile women in feathers high up on floaters à la Carnival Rio. It's YOU out there on the streets doing it 'til you drop.
*"The World's Largest Party" is an appellation that I often hear or see ascribed to our brothers and sisters down in Rio de Janeiro (for example, one entity listing Carnival in Rio as the world's biggest is Forbes.com).
Carnival in Rio encompasses 700 meters of street (Rua Marquês de Sapucaí), with grandstands. Now that's like seven football stadiums in a row, and that's pretty big!
But...
Carnival in Bahia encompasses kilometer after kilometer of streets filled to the brim, practically bursting with people, not to mention block after block lined with camarotes (stands).
With all due respect and more to A Cidade Maravilhosa and its magnificent Carnival history, it's no contest!
(And perhaps Forbes should stick to something they know about, like money!)
Carnaval (as it's spelled in Portuguese) 2011 starts Thursday, March 3rd, and it runs through Tuesday, March 8th -- officially. Unofficially (and actually) it runs to the morning of Ash Wednesday, March 9th, and then continues in the arrastão (roundup) of Timbalada, which starts Wednesday morning at the Farol da Barra and winds its way along Avenida Oceanica to Ondina. The arrastão, which started several years ago and was only Timbalada has now seen other people and blocos jump on the the bandwagon (quite literally). It's grown to include at least three trios and blocos, winding up early Wednesday afternoon, and then there you are at Ondina's lovely beach, where the party continues at the barracas. Whew! I'll be at Heinz's.
Carnival 2011 programming here as soon as it's released...
Remember, the Osmar Circuit is the Avenidas between Campo Grande and Praça Castro Alves...the Dodô Circuit is the Barra-Ondina Circuit...and the Batatinha Circuit leaves from Pelourinho (Rua da Misericórdia, just outside Pelourinho actually), running up Avenida Carlos Gomes and to Campo Grande and then back down Avenida Sete de Setembro.
Salvador Carnival Modus Operandi
Carnival in Salvador basically has two parts: the parade of trio elétricos (more about them in a moment), and the barracas. A trio elétrico is a done-up semitrailer, loaded with thousands of watts of sound equipment and with a band playing on top. They parade very slowly along one of two circuits; one closer to the city center, running from Campo Grande (literally "Big Field", Salvador's central park) to Praça Castro Alves (named for Antônio Frederico de Castro Alves, the Bahian poet who, among other things, wielded his mighty pen against the injustices of slavery and political oppression) and the other running from Barra to Ondina, along the Atlantic Ocean. They are called "trios" because the first one was an old car ('29 Ford) with a driver and two musicians (Dodô and Osmar) in the back (the car can be seen in the museum at the Lagoa da Abaeté in Itapoan; it debuted in 1950).
"1950: THUS WAS BORN THE TRIO ELÉTRICO"
The trios form the nucleus of the blocos (with the exception of the blocos afros). One pays to join a bloco and is given an abadá (a getup consisting of a t-shirt and shorts, usually), which allows one to parade with the bloco inside the cordão (rope carried by security personnel). The people who aren't in blocos, and who are hence outside of the roped-off areas around the trios, are called pipoca (or popcorn).
An exception to the ubiquitous abadás can be found in Margareth Menezes' bloco, Os Mascarados (“The Masked Ones”). In a not-so-reverent nod to another time, members of this bloco dress in their own costumes (more further down)!
The other part of Carnaval is the barracas. They are everywhere, turning Salvador into a city of ten thousand parties. A lot of them have their own sound systems. And where there isn't a barraca, there'll be somebody with an isopor (styrofoam cooler) selling beer or batidas (cachaça/fruit mixtures; killer strength).
 |
|---|
On the Thursday evening which is the beginning of Carnaval, the city's mayor turns the key to the city over to Rei Momo at Campo Grande (rei is "king", and although " Rei Momo" is a different person every year "he" always looks like an overweight Nero; also, this year, 2010, the key changing-of-the-hands will take place at Praça Castro Alves). Thursday is generally kind of a slow Carnaval night ("slow" is a very relative term here, I must warn you), a lot of people still have to get up and go to work on Friday. Friday night picks up, and then on Saturday (Sábado do Carnaval) all hell breaks loose. Watch out for crushes of people, especially on closed-in areas when trios pass, because it can get truly scary.
A lot of people with the money to spend rent camarotes (kind of like boxes along the parade route) from which they can watch the activity and then descend into the muvuca (madness) when they feel like it.
So, What's Up With All These Carnival Circuits?!
The three Carnival Circuits are:
• The Campo Grande - Praça Castro Alves Circuit, also called the “Osmar” Circuit, or simply the “Avenidas”.
• The Barra - Ondina Circuit, also called the “Dodô” Circuit.
• The Pelourinho Circuit, also called the “Batatinha” Circuit.
Then there's also Pelourinho itself, where the Carnival is old-fashioned and suitable for families and children.
 Carnival at Praça Castro Alves |
1. The Osmar, or Campo Grande - Praça Castro Alves Circuit, is the original Salvador Carnival Circuit (going as far back as the 50's anyway; the where and what of Carnival is actually something of a complicated story). Carnival's official opening is at Campo Grande, and this is where the political bigshots sit and where the Carnival blocos are judged. The trios move away from Campo Grande and down Avenida Sete de Setembro (usually called “Avenida Sete” by the locals) to Praça Castro Alves. From there they swing around the corner and make their way back to Campo Grande by Rua Carlos Gomes, which runs parallel to Avenida Sete. The course takes six hours or so to run (“crawl” might be a better word!).
The denomination “Osmar” is in homage to one of the two creators of the trio elétrico.
2. The Dodô, or Barra - Ondina Circuit, was added in '92 (when it was very much secondary to the Campo Grande - Castro Alves circuit). The trios start at the Farol ( Lighthouse ) da Barra and wend their way up along the ocean to Ondina. The course takes some four hours or so.
Nowadays there is a tendency for the bigger names to play this circuit, as it is seen as more desirable (a view I don't necessarily share) by a lot of Salvador's middle-class youth, the ones with the money to join the bigger blocos.
The denomination “Dodô” is in homage to the other creator of the trio elétrico.
3. The Batatinha Circuit is basically the Osmar Circuit, though beginning and ending in Pelourinho rather than Campo Grande.
 |
|---|
The denomination “Batatinha” is in homage to Batatinha (Oscar da Penha), a sambista and composer of wonderful music. Batatinha died in 1997 at 72 years of age, and if you're close to Campo Grande you can stop in at Bar Toalha de Saudade -- owned and run by Batatinha's son Vavá -- on the Ladeira dos Aflitos (not too far from the top of the street, on the right-hand side as one descends). As a matter of fact, the bar was named for a song of Batatinha's wherein he recounts the true story of a chance meeting during a Carnival years ago...a lovely young woman emerging from nowhere, asking Batatinha if she might borrow the towel he was carrying (which was a part of his samba-school kit) to dry her face. She thanked him for his kindness and melded back into the crowds, leaving Batatinha filled with nothing but longing, her sweet fragrance, and thoughts of what might have been...
 Noel Rosa |
With What Clothes?!
And before moving on to the modern Bahian Carnival, how about lingering a bit in the past and reprising THE BIG Carnival hit of 1931? The song was written by a young composer (he was nineteen when it was recorded) by the name of Noel Rosa, who would go on to become one of Brazil's most prolific composers ever in spite of dying at 26 years of age.
Noel was a white kid from a not-poor-but-far-from-rich neighborhood (Vila Isabel, on Rio's north side) who moved freely up in the morros (hills where the poor people lived) and among the lowest-class botecos (bars), where he was accepted as one of theirs in spite of his own disadvantage. During a difficult birth he'd been pulled from the birth canal by forceps, suffering a broken jaw in the process. The jaw never did heal correctly, remaining crooked and underdeveloped for the rest of his life (there was some paralysis of the facial muscles on one side too), and although he was uncomfortable with his odd visage, that unmistakeable profile would become iconographic to the point where nowadays who would want Noel (setting his personal feelings aside) to have been one more guy with boring, standard-issue good looks? Brazil, from the sophisticated jazz-influenced bossa novistas in Ipanema to the roots sambistas in the morros, LOVES him the way he was, and is!
So, back to the Carnival hit...
 Self-Portrait |
Noel's mother wasn't too happy with all this samba stuff (she wanted him to study medicine instead, something he briefly tried), and knowing that he was planning to go out to a festa with his friends on what would become one propitious evening, hid his clothes. When the galera (gang of friends) showed up at the house yelling up for him to come down, he leaned out of the window (I imagine him plaintively bare-bottomed, but it probably wasn't quite like that ) asking "Com que ropa eu vou?" (With what clothes will I go?). The question inspired a monster Carnival hit!
I've included two recordings below, the first being the original, sung (in September, 1930, by Noel himself, and the second (so that the song can be heard with modern recording values) by the Grooveria galera of now-defunct Trama Records).
Notes on Some Blocos, Afoxés, and Trios
One bloco which has for years now been a Carnival staple (formed in 1980) and which offers a good example of the typical big, synthy, commercial bloco sound all too prevalent during Carnival is Cheiro de Amor (Smell of Love).
Below is an example of this sound, although I've chosen, in order to attenuate the fluff, a rendition of a b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l song from the Bahian interior, really a combination of three songs, two in the public domain plus one which was thought to have been in the public domain but which actually turned out to have been composed in 1964 by Manoel de Isaías. The song is entitled "Quixabeira" and if I may digress a bit there is an interesting history behind it...
A Powerfully Moving Bahian Anthem Manoel de Isaías, who is in his mid-seventies now, was a fieldhand who on market days sang in the marketplace of Riachão do Jacuipe -- a small town in the Bahian interior -- an activity for which he was never paid and for which he didn't expect to be paid. Then, some years ago, as he and a friend were riding through the countryside in his friend's beat up old Volkswagen Beetle listening to the radio, up came Quixabeira (the song's title comes from Manoel's contribution). "Isn't that your song?" his friend asked. Manoel was dumbstruck...Quixabeira had become the big hit of Carnival, a regular anthem. His name even made up a part of the lyrics (he worked it into his songs sometimes). It turned out that a couple of music researchers (Bernard Von Der Weid was one of them) had heard fieldworkers singing the song and had been taken by its power. They circulated it and it was picked up by Carlinhos Brown and recorded, to be followed by other recordings by Maria Bethânia and Cheiro de Amor. Looking into the matter, Manoel was advised by a lawyer that he would be going up against the powerful music industry and that he would certainly lose and that he should forget trying to claim any rights to the song...Manoel took this incompetent's advice and dropped the matter. Several years later Manoel's story was heard by yet another researcher, Josias Pires (of FUNARTE), who contacted his friend (royalty specialist and music lover Rita Cajaiba), who worked to get Manoel the money he was entitled to (his rights were not contested by anybody who'd recorded the song). And today, after adding a couple of rooms onto his small house, Manoel continues to live as modestly as before in the community on the sertão where his music was first heard. And, some may find it interesting to hear the first of the three songs incorporated into Quixabeira sung in its original, rustic form. Below is "Amor de Longe" (Love from Afar), sung by a group called "Quixabeira de Lagoa da Camisa", originating in a small municipality (Lagoa da Camisa) outside of the town of Feira de Santana, Bahia. |
 Margereth Menezes |
Os Mascarados, as has been stated, is Margareth Menezes' bloco. The quality of the music is, generally speaking, excellent. This bloco has a substantial GLBT following.
Below is one of Margareth's Carnival hits from a couple of years ago, Dandalunda being the Bantu equivalent of the Ketu Yemanjá (goddess of the seas).
Timbalada is another generally good bloco (although Timbalada has fallen into the common Carnival custom of playing over and over other blocos' popular songs irregardless of those songs' intrinsic quality). The song below was the hit of Carnival '96.
Ara Ketu began as an afoxé in the Salvador suburb of Periperi, but the musical element was popularized and grew in popularity until Araketu (featuring lead singer Tatau) became one of Salvador's biggest acts. Ara Ketu's Carnival bloco is puxado ("pulled", as they say here) by a really top-flight band.
Ilê Aiyê is a bloco afro that is very roots oriented (as a matter of fact, if you don't have the right roots, you won't get in), their heralded passing being one of the highlights of (a lot of people's) Carnival. The song below asks "What bloco is this?" It was written by Paulinho Camafeu.
Chiclete Com Banana is a huge Carnival favorite, a band which generally goes out with bloco Nana Banana. Just because they're popular doesn't mean their music would hold up to any scrutiny though, and the bloco is unfailingly accompanied by a flurry of petty thieves, pickpockets, and trouble-makers (outside the cordão ). If you get caught in that crowd with anything in your pockets you'll get cleaned out and fast!
Olodum is another bloco which unfortunately attracts (outside of the cordão ) many the same ilk. That is no reason not to see Olodum “go out” (as they say here) though because the music and drumming are excellent and the float (with African-attired dancers) is beautiful. Just be careful if you get caught up in the crowd.
 |
|---|
As Muquiranas (a pretty good translation of "muquirana" would be "bar slut") look like the ugliest group of women you've ever seen! Big, strong, hairy men in miniskirts and lipstick, parading together or hanging around in small groups blowing kisses at other men. It's all in fun though, and these guys aren't gay nor would they be caught dead like this any other time of the year. The inspiration for their dress and behavior originally came from the houses of ill-repute in an area (Gameleira) adjacent to their neighborhood (Preguiça, from the Ladeira de Preguiça; preguiça is "lazy", and a ladeira is a sloping street) just off of Praça Castro Alves.
* In 2007 the "Muquis" paraded as...Cat Women!
Filhos de Gandhy, the “Sons of Gandhy” (as in Mahatma; the "i" on the end somewhere along the line was replaced with a "y", some say to differentiate the bloco from the Indian, although I personally suspect it's simply a misspelling that caught on) are an afoxé group and one of the pillars of Carnival in Bahia. Many of the members join this group less out of reverence for the great Indian leader than because the group's attire is considered very attractive to women here in Salvador. The participants play a rhythm called ijexá -- beautiful and calming -- and they spray spectators along the parade route with alfazema (lavender) perfume.
They have a guy who plays the role of Gandhi and really looks the part. This results in the occasional extremely odd appearance of Matahma Gandhi hanging out in Pelourinho having a smoke and a drink!
(Raimundo Queiroz Lima -- the Brazilian "Gandhy" mentioned above -- passed away on March 17th, 2006. He was a good man and a beautiful symbol, and is sorely missed in both capacities.)
 |
|---|
Expresso 2222 isn't a bloco, it's a trio. And it's not just any trio, it's Brazil's ex-Minister of Culture's (Gilberto Gil) trio .
 |
|---|
Alerta Geral ("General Alert", kind of like "All Points Bulletin") is a bloco devoted to samba (in contrast to the majority of the axé music blocos). They parade to really top-notch music (Fundo do Quintal, Jorge Aragão, etc.) and wear malandro-type straw fedoras. They are muito, muito legal (very, very cool). Founder (and Salvador bamba) Nelson Rufino has since gone on to found another samba bloco -- Amor e Paixão.
The Police
Carnival is heavily policed. Stands with five or six seated police officers are erected everywhere and the streets are constantly patrolled by police groups moving in single file.
These patrols cut through Carnival crowds like Moses through the Red Sea, and this is good. The downside is that if a patrol approaches you from behind and you are not aware of it you may find yourself shoved out of the way, or worse yet, poked in the back with a nightstick. That'll get you to clear the way fast!
The upside to all this is that the police cut down on a lot of violence, usually arriving quickly to break up the fights which are not so infrequent during Carnival.
In one way things are better than they used to be: It used to be that when the police broke up a fight, or caught a thief, a bloody beating was in order. This seldom happens nowadays, and it is our suspicion that part of this change in behavior is due to the fact that most of the patols include one woman in their number. This seems to inhibit the more violent tendencies of the men.
How to Avoid Being Robbed During Carnival
The words “ Land of Happiness ” are often used to describe Bahia. While there is a strong element of truth in this, the reality (as in the cast of most things we learn) is a little more complicated. The larger truth of the matter is that you are in a poor city with plenty of inhabitants who would happily finance their own Carnival happiness at your expense.
This means pickpocketing in an often grossly unsubtle manner, i.e. hands jammed into your pockets with no pretense at all made to disguise the fact that somebody is trying to relieve you of your money (and/or your keys or anything else you may have in there).
How to avoid this? One way is to stay out of and away from the pipoca ( the Carnival crowds; the name comes from people jumping up and down -- like popcorn popping -- to the music). But who wants to come all the way to Bahia and do this?!
Better to:
• Tie your key or keys into your shoelaces and keep your money stuffed into your sock.
• Better yet: keep your money either in an inside pocket or in a change purse attached by a strong safety pin (or somesuch arrangement) to the inside of your Carnival shorts.
• Better yet: do the former using gym pants with no outside pockets at all.
The last is by far the best arrangement, eliminating (for the most part) worries about pocket picking along with the bad feelings engendered by even unsuccessful pickpocketing attempts!
Other Things to Watch Out For!
Common Carnival behavior also includes the stroking of women's hair by passing men. Blonde hair is an extra attraction.
As boorish and irritating as this may be, it's best not to see it as any big deal, because it isn't. It may be especially galling to boyfriends or husbands but it's better to just move on and forget about it…until it happens the next time. Then keep calm and keep on movin'! The guys who do this usually don't mean anything by it and probably would never be so bold if it weren't Carnival and they didn't have a number of beers under the belt.
Carnivals to Come
If you can't get here for Carnival 2011, Carnival 2012 begins February 16th, Carnival 2013 begins February 7th, Carnival 2014 begins February 27th, Carnival 2015 begins February 12th, Carnival 2016 begins February 4th, Carnival 2017 begins February 23rd, Carnival 2018 begins February 8th, and Carnival 2019 begins February 28th!
Camille Paglia Gets Her Wish!
Ms. Paglia in Salon on her Carnival in Salvador
Here's Vai Chover (It's Gonna Rain), written by Boghan Costa (seated next to his also-musician brother Leo in the photo below, Boghan in white) and sung by Daniela Mercury.
Just about every time it starts to rain and I'm with my (poor, long suffering) children, I'll start in with an off-key version of the refrain of the same. So one not-so-fine day I happened to be having a beer outside with Boghan after a rehearsal when, as fate would have it, it began to rain and (forgetting my children weren't around) I began to sing...and Boghan winced, asking me "Do you by any chance know who wrote that song?"
Boghan Costa & Leo Bit Bit happy to back in Bahia after three months in Europe