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Reading time 6 min

Melodies that lull your dreams

Redação Inhotim

Music to make you dream high. This is what Inhotim’s new music project coordinator, Maestro César Timóteo, keeps in mind when he plans the future.  Son of a pianist mother, César began studying the violin as a child. Today, as a violinist, opera singer and conductor, he seeks to awaken the musicality and talent of each student taking part in the projects he will be in charge of. The Maestro talked to Inhotim’s Blog and told us a little bit about his career and experiences in this new phase of his life.

 

 

 

Blog do Inhotim – Tell us a bit about your career in music.

 

César Timóteo – I can´t single out the exact moment music really got me.  My mother is a pianist and this has influenced me a great deal.  Through her, I was able to be in contact with is fascinating art from a very early age.  I started studying the violin when I was nine, and became a professional violinist in my teenage years.  Later, I also got my Opera Singing Degree, taking part in performances as a soloist in operas and religious plays.  After working as a violinist and singer for several years, I decided to study orchestral conducting, which became my main occupation in music.  I had the opportunity to conduct orchestras in Brazil and abroad, in addition to working with great music professionals, who have significantly influenced me. Some of these them I would like to mention are violinist Max Teppich and Maestro Isaac Karabtchevsky.   

 

 

 BI – What is your opinion on the musical potential of Brumadinho and its residents? 

 

CT – Music is part of the development of all communities. It is a necessity.  Brumadinho is no different. We have to provide opportunities for people to learn it, awakening the musicality within them.   Leaning music, whether by means of a musical instrument or signing, tends to organize and blossom out this musicality, leading to balance, development and the possibility of dreaming higher.  I have no doubt that Brumadinho is filled with music talents, which will certainly be revealed.  

 

 

BI – Which projects are you going to be coordinating? Talk a bit more about each one of them.

 

CT – Youth, Adult and Kid’s Choirs and the School for Strings. These projects are carried out by Inhotim, sponsored by Vale do Rio Doce and are part of an initiative of the Department of Culture.  In 2014, we are going to work in a more unified way, with a team of guest teachers from Belo Horizonte. These projects are intended to promote social, musical and artistic development in communities located at Vale Médio do Paraopeba, which includes youngsters from Brumadinho, Mario Campos and Bonfim.  Most of the students come from the public school system and, with the projects, they have the opportunity to take free theoretical and practical lessons.

 

 Classes take place on a weekly basis and the students enrolled are able to study vocal technique and music theory, in addition to practice instruments such as:  violin, viola, cello and bass.  During choir and orchestra practices, students are able to experience music as part of a group, developing their harmonic perception and cooperative work.  Enrollment happens twice a year and those interested in participating must apply at the project headquarter in Brumadinho. 

 

 

BI – In 2014, what’s new when it comes to the projects developed by Inhotim?

 

CT – We are going to work to unify music-related social projects, considering a nationwide reach.  It is important to consolidate actions in Brumadinho and surrounding areas, so that some time from now we can also reach other towns.  We are going to value joint actions.  The music experience must happen in a less individual and more collective way.  We are also going to  purchase two new pianos to be used in choir activities, as well as in musical perception classes. Also, we will be able to rely on new facilities in Brumadinho, which will be larger and more suitable for classes and rehearsals. 

 

 

BI – What are your expectations for this new journey with the students taking part in the projects?

 

CT – I want to closely monitor the development of each student. It is important to know them, so that we can guide them in the right direction.  I hope to see their musical growth, to see them dreaming with new possibilities.   Art does that.  I hope music learning and musical practice will influence the human development of students as well as of Brumadinho community.  I hope this can bring a positive effect to their decisions and attitudes, promoting better quality of life and improving the way they live in society.

Reading time 2 min

The right place

Redação Inhotim

Today Brumadinho has its 75th anniversary and has become one of the Brazilian cities that are most talked about in the national and international press. In addition to hosting Inhotim, which has brought the city the title of one of the great tourism destinations in Brazil, the city has a rich cultural and natural heritage.

 

The population of about 35 thousand inhabitants is made up of generous, welcoming people. The religious and cultural tradition of the quilombola (former slaves) communities are experienced with the energy of those who are proud of their African roots in their daily lives. The musical vocation of the city shows its rhythms in the instruments of its century old bands and in the voices of the several choirs that gather together children, teenagers and adults.

 

Nature has also been very generous with the town. Two important world biomes, the Atlantic Rainforest and the cerrado, or Brazilian Savanna, meet at the ocean of mountains in the Brumadinho territory.  During most of the year the mountains and the city are covered in fog and the days start off with a fresh, light air.

 

So, where else could Inhotim be located? Nowhere else in the world. That is why we are proud of being a part of this history.

 

This is a homage of Instituto Inhotim to the 75th anniversary of Brumadinho.

Reading time 5 min

Simplicity and history

Redação Inhotim

Here, the day-to-day life is as calm as it is quiet. Very simple houses, scattered throughout the rugged terrain of the region. A low wheezing song, coming from an old radio placed close to the window is one of the only sounds that lull the afternoon. Shy people live there. Their gaze mixes fatigue and hope. Sometimes, they get watering eyes from remembering their childhood or a distant relative. This is the scenario at Marinhos and Sapé, two of the six former-slave communities (quilombola) scattered around Brumadinho (MG), settlements founded by fugitive slaves who worked in the region. Marinhos has about 200 inhabitants. Sapé, slightly smaller, has approximately 50 homes. Both, however, carry with them a past of resistance and good stories.

 

Most residents, especially the elderly, can be considered a living portrait of a people struggling through work. Located in a region that used to house farms, many have learned to wake up in the morning and follow their parents in farm work. This is the case of housewife Maria Perpétua Socorro, 65 years old, born and raised in Sapé. “When we were kids, we worked from sunrise to sunset in the fields. My parents took my siblings and me to help them every single day. That’s how we were brought up”, she says.

  Dona Perpétua foto Rossana MagriWhen she was younger Perpétua used to help in the kitchen during typical celebrations. Photo: Rossana Magri

 

The passing of the years has changed reality a bit. Currently, with the new rural practices, we found only small household gardens in residents’ backyards. “Today, thank God, that past no longer exists. I say so because we suffered a lot”, says Perpétua. The desires and goals of those who live in the villages have also changed. In the past, the path of a young person was almost invariably to marry someone and stay in the region, whereas today’s youngsters are increasingly coming to larger centers. “There aren´t many job opportunities here, means to study more, so they end up leaving when they grow up,” reveals Antônio das Graças Silva, Perpétua’s husband, who has two children.

 

But despite the new reality, some practices and old values ??are still passed on from parents to children in the quilombola communities around Brumadinho. The traditional festivals and religious cults withstand time and are the state’s true cultural heritage. The Guardas de Congo e Moçambique – cultural and religious expressions of African influence organized by the people – take the streets several times a year, bringing colors and sounds that preserve local beliefs. Whether playing an instrument, carrying the crown or even helping in the kitchen, it is important not to let traditions die.

 

Cortejo Congo Moc?ambique foto Rossana MagriThe Guardas de Congo e Moçambique mixtures pass, present and future. Photo: Rossana Magri

 

Since childhood, teacher Nair Fatima Santana, a resident of Marinhos, participates in the parties and points out that they are the key to keep the memory and origins of the region. “The celebrations show a bit of what we were and what we are”, she explains. According to her, until recently the term “quilombola” used to bother them. “I did not like being recognized as a quilombola, because I thought it referred to someone who had suffered, who had no life perspective. But with time, I realized that I was just denying my own existence. Today I see that being a quilombola means being part of a people which has a meaningful story. During our celebrations is the very moment we are blessed. We try to teach part of that history to our children here at school”, she proudly concludes.