Forrobodó - Celebrating Luiz Gonzaga in New York

Forrobodó NY Festival will be an event held in New York City to celebrate the music and cultural legacy of Luiz Gonzaga, King of Baião. It will be a 3-day event in December, birth month of Luiz Gonzaga, featuring music and dance performances, classes, workshops, and forró parties.

The festival will promote Luiz Gonzaga’s works and cultural contributions to Forró, thereby building bridges for cultural exchange and fostering Brazilian culture in America.

I created this event to bring together many musicians who promote Brazilian music in NYC. Our activities will welcome several artists from the US, Europe and Brazil.

The festival will also feature accordionist and singer Chambinho as a special guest. Apart from being a critically acclaimed musician in Brazil, he appeared in the role of Luiz Gonzaga in the biographic movie De Pai para Filho (“From Father to Son”). He will impersonate the character and perform as a soloist with RPL Chamber Project (a 13-piece orchestra), which will play original arrangements of Luiz Gonzaga’s works written especially for this event.

Critically acclaimed and award winning artists will present collaborative works based on the oeuvre of the King of Baião, shedding light on Forró history, legacy and rhythms of Brazil.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Rafael Piccolotto de Lima is the Founder and Educational Director of Forró New York, as well as a Latin Grammy-nominated composer, arranger, and music director.

More about his work can be found here.