Brazilian traditional festivals

Carnival

The Carnival lasts for four days and is held in mid-to-late February every year. It is said that the Brazilian Carnival originated in Europe in the 15th century. The Pope at that time ordered celebrations to be held in front of the Papal Palace during the first three days of Lent. The believers sang and danced, and the whole city of Rome was immersed in a sea of ??joy. From then on, the carnival was officially established and spread widely in Europe, and was later introduced to Brazil by the Portuguese. In 1641, a parade of horses and floats was held in El Salvador, thus pioneering the celebration of Carnival in Brazil. In 1846, Brazil held its first Carnival masquerade. In the second half of the 19th century, with the gradual elimination of the slave trade in Brazil and the final abolition of slavery, the majority of black people happily joined the carnival parade and danced in a rich African style to the accompaniment of traditional African instruments. After Brazil overthrew the monarchy and established the Republic of France in 1889, the carnival underwent new changes in form and content, and samba gradually became the protagonist of the festival. In this way, over time, it gradually formed the unprecedented non-religious national celebration today.

Although the festival lasts only four days, major cities and groups from all walks of life in Brazil have begun preparing for festival celebrations as early as one or two months before the festival. The main streets of the city were also dressed in festive attire early. High stands were erected on both sides of the streets. Although the ticket prices for the best boxes in the Rio de Janeiro Grandstand were more than a thousand dollars, they were sold out early.

During the four days of Carnival, the heat wave of carnival swept across Brazil. Men, women, old and young, dressed in red and green, wore colorful costumes, sang and danced, and poured into the streets like a spring tide. In addition to pharmacies, hospitals and bars on the market, factories are suspended, shops are closed, and schools are on holiday. It can be said that "no one belongs to anyone, and no one can control anyone." It goes without saying that the rich wear gold and jewelry, but the poor also dress up a little to join in the fun, knocking on empty cans and jingling into the carnival crowd, as if if you don't have a carnival once a year, you will have no good luck tomorrow. People forget about wealth and poverty, forget about sorrow and trouble, forget about tension and fatigue, only joy and joy remain. At this time, the whole country, regardless of high or low status, race or color, was like waves of joy flowing into the ocean of joy. This joyful atmosphere also infects travelers from foreign lands, and many foreigners can't help but get involved in it.

The most enthusiastic, tense and joyful dance is samba. Since the 16th century, samba, which originated on the west coast of Africa, was introduced to Brazil along with black slaves. It absorbed the music and dance art styles of the Portuguese and Indians and evolved into Brazilian samba. When dancing samba, every muscle of the dancer is shaking, so it is different from ordinary singing and dancing. As early as 1928, a performance group called the "Samba School" appeared in Rio de Janeiro. From then until now, the “Samba School” has been the protagonist of the Rio de Janeiro Carnival Samba Competition. In the months before the Carnival, each samba performance group has to rehearse dances, compose music, make unique costumes and floats, conduct careful rehearsals, and select well-trained dance "kings" and "kings". queen".

During the samba costume parade, the leading team members are surrounded by the name and logo of their group, and the subsequent parade is headed by prominent figures such as the person in charge, the composer, and the float designer. . Wearing neat dresses, they smiled and waved to the onlookers. Followed closely by the colorful women's parade. They wore bright, wide-swept dresses, some wore feathered hats, and some wore masks. On either side or in front of the women's parade were men's percussion bands of hundreds of people. The musicians wore clothes and pants made of countless metal pieces, shining golden light in the bright sunshine. They played happily and played happily. Then came the floats and the samba team. Standing on the floats were the handsome men and women who were chosen as the "kings" and "queens". They smiled brightly and blew kisses to the crowd. Followed by the ecstatic Samba team, the dancers in different costumes compete for beauty, singing and dancing to the dance music. This is a kind of swaying with violent shaking of the waist, buttocks and abdomen. dance.

The dancers are in high spirits, and the spectators are as dazed as they are dancers and spectators. People forget all their worries, their last names, and food and drink. Their enthusiasm and obsession almost reach the point of madness.