My love for music is something that comes from the very roots of my family. My parents are huge music fans, my eldest brother Bruce is a baddass blues singer and harmonica player, my older brother Murray is a percussionist and multi instrumentalist and teacher and my youngest sister Carla is a percussionist too!

Carla has just returned to her home in Toronto from a tour in Sao Paulo Brazil…she’s a member of Escola de Samba de Toronto a troupe of pedestrian musicians who have been painstakingly sculpted into a ferocious band of Samba mercenaries by the school’s director Alan Hetherington. These people are crazy…they love Samba…why else would they travel to Carnival in Sao Paulo Brazil and go head to head with the best Samba bands in the world?
For the adventure, the camaraderie and the love of music.
 
Alan Hetherington summed it up like this…
“What was once a simple dream of mine grew into something much bigger, and we are already planning for next year together with a cultural project officer here in Sao Paulo. We hope to return, perform again and next time stay for a few weeks to participate in workshops and seminars on the art form. Needless to say we are extremely excited by the results of this trip and are looking forward to returning to Toronto with new found inspiration to continue forward with the samba movement in Canada.

We were received with overwhelming affection, and every appearance we made was truly an exhilarating event. We had studied the tradition very seriously, and to be honest I was expecting, at best, a polite critical appraisal of a foreigner's interpretation of one of Brazil's strongest cultural expressions. What we received, however, was many tearful emotional accolades, lots of hugs, chants of "Brasil International!" and an passionate invitation for us to return next year with a mandate to work together to develop an even stronger bridge between our two cultures.”

My family has been the most incredible reservoir of guidance and support throughout the years. To think that Carla has decided to study an instrument that is so incredibly difficult to master (the Brazilian tambourine) and is willing to travel halfway around the world for an immersion in Brazilian culture tells me everything I need to know. She‘s my inspiration, a dedicated artist and a woman through and through.

Music can heal the world, bring peace and understanding…I’m certain of it.

To hear music and rhythms  from around the world visit the Global Café Channel @ www.myjazznetwork.com where you’ll find Samba, Bossa Nova and much more!

ALL PHOTOS BY ALAN HETHERINGTON

Stay tuned next week for more of Cameron’s Jazz Journals.

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