OUR MASTER OF DREAMS

 Francisco Brennand, or Francisco de Paula de Almeida Brennand, (born June 11, 1927) is a contemporary Brazilian sculptor and visual artist. He works in several different media, and is best known for his work in ceramic sculpture. He displays around 2,000 pieces in enormous open halls, between monuments, gardens, and in the midst of an Atlantic forest reserve in the Varzea borough of Recife. Many of his works elaborate on abstract beings that are sensuous symbols. Several anatomic parts are in his studies, mainly from the female body.

He also uses ceramic to create floor and wall tiles for construction. His studio is set in an old roofing ceramic tile factory that belonged to the sculptor's father Ricardo.

Some of his works can be seen at the Parque das esculturas (Sculptures Park), located in Recife Antigo district in Recife. The city commissioned this park in 2000 in celebration of the 500 years since the discovery of Brazil.









Some interesting links:

http://www.itaucultural.org.br/aplicexternas/enciclopedia_ic/index.cfm?fuseaction=artistas_biografia_ing&cd_item=1&cd_idioma=28556&cd_verbete=5525

http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/South_America/Brazil/Northeast/Pernambuco/Recife/photo594299.htm

Official site with maps and visiting hours:

http://www.brennand.com.br/oficina.php

Recife - Pernambuco from Leonardo Rivello on Vimeo.

FREVO, a feverish Brazilian rythm

Frevo is a signature musical style from Pernambuco, an involving, feverish rhythm played by a brass band at Carnival in Recife and Olinda.
Dancers who perform elaborate, strenuous steps ahead of the band are called passistas. They wave multi-colored parasols as they leap and twist in a coreography that is sometimes reminding of Russian dancers, but has its origin in Brazil's very own capoeira.
 Origin of the Word:
 The word frevo comes from frever, a common uneducated pronunciation of ferver, the Portuguese word for "boil".
The essential instruments in a frevo band are saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and percussion.
In an video interview to journalist Marcelo Tas, musician Maestro Forró offers one of the best explanations for frevo music: a question & answer relationship, created by the different instruments, between a stronger masculine phrasing and a softer feminine one.