What is an orishá, you might ask?

What is an orishá, you might ask? In the context of Brazilian religious practice which, like most everything else in Brazil, involves music, it is a divine spirit sent by the Creator to assist us mere humans in living an upright existence. Belief in the pantheon of orishás was carried from the Yoruba culture and other West African groups mostly during the 19th century slave trade and is concentrated primarily in several areas of Latin America. Devotion to the spirits is observed still by their descendants and practiced as Haitian Vodou, Afro-Caribbean Santería, and in Brazil, Candomblé. Music heard in honor of Brazil’s orishás – as offered in today’s program – can be syncretic, percussive group chants in a style known as batucada, or sweetly gentle overtures that earn pop favor amongst a largely Catholic nation despite apparent apostasy. Choosing several notable tunes, I must point out Baden Powell e Vinicius de Moraes’ Cante de Xangó, recorded in 1966 and a classic of bohemian musical and poetic artistry; two sublime entries by a more contemporary artist, Rosa Amarela; Siré de Oxalá by Filhos de Gandhy (Children of Gandhi), an important carnaval “escola” from the state of Salvador,,,and all the rest. I think they’re all winners. Whether plaintive or pulsating, this sort of expression might just take me back to church. If only I lived in Brasil. jh

Al compás del mundo Programa #185, 6-19-25 – music for the Brazilian orishás

01 Rosa Amarela - Súplicas a Omolú

02 Mestre Irmão - Tira Eu da Senzala Sinhá

03 Danit Treubig – Iansã

04 Baden Powell e Vinicius de Moraes - Cante de Xangó

05 Leci Brandão - Saudação a Ogum (Nkosi)

06 Luciano Bom Cabelo com João Martins - Povo de Santo

07 Roberta Nistra e Moyseis Marques - Ogum de Ronda

08 Serena Assumpção – Oxum

09 Ponto - Meu Pai Oxalá é Rei

10 Rosa Amarela - Exú bará

11 Mariene De Castro - Ponto De Nanã

12 Majur – Oxum

13 Filhos de Gandhy - Siré de Oxalá

14 Aline Calxto – Oxossi

15 Leci Brandão- Ketu

~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~

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