B r a z i l i a n   H e a r t

June & July 2013

Since 1998

Brazilian Heart

June/July 2013

Since 1998

Yes, I’m back to say I’m in the middle of a transformation. I do not know exactly how to explain, I just have this jittery feeling that makes me uncomfortable and excited about what’s coming next. In and out.  I have an orange cotton scarf on my shoulders as I type these words that makes me think about the red swimming suit I used to wear when I was a child. Red was “my” color, my identity. The first sweat shirt I bought with my own money selling books from door to door for “Círculo do LIvro” was red. The first pair of shoes and the first bag I bought with the salary of my first job in downtown Rio were red. My first chakra (the root) was definitely active and running.

It took me a long time to accept, but now I can say that Sambaguru band is over. My old time friends and musicians all took different paths and went on with their personal and musical life. Before the slowly “departing” process became a steady reality, I started a project with engineer/composer Lynne Earls that became an EP (short CD) released in January of this year. I love the songs my Irish friend and I did together, and they are definitely part of my artistic multi-facet-persona picturing a special time in my life. Then, out of nowhere, (or fruit of my kundalini practice) Painting showed up. There I was, intrigued again by the beauty of what was coming out of me.  The colors, movement and symbols keep facing me straight in the eye. “Look and See Me,” they say. This coming August will be a year since this phenomenon started, and I want to show you what has been pouring into my new life.  In the middle of June I sat on the floor of my backyard and threw emotions on a 44X56 inches piece of paper. Oh my Gosh! What’s going on with me? I feel like Music is standing still, chanting crossed legged on the mat waiting for my body to dialogue and reverberate on the old way. I say: “My dear friend, can we talk about a different subject and hike for a while during sunrise?” I know, it sounds poetic, right? What about real life? The bread to pay the bills, the protests in Brasil, the privacy matters of the American people, the Syrian rebels, Nelson Mandela’s incredible life, Occupy Gezi in Istambul, and my desire to speak French one day? I smile after some mental agitation and say: “It will come to you, accept your moment, be grateful, be giving, be joyful.”

P.S.: A handful of beautiful songs composed with Jack Majdecki, and in collaboration with Sanjay Divecha and Jovino Santos Neto) are surrounding me with their warm embrace waiting to be fully expressed on a next CD! 

Bring it in, Universe!

SINGING

Friday, June 28 at 7pm

@ MGrill (Great Brazilian food!)

Duet with guitarist João Pedro Mourão

(213) 398-2770   www.m-grill.com

I’ll be celebrating the lives of peaceful Brazilian souls that are exercising their democratic rights lately, and my birthday month!

Friday, July 12 from 7pm to 9pm 

with Samba Society 

@ The Original Farmers Market of Hollywood

Free   6333 W. Third St., Los Angeles 

Saturday, July 27 @ Ford Theater

Celebrating Viver Brasil Dance Company’s 15th Anniversary!

www.viverbrasil.com

VIDEOS

Nelson Mandela! Great piece of history about him:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgQBoXsxr8w

Fun Annimation: 2 octopus in Greece!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=badHUNl2HXU

Wonderful moving sculpture (It looks like my pumping heart!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HQsx7sgshlM

Babulina's Trip by Brazilian band Graveola (thank you, Betto Arcos)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=f-rk9DbItgE

AROUND LOS ANGELES

Show by Brazilian singer/composer Ana Carolina (Marcos Ariel opening)

June 30 @ Montalban Theatre

Show by Brazilian singer/composer Maria Gadú

July  @ Montalban Theatre

Show by Brazilian singer/composer Jorge Aragão (Love him!)

September 1st 

www.braziliannites.com 

Conversations about music @ Brazilian Consulate 

Organized by Sergio Mielniczenko from Brazilian Hour/Global Village-KPFK

Wednesdays in July 

For invitation email contact@brazilianhour.org

Support the Arts! Bring me Home!

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/katiamoraes2 (music)

http://www.etsy.com/listing/130146322/brazilian-heart-spring-5-card-set-cabeca?ref=sr_gallery_7&ga_search_query=Brazilian+Heart&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_search_type=all (music + greeting cards)

Peace and Joy!

Kátia : )

b r a z i l i a n         h e a r t

CLARA NUNES, A CELEBRATION

I’m exhausted and happy. Just took a warm shower and heard my body whisper “thank you.” I cleaned my feet from the dust and dirt of the cement floor where I sang and danced tonight, while feeling the warmth of gratefulness in my heart. We did a great job. We worked like dogs to put this event together, but there is a smile on our faces now.

When I decided to celebrate samba singer Clara Nunes in the middle of 2012, Marcia Argolo and I set the date of April 6, 2013 with Nayla and Amen Santo from Brasil Brasil Cultural Center, and I waited for the idea to sink in. I didn’t know which band would be suitable for the project, but mentioned it to Beto Gonzalez who leads a very cool ensemble called Samba Society here in Los Angeles. I really admire Beto for his knowledge of Brazilian music, especially the 1970’s samba. He’s a humble and passionate musicologist who educates whoever has an ear, and desires to expand their vision of Brazilian culture.  We spoke a few times about Clara and her music, and finally one day, it dawned on me what was so ridiculously obvious since the beginning. Samba Society was the perfect ensemble because it resembles the kind of group that used to back Clara. Acoustic guitar, cavaquinho, and percussionists singing background vocals. I called Beto and he said: 
“What took you so long, Katia ?"

It was easy to choose the songs for the show.  Beto picked 20 pearls of her repertoire that I heard during my teen years. Every song was a hit. We knew Brazilians would sing every one of them, and Americans who are into Brazilian music would recognize at least “Ijexá”  from David Byrne’s compilation “Samba” that came out in the 1990’s.

I think one of my favorite parts of the process of putting together a Celebration show, is researching. Watching videos, listening to recordings, reading interviews and going deeper into Clara’s story, moved me immensely.  The human being behind the stage persona is what I want to touch. She grew up in a small town, was orphaned early, but kept following her dreams. She had three natural abortions, and some people believe she probably focused harder on her career because of that. She recorded 16 LPs from 1966 to 1982.  She passed away before completing 40 years old.  So young… How? She felt self conscious about some varicose veins on her legs and decided to go for surgery. Her body had a reaction to the anesthetic and for 28 days Brasil prayed for her.  In vain…
I grew up in a Catholic family and Clara opened my curiosity about Afro Brazilian religion with her songs. I used to fear any religious manifestation that included spirits taking over people’s body. I remember going to a Macumba ‘s terreiro (a place where they practice their rituals) in Rio de Janeiro when I was 15 years old. That experience scared the “s” out of me. It was the first and the only time I saw a “pomba gira,” that is the classification of an entity that personifies female beauty, sexuality and desire. As a naïve catholic girl, that encounter made me aware that there was a world out there  (and in me) that I did not know existed.

Clara Nunes’ beauty and charismatic presence swiftly brought the magical world of Afro Brazilian religion to Brazilian homes, creating a desire to understand where before there was only prejudice.

In the middle of the show on April 6 I said to the audience:
“Can you feel the joy in your heart? So, let’s do something together. Please, turn around and look at Clara’s poster on the wall.  Now, close your eyes and think that all the joy you have in your heart right now, came from the music that this woman expressed and that inspired me, and my friends here on stage.  Through us you’re experiencing her passion and love, and that’s how we go in life. She loves, we love and we pass this love on to you."

Photo by Joe Perez

Stay Tuned for the next 

Brazilian Heart Music Celebration Series in 2014!

Peace and Joy,

Katia Moraes : )

BRAZILIAN HEART
February + March 2013
Since 1998

Do you know why your parents chose your name?

I knew my mom had named me Katia because she liked Russian writer Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910), but just recently I found out he wrote a story entitled Katia in 1859 (also translated in the US as "My Husband and I")

 There's a line that stuck with me where Tolstoy quoted one of his favorite writers, Lermontoff:
"And he, the madman, invoked the tempest. As if, in the tempest, peace might reign!"
So, I asked myself: "how many times have I hid from an 'inner tempest' instead of facing it and finding peace?" "Many," I answered.
Meditating on this, I stumbled on another quote:
"When you don't go within, you go without." (Yogi Bhajan)

(Thinking...)

Continuing my search, I came across a very interesting book: “Tolstoy and Gandhi, Men of Peace.” Gandhi was my inspiration when I wrote the lyrics for Sambaguru’s  “Tribo Gandhista” (link to watch the video below). I had no idea they had written letters to each other, and I wonder if my mom knew that... I wonder if she knew Tolstoy was known as a " Christian anarchist and anarcho-pacifist." So interesting! I guess I discovered another piece of my ancestral puzzle!

SHOWS:
Sunday, March 3rd at 8pm @ Vitello's Jazz Upstairs (EP Release !)
4349 Tujunga Ave., Studio City, CA 91604
Reservations: (818) 769-0905
https://www.facebook.com/events/511594765551779/
Featuring Leo Costa on drums, Bill Brendle on piano and accordion, Andre de Santanna on bass and João Pedro Mourão on guitar

New Music available at CDBaby: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/katiamoraes2

AROUND LOS ANGELES
Saturday, March 2 at 8pm at Brazilian Carnaval @ Nokia
(I'll be singing few songs with Bobby Easton's Bloco Nove). Obrigada for the invite, Bobby.
www.braziliannites.com

Sunday, March 17 at 7pm @ The Virgil
Singing with Beto Gonzalez's 10-piece Samba Society!
https://www.facebook.com/events/343112812460240/?fref=ts

IAIÁ – Honoring my grandma who passed away this February. She was 100 years old!

ANDREA BOCCELLI AND BRAZILIAN MUSIC
Last year I coached Nelly Furtado's recording of Tom Jobim's Corcovado for a 2013 Valentine's CD by Andrea Boccelli produced by David Foster. Here's a  quick interview about his new project and life: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tVKEx0ZvqY

MOVIE
GANDHI (1982)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxYQ4CXoIwg

RUSSIANS IN BRASIL (The Langsdorff Expedition )
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grigory_Langsdorff#The_Langsdorff_Expedition

TRIBO GANDHISTA (video/Song by Brendle+Moraes performed by Sambaguru)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=it3vO9YJbps

LATEST QUOTES:
"Words alone do not do justice to Renaissance woman Katia Moraes."
- Quote by Lucia Leon for The Beverly Hills Outlook
February 2013 http://www.bhoutlook.us/http://www.bhoutlook.us/

 EP Release Show @ Brasil Brasil Cultural Center / From left: Marcel Camargo, K, Andre de Sant'Anna, Bill Brendle and Leo Costa. 
Photo by Joe Perez.

"An incredibly strong artist...a great vocal instrument, with great intonation, communication and strength. And so totally involved with the music. "
- Quote from L.A. Jazz Scene's Scene Review by Cathy Segal-Garcia / January 2013

"As for the performers, Katia Moraes as Stefanie is simply wonderful."
- Quote from Caroline Waters' musical "Finding Venus' Review by A Jl Lewellyn / February 2013. Here's my talent friend singing with her dad in Norway in 1974. Cute!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GN7te-Xjlg0

COMING UP IN APRIL
Continuing my Brazilian Heart Music Series, this time Marcia Argolo and your truly will be producing "Clara Nunes, a Celebration" @ Brasil Brasil Cultural Center featuring Beto Gonzalez's Samba Society. Stay tuned!
https://www.facebook.com/events/566426443387383/

TO YOU WITH ALL MY LOVE!
A short movie "The Happy Man" by Matt Morris
http://www.shortoftheweek.com/2012/02/13/mr-happy-man/

Peace and Joy,
Katia : )

Brazilian Heart / January 2013

January 2013
Since 1998

I used to take a class at a gym in Los Angeles, and the teacher would always ask: "Is there anybody taking the class for the first time?" I always raised my arm. For me, a new year starts every day (actually every second!). It all depends on being conscious of your every step. Easy said than done, I know, and that's why I make an effort to be in the moment. Gandhi said: "There is more to life than simply increasing its speed." What a challenge to slow down my mind! My song "Cabeça" is all about that. Last year, Lynne Earls sent me an mp3 with Grecco Buratto playing an ukulele. Lynne, Grecco and myself practice meditation, so the theme came out easily when I wrote the lyrics. "Cabeça" became the driving song of my EP that I'll be releasing this January 26 at Brasil Brasil Cultural Center in Los Angeles. Here's the link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=uQWPH_hzVH4 (with translation)
By the way, anybody paying the general ticket to the live show+release+art exhibition event will get a download card (sticker) with all the songs! Join me on this first adventure of 2013! 

Saturday, January 26 at 8pm @ Brasil Brasil Cultural Center (Los Angeles, CA)
11928 Washington Blvd. (Inglewood Blvd/next door to Leaf-Vegan Cafe)
More info: (818) 621-1515 Marcia Argolo
Facebook Invite: https://www.facebook.com/events/538612136166448/

BRAZILIAN HEART CARDS

I'm blessed! The first 5-card set I created was shipped to Maryland, Montana, New Mexico, Florida, besides various places in California. To celebrate 2013, I created a new one: Brazilian Heart: Healing Joy! Both 5-card sets are available at this cool website called ESTY. Check it out!
https://www.etsy.com/listing/118437811/brazilian-heart-5-card-set

SHOWS:

Sunday, January 20 at  @ The Virgil
Singing with Samba Society
(323) 660-4540
http://thevirgil.com/#

Sunday, January 27 at 7pm @ Blue Whale
Singing with Marcel Camargo's project: Brazil as You Never Heard
123 Astronaut E S Onisuka St. Suite 301
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Info: (213) 620-0908
http://bluewhalemusic.com/

With Leo Costa, Marcel Camargo and Carlitos del Puerto after the Brazilian Style New Year's Eve show at the Queen Mary in Long Beach, CA. 

HOW A FOREIGNER SEES BRAZILIANS
http://manuelschneider.blogspot.com.br/2012/12/whatiknowaboutbrazilians.html

"BOSSA NOVA É FODA" - NEW SONG BY CAETANO VELOSO
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3AlMZVGLuY

ARE YOU LIVING AND LEARNING? (WATCH THIS AND THINK AGAIN!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=QsCUCtlOdW4#!

JANUARY 30 - SAUDADE DAY
"Brazilians have this beautiful word called saudade, which cannot be translated. In fact, according to scholars, it is translated as 'I have saudades of you.' It can be described as a '...vague and constant desire for something that does not and probably cannot exist...a turning towards the past or towards the future.' A stronger form of saudade may be felt towards people and things whose whereabouts are unknown, such as a lost lover, or a family member who has gone missing. It may also be translated as a deep longing or yearning for something that does not exist or is unattainable."  - Manuel Schneider

Peace, Joy & Prosperity

Feliz Ano Novo! Happy New Year!

Kátia : )

Bring a smile to your friend's face with one of my Brazilian Heart cards! ; )

BRAZILIAN HEART
December 2012 / Since 1998

www.katiamoraes.com


WHAT'S NEW?
I was writing lyrics for a new song the other day when I got a call from engineer/producer Lynne Earls saying our song CABEÇA (Earls, Buratto, Moraes) is one of the finnalists of the USA Songwriting Contest 2012!
Have you seen Cabeça's video? Check it out. The song is part of my EP produced by Lynne that will be released on January 26, 2013. I'll also be exhibiting my drawings for the first time! YES! SIM! Here we go! One more adventure!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=uQWPH_hzVH4

SHOWS:
Tuesday, December 4 at 9pm @ Blue Whale
Sambaguru - The Original Quartet
123 Astronaut E S Onisuka St. Suite 301
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Info: (213) 620-0908
Featuring Bill Brendle, Tony Shogren and Hussain Jiffry.
http://bluewhalemusic.com/
With my friend Tony Shogren many years ago at La Ve Lee - the old music hang in Studio City, CA


NEW YEAR'S EVE CELEBRATION (Brazilian Style!)
@ Queen Mary (Long Beach, CA)
More info: www.brazliannites.com




DAY OF THE SAMBA (December 2)

By Brazilian painter Di Cavalcanti (1897-1976)
In Los Angeles, The Day of the Samba will be celebrated on December 27 @ Zanzibar (Santa Monica) with Samba Society. I'll be there : )
http://www.wherevent.com/detail/Beto-Gonzalez-TH-12-27-AfroFunke-presents-SAMBA-SOCIETY

JOYFUL MOMENTS
My first bike made by CALOI. Actually it was my sister's bike! In the 1960's Caloi became very popular producing folding bicycles. The company was founded by an Italian immigrant in 1898 in São Paulo.

And here's my mental bike...

FOR YOU
"Quando a gente acha que tem todas as respostas, vem a vida e muda todas as perguntas."
(When we think we know all the answers, Life comes and changes all the questions)
By Brazilain writer Luís Fernando Veríssimo

Peace, Joy, Art & Wisdom!
Feliz Natal
Feliz Ano Novo
Kátia : )

By my beautiful cousin...she was a young girl when she painted it. This image always makes me smile : )

So far, I've mailed my cards to Florida, New Mexico, Maryland and many parts of California. Send me a message if you wanna get a set or if you have a sugestion of a place that would love to sell it. Thank you / Obrigada.

Brazilian Heart 
November 2012
Since 1998

Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night urging to write something down? Is it an artist habit? Here's one of my notes after drawing and coloring...

"Ah, nothing changes but the forever moving.
While expressions continue and colors explode on paper
The heart unconsciously smile at actions and seconds.
All is perfect:
The movement and devotion contained in them,
The inner sun and the lack of competition in Nature."

Few years back, my yoga teacher told me to embrace and trust. When I started drawing this last August, I decided to do just that; I let the pen move to create what wanted to be created. Then, I received a lovely quote by Don Heckman from the International Review of Music:
"Katia has done something remarkable with her drawings. She's found a way to visually transform the rich, dynamic emotions of her dancing and singing into the equally high spirited colors and imagery of her drawings. The results are irresistible." 

Design by Silvia Barandier from Brazil Today Newspaper based in San Francisco. Obrigada : )

SHOW
Tuesday, November 6th at 7:30pm (YES! ELECTION DAY!)
@ The Charleston
2460 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica, CA 90403
Featuring Roberto Montero on guitar, Zé Bruno Eisemberg on drums and Antonio Sant'Anna on bass.
www.charlestonla.com

With bassist Antonio Sant'Anna few years back.
Happy belated birthday, Santa!

CELEBRATING BRAZILIAN COMPOSER ARY BARROSO!
Ary was born in Ubá, Minas Gerais on November 7, 1903. Coincidently, he passed away on Carmem Miranda's birthday, who was his personal friend and recorded many of his songs.
Here's his first success "Vamos Deixar de Intimidade" (1929) with Mário Reis and Pan American Orchestra.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96rzU0d4IuE 

Spanish singer/actress Sara Montiel singing Ary Barroso's "A Baixa do Sapateiro" in the 1964 documentary "Samba" by Rafael Gil. Cool scenes of city of Salvador, Bahia.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gHrfIbUk7g 

"Rio de Janeiro" from the movie "Brazil"that was nominated for Best Song in 1943.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=to4mXckO6d0

Last but not least, his big success in the US and all around the world, "Aquarela do Brasil." Here's a scene from the Walt Disney animation.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mQHr8bAojU

JOYFUL MOMENTS

With singers Gretchen Parlato and Jessica Jeza Vautor, and guitarist/composer/arranger Marcel Camargo during Marcel's project "Brazil as You Never Heard" at The Virgil in Los Angeles.
http://soundcloud.com/marcelcamargo

THE BRAZILIAN HOUR - Music+Video+Podcast+Streaming
This radio programa was created in 1978 by the Cultural Sector of the Brazilian Consulate in Los Angeles and is written and produced by Sergio Mielniczenko. Check it out!
http://www.brazilianhour.org/

FOR YOU
"When I was born
A crazy, very crazy angel
Come to read my palm
It wasn't a Baroque angel
It was a crazy, crooked angel
With wings like a plane
And behold, this angel told me
Pressing my hand
With a clenched smile"
Go on, pal, sing off key
In the happy people's choir."

By Torquato Neto - poet/lyricist and one of the founders of the Tropicalism Movement in Brasil.

Peace, Joy and VOTE!
Katia : )

Phelps visiting the Brazilian younger swimmers at Complexo do Alemão (group of favelas outside of Rio de Janeiro)

Brazilian Heart / October 2012

October 2012 / Since 1998
www.katiamoraes.com

It's official !
On Saturday, January 26, 2013  I'll be releasing my EP produced by sound engineer/producer Lynne Earls (K.D.Lang, Airto Moreira, Flora Purim). There'll also be an exhibition of my drawings that night.
Thank you, Joe Perez for the beautiful photo/painting above.
Here's one of my new drawings. It's called "O Dia do Cantor" (Singer's Day)


SHOW
Wednesday, October 10 at 8pm @ The Virgil
Singing with Brazilian guitarist Marcel Camargo's  "The Brasil You Never Heard"
(323) 660-4540
Episode 1 - "Chiclete Com Banana," Brazilian pop music of the 70's and 80's
http://thevirgil.com/ 



 With Sambaguru - The Original Quartet + part of the audience @ Laxson Auditorium at Chico's World Music Festival on September 15, 2012. 
NEXT: December 4 @ Blue Whale (Downtown Los Angeles)
On stage: Tony Shogren, me, Bill Brendle and Hussain Jiffry.
 
UNFORGETABLE MOMENTS
In 1979 I had the pleasure of meeting in Rio de Janeiro a new songwriter called Fatima Guedes. This talented human being that I so much admire, visited Los Angeles in 1990's and performed at La Ve Lee in Studio City. Her first recording was produced and arranged by Bossa Nova icons: Roberto Menescal and Oscar Castro Neves. Here's a link to Fátima's "Mais uma Boca" (One More Mouth) from 1980.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KeQBY3AgLc8&feature=related

THE REAL VANGUARDIST OF THE TROPICÁLIA MOVEMENT: TOM ZÉ!
(Tropicália is a Brazilian artistic movement that arose in the late 1960's)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEvVYRc7kKk


Singing with my rock group O Espírito da Coisa @Teatro Cândido Mendes in Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro in 1986.
Listen to the original arrangement of the hit song Ligeiramente Grávida (Slightly Pregnant) produced by Paulo Coelho ( yeap, the writer of The Alchemist )
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9fSJNnzog&feature=plcp 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROBERTO MENESCAL
Roberto Menescal, Brazilian composer/guitarist - Rio de Janeiro - October 25, 1937
Here's Menescal and Wanda Sá playing and singing his famous Bossa Nova anthem: "O Barquinho" (Little Boat)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m351FZ99OI0

AROUND LA
Tuesday, October 23 at 8pm Gilberto Gil @ Walt Disney Concert Hall
I'll be there!

FOR YOU
"Eu tô te explicando
Prá te confundir
Eu tô te confundindo
Prá te esclarecer
Tô iluminado
Prá poder cegar
Tô ficando cego
Prá poder guiar"

I'm explaining to confuse you
I'm making you confused to clarify
I'm illuminated so I can get blind
I'm getting blind so I can guide
(Quote of a song by Tom Zé)

OH, YEAH, POLITICS! Jimmy Fallon and James Taylor:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0uX36AczW0
Peace nd Joy!
Katia : )
 

SINCE 1998 
SEPTEMBER 2012

Do you like to draw? Lately, I've been drawing... Sometimes I think it's a way to clear my mind from one musical project to another... It feels like a meditation. I never know what will appear on paper...

LATEST REVIEW: Sambaguru @ Vibrato by Don Heckman:

http://irom.wordpress.com/2012/09/02/live-jazz-katia-moraes-and-sambaguru-at-vibrato-grill-jazz-etc/ 

SHOWS
Monday, September 3rd (Labor Day) at 4pm 
@ Tropico de Nopal (Echo Park)
Singing with Samba Society 
(Beto Gonzales' 12-piece band playing sambas from the 1970's)
http://www.reverbnation.com/sambasociety
https://www.facebook.com/events/281062832000840/ 

8th Brazilian Day in Los Angeles!
Join me! I'll be the Master of Ceremonies again!
@ LACMA / Tar Pits (Los Angeles)
Saturday, September 8th - Noon to 6pm
Live music, Arts & Crafts, Food and Los of Smiles!
Bring your family! It's FREE!
Main sponsors: General Consulate of Brasil in Los Angeles: http://losangeles.itamaraty.gov.br/pt-br/
Doris and David DeHister from Sambala Samba School + Renni Flores: http://www.braziliandayla.org/home/ 

With Renni Flores (Sabor da Bahia) and producer David DeHilster from Sambalá 

@ 2011 Brazilian Day in LA!  

Saturday, September 15 @ CHICO WORLD MUSIC FESTIVAL (Chico)
SAMBAGURU featuring Katia Moraes
1pm at Laxson Auditorium
3pm at Sycamore Stage
http://www.csuchico.edu/upe/performance/cwmf.html

Sambaguru - The Original Quartet: Tony Shogren, Bill Brendle, Katia Moraes & Hussain Jiffry

BRAZILIAN LITERATURE
(Celebrating Jorge Amado and Nelson Rodrigues' Centennial!)
Jorge Amado:l http://www.jorgeamado.org.br/?lang=en
Nelson Rodrigues: http://www.brooklynrail.org/2005/10/theater/nelson-rodrigues-the-pornographic-angel-comes-to-nyc 
Nelson and his controversial quotes: "A thunderous boo is one thousand times stronger, nobler, and more powerful than a standing ovation. Admiration corrupts."

ONE OS MY FAVORITE SINGERS: CLARA NUNES
A rare video made in Japan: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUNxiHlX_sE 
A piece of this song (Chant of the Three Races by Mauro Duarte & P. C. Pinheiro) was played at the 2012 Olympics in London.

BRAZILIAN MOVIE
Based on Jorge Amado's novel: Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon (trailer) Featuring Sonia Braga and Marcelo Mastroiani - 1983
http://www.moviewarp.com/gabriela-cravo-e-canela

DURING 2012 OLYMPICS - ART
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-18766667

AROUND LOS ANGELES
September 28 @ Royce Hall
Bebel Gilberto and Forró in the Dark
www.braziliannites.com  

SHARING SOME FACTS
The other day I was wondering if another country has as many days off as Brasil.  After a little search I found out that we have  8 national holidays, but there are 5 "movable festivities" as well; all of them related to Catholicism. On top of that, there is the annual paid vacation. Which countries take 30 days off per year? France, Spain, Denmark, Brasil and Germany.  "According to the survey, Japan is the most vacation-deprived nation in the world, with respondents saying they receive 11 paid days each year but only use five of them. South Koreans take seven out of their 10 days." 
(Quoted from Business.blogs.cnn)

HUMBLE OPINION 
Went to see Grammy-winning vocalist Luciana Souza @ The Broad in Santa Monica.
She's inspiring! Do not miss her show next time she plays in your town!
I wanna sing like her when I grow up! : )

FOR YOU
“He who sings scares away his woes.” 
Miguel de Cervantes
(In Portuguese: "Quem canta seus males espanta")

"Canta che ti passa."
"Sing and it will pass."

Peace and Joy,
Katia : )
P.S.: Yes, Obama + Biden!

Brazilian Heart / May 2012

“If you do follow your bliss you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life that you ought to be living is the one you are living. Follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.” Joseph Campbell.

Photo taken at Fontenelle Forest by the Missouri River in Omaha, Nebraska.


On May 31st will be the first time I’ll have a whole 5 minutes (!) to explain and convince the California Presenters that my new project entitled “Heart to Heart – An Open Letter to Brasil” is a great buy! They usually pick 1 or 2 artists out of ten. 

I’ve been nurturing this project for a long time, and sometimes I ask myself why now.  Well, I know why. It all happened after a one-week spiritual experience last year.

SHOW

June 2^nd at 5pm  @ LACMA

Guest singer with “Falso Baiano” Band - CD release show, featuring Ami Molineli on percussion, Zack Pitt-Smith on reeds, Brian Moran on 7-string guitar, Jesse Appelman on mandolin/bandolim.  I’m grateful for your invitation. Obrigada.

http://www.lacma.org/event/grupo-falso-balanohttp://www.lacma.org/event/grupo-falso-balano

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PALj7zupZV0http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PALj7zupZV0

Back in Los Angeles after singing with Viver Brasil Dance Company on our second East Coast Tour that took us to Maryland, NY, Wisconsin, Iowa and Nebraska.

Part of Viver Brasil Dance Company outside Omaha Airport: Rachel, Vera, Nikki, Kahlil, Kana, Rick, Linda, Derf, Shelby, Katiana, Keyan, Katia and Cynthia.

Below is the poem I wrote after visiting Malcolm X’s birthplace in Omaha.

MALCOLM

They said there was nothing there.

My heart sank,

Puzzled I was of such simple words.

Not convinced, I insisted on seeing with my own eyes.

I was right.

The tall weeds protected the land

And dressed the abandoned skeletons 

Of the garden of gardens.

The grass smiled at me

With its Frida Kahlo's skulls faces.

In those few acres

Some folks left a message planted in the dirt.

I sighed

Content, for I had seen his name on a street sign,

Saddened, for his words were silence to his own people.

FOR YOU:

My impatience went away after I watched the video below. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQQ3BdjCc4I&feature=share%27%2C%29http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQQ3BdjCc4I&feature=share%27%2C%29

Peace and Joy!
With gratitude,

Katia : )