This year, the traditional SummerStage brings Monobloco, Cabruêra, Boogarins, and DJ Luiz Santos, all from Brazil. The free concerts taking place in Central Park, New York, are organized by the City Parks Foundation.
Acclaimed for incorporating diverse rhythms and styles into samba, Monobloco was created in 2000 by C.A. Ferrari, Celso Alvim, Mário Moura, Pedro Luís, and Sidon Silva (members of the band Pedro Luís e A Parede) from a percussion workshop. Nowadays, the group performs in an annual parade that concludes the carnival festivities and is followed through the streets of Rio de Janeiro by half a million people.
Fernando “Dino” Almeida and Benke Ferraz, from Boogarins, started making music together in their teens in the central Brazilian city of Goiânia – creating psychedelic pop in their parents’ gardens, filtering the rich musical history of the country through a very modern lens. When the band’s debut LP, As Plantas Que Curam, was released by Other Music Recording Co. in late 2013, the band had recruited a proper rhythm section and was gaining recognition in Goiânia.
They will perform on August 6, Saturday, at 6 PM, and admission is free. For more information, visit the SummerStage website: www.cityparksfoundation.org/summerstage/