Mapping Brazil - Classical Music: Music Education

Federal law 11769 has certainly not solved all the problems in Brazil’s music education, but at least it has put the subject on the agenda and prompted professionals in the area to discuss and work towards improving the public policies for the sector. At every level of government, there is an increasing recognition that music education is important for human development. As the authorities start to take this understanding on board, more space and funding has started to be made available for different music education programmes in a variety of states, cities and towns in the country. As Brazil’s 10-to-18-year-olds are now receiving a quality musical education as part of these programmes, including group and individual instrumental tuition, it is they who will gradually raise the musical level at the country’s schools, conservatoires, music faculties and universities. Indeed, a good number of Brazilian students already manage to get into some of the leading music colleges in Europe and the USA every year. The biggest difficulty they face in completing their education and graduating from these establishments is financial. Most of them are from the less wealthy strata of society, and they normally receive their first music education in social programmes, continuing their studies at free schools and colleges. At some point in this process, for them to continue their studies they have to receive grants or scholarships, normally when they start to play in youth orchestras. Even so, when they do manage to gain admission to music colleges and universities outside Brazil, the costs are often too high for them to take up their places on undergraduate or even postgraduate courses. This challenge remains the biggest obstacle preventing more Brazilian students from studying abroad. However, of equal importance is the stark fact that these students’ general education is often very precarious and full of gaps. Many of them have never learnt to speak a foreign language, which constitutes another barrier hampering their study abroad. To minimise these difficulties, some music schools and colleges are holding international exchanges, bringing quality musicians to Brazil to give concerts and hold workshops and masterclasses. The number of exchanges of this nature is growing every year, and initiatives of this kind are even starting to be included in the education activities organised by professional orchestras. However, there is much work yet to be done, especially to set up partnerships between Brazilian institutions so that these exchanges can take place more often and benefit a greater number of students.

If in the last decade the leading and biggest music education and training programmes in Brazil were mostly in the states of São Paulo (São Paulo government’s Guri Santa Marcelina music education programmes, Baccareli Institute, Pão de Açúcar Institute, São Paulo State Music School, Tatuí Conservatoire, São Paulo Municipal Music School, University of São Paulo, State University of São Paulo, University of Campinas and Federal University of São Carlos), Rio de Janeiro (Villa-Lobos Music School, Music School of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and Villa-Lobos Institute of the Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro), Bahia (Neojibá and the Music School of the Federal University of Bahia), Minas Gerais (Fundação de Educação Artística, the twelve state conservatoires and the Music School of the Federal University of Minas Gerais), Rio Grande do Sul (Department of Music of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul) and Paraná (Escola de Música e Belas Artes do Paraná), now some solid work of notable quality is also being done in other states, like Mato Grosso (Programme for Inclusion through Music and the Arts, PRIMA), Paraíba (Ciranda Institute), Espírito Santo (Espírito Santo Faculty of Music) and Goiás (School of Music and Drama of the Federal University of Goiás).

As these music education programmes have started to take off, new youth orchestras have been formed in recent years throughout Brazil. The best known youth orchestras playing to the highest standard – also doing international tours – are the São Paulo State Youth Orchestra, the Neojibá youth orchestras in Bahia, and the Heliópolis Symphony Orchestra (São Paulo).

Music festivals are also starting to be held in states other than São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Jaguaré do Sul and Lages (Santa Catarina), Domingos Martins (Espírito Santo), Juiz de Fora, Poços de Caldas and Prados (Minas Gerais), Bagé and Santa Maria (Rio Grande do Sul), Maringá and Londrina (Paraná), Fortaleza (Ceará) and Campina Grande (Paraíba) now host some important festivals during the school holidays in January/February and July. Even so, the country’s leading music event in July continues to be the Campos do Jordão Winter Festival (São Paulo).

Continue reading Mapping Brazil - Classical Music: Orchestras and the Concert Season