Brigada Víctor Jara

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Brigada Víctor Jara

The Brigada Víctor Jara (Portuguese for Víctor Jara Brigade) is a Portuguese folk band, with a career of more than 30 years and among the most influential bands of the Portuguese folk.

The band was formed in 1975, by a group of young people from Coimbra that was participating in one of the massive literacy campaigns carried out by the provisional governments that administered Portugal in the years after the Carnation Revolution of 1974. The group was working in the inland region of Beira Baixa and often played Chilean and Portuguese folk and political songs for the people. After discovering the cultural and musical traditions of the region the group formed the band and named it after Víctor Jara, a Chilean socialist and folk singer, killed after the Chilean coup of 1973 carried out by General Augusto Pinochet.

1 History
2 Discography
3 Band members
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] History

From 1975 to 1977 the band played in several places and towns throughout Portugal. In 1977, the band recorded and released their first LP, named Eito Fora. In 1978 the band participated in the commemorations of the Carnation Revolution in the Soviet Union.

In 1979 their second album was released, named Tamborileiro. In the next year they participated in the music festivals of Sokolov and Berlin, in Czechoslovakia and Germany, respectively. In that same year, they also participated in the commemorations of the Portuguese revolution carried out in the former colony of Angola, in the Festa de l'Unità, a communist press festival in Italy and also played for the Portuguese diaspora in the Netherlands.

In 1981 the band released the third album, Quem Sai aos Seus and in the next year, another album was released, named Marcha dos Foliões. In 1983 the band carried out a tour in France with concerts in Grenoble, Nice, Marseille and Tours.

In 1984 the band released the fifth album, named Contraluz, and also a compilation of the band's songs, named 10 Anos a Cantar Portugal (10 years singing Portugal), later the band played again in France, by invitation of the Portugal/France Association.

In 1985 the band commemorated its tenth anniversary with two shows in Coimbra and Lisbon, the last one being broadcast by the Portuguese public TV, RTP. In 10th of June, the Portuguese national day, the band travelled to the Portuguese territory at the time, Macao, in China, in order to commemorate the day. Still in 1985, they also participated in a youth festival in Bulgaria and performed in the Greek cities of Larissa, Salonika, Volos and Athens.

In 1986 the band played in London, UK, and in Maputo, in the People's Republic of Mozambique. In 1987 the band returned to the Netherlands and played in Rotterdam, The Hague and Amsterdam. In that same year, they also played in Galicia, Spain, in an homage to Zeca Afonso, a Portuguese left-wing singer that had died recently, and also in the Azores Islands.

In 1988 the band played once more in Grenoble and also played for the first time to the Portuguese immigrants in Caracas, Venezuela. In December of that year, they played in Pau, France.

In 1989 the band released the sixth album, the first in five years, named Monte Formoso. Later in that year they played in the 13th World Festival of Youth and Students in Pyongyang, North Korea. In 1990 the band returned once more to France, in order to play for the Portuguese diaspora in the commemorations of the Carnation Revolution. Other shows included a participation in a music festival in the Azores and a concert in Galicia. In 1991 the band played again in several places in France, Spain and Portugal.

In 1992 they play in the European Arts Festival in England, in the Garden Festival Wales, in Wales and also in Winnipeg, Canada. In Vancouver, Canada, the band played in a huge folk music festival. They ended the year playing in several places of Portugal and Galicia.

In 1993 they played in Beverley, Bradford and Bracknel, in England, and also in Glasgow, in Scotland. In 1994 the band participated in a homage album to Zeca Afonso, Filhos da Madrugada and released the an album with the Portuguese folk band Trigo Limpo and with the Brazilian Quinteto Violado, the work was named Ópera do Bandoleiro. The album Contraluz had a new edition, by Sony. In that same year the band played in Madeira and in Lisbon's Alvalade Stadium, in a homage to Zeca Afonso. Later in that year, they played in Belgium in the Brosella Festival.

The seventh album was released in 1995, and was named Danças e Folias. In that year, they promoted the new album in several concerts in Portugal. In 1996, the band played in the Celtic music festival of Oporto and received an award for their work in divulging Portuguese folk music. Also in 1996, the band played in the United States of America, in Massachusetts, for the large Portuguese community living there. They finished the year with several concerts in Portugal and Spain.

In 1997 the band played in several concerts in Spain, France and Portugal. In the next year they played once more in Macao, in A Coruña, Galicia, in Italy and in Bilbao, in the Basque Country. They also performed in Portugal in two concerts of solidarity with Cuba, in Coimbra and Matosinhos. In 1999 they played again in Italy, in the cities of Trento and Roveretto and made a concert in Bahia, Brazil, commemorating the 450 years of the foundation of the city. Later in 1999, they released a record, with the Portuguese artists, Sérgio Godinho, João Afonso, Amélia Muge and Gaiteiros de Lisboa and returned to Brazil, playing in São Paulo.

In 2000 the band released the a double album, Por Sendas Montes e Vales and commemorated the 25th anniversary. In 2001, the band played again in France and Brazil. In the next year, they performed in Salamanca and Madrid, in Spain, and in 2003 they played in a huge festival, named 24 hours of Portuguese Music, carried out to promote the Portuguese music, that had concerts in Lisbom, Oporto, Coimbra and Santa Maria da Feira, the band played in Coimbra. Later in that year, the band released a single, Ceia Louca, during the festival of the Portuguese Communist Party, the Avante! Festival.