| Salvador - Festivities - Baiano Carnival |
SALVADOR
Festivities
Baiano Carnival
(Carnaval Baiano)
The carnival of Bahia is a festival that represents Brazil all over the world.
The commemoraion involves all the culture of the population of Bahia. The folklore and art are represented in a general form for the people
to understand the real carnival spirit of the city. The festival has always been part of Bahia but in a simple manner, because the
presentations and manifestation are done only among the baianas. There was no publicity or anything that could take it to the top of the
sucess, which is what happens today.
As in all the city, there are people with big ideas, when used, can result in
growth and evolution. That is what happened in Salvador, when Dodô and Osmar appeared, two friends that decided to agitate the Baiano
Carnival.
In 1950, carnival started being developed. Dodô and Osmar went to the streets
of Salvador in a 1929 Ford and 2 loud speaker to agitate the city. That was the creation of the "Trio Elétrico". As time went by,
the carnivals continued to grow until the 1961 when the first "Rei Momo" went to the streets of Salvador. At the same time, the
first carnival group called "Os Internacionais" made up only by men. And this way, the credibility of the Baiano Carnival grew more
and more.
In 1974, the afro group "Ile Aiye" was created and brought to the
carnival of Salvador the mixture of the african origins. The Baiano Carnival represents the brazilian culture, the mixture of races and
principally, the fight against racial prejudices. With the creation of various groups, the transformation of the "Trio Elétrico"
was practcally obligatory. The groups began to create new "Trio Elétricos" with quality equipment, they removed the old speakers
and the support was transformed into a well structured truck with space for the musicians and for the land.
The GEC (Executive Carnival Group) was created and in charge of the carnival
organization. When the first boxes and grand stands, the afro group Olodum was the first to parade in the Farol da Barra. After this, the
"abadão" appeared, made up by T-shirts and shorts that represent the fantasy of each carnival group.
The decades passed and, each year, the Baiano Carnival became more organized.
The arrival of the "Axé Music", which is a type of dance created in Bahia, called more attention to the city. All this process of
evolution of the carnival attracted the attention of various people, which increased the tourism in Salvador. The festival started to be
commercialized since the carnival of Bahia had become the center of attentions and, with many people, of course the profit of the city
increased.
This way, the city invested in an infrastructure to receive people from all
around the world. In the period of carnival, the hotel reservations are made in advance and the flow of tourists increases considerably.
Even in the times of the dancing mobs, other points in Salvador which have no relashionship to carnival are also visited, which makes the
brazilian culture, especially from Bahia, be known internationally.
The carnival of Salvador continues to increase its projects. Nowadays, the
festival is divided into three circuits: Osmar which stays on the principal avenue of Campo Grande; the Dodô circuit that runs the orle of
the city from the Farol da Barra until the district of Ondina; and Batatinha circuit, are run by various "Trio Elétricos" in
different hours and days.
Carnival is celebrated only in February, but all the process of organization,
projects, security are studied and elaborated during the whole year. That is because carnival in Bahia is held in only one month. After all,
Salvador represents festivals and to have a festival all you have to do is be in Bahia. |