Press Releases

For Immediate Release
August 26, 2010

For more information, contact
Stuart Soloway
(585) 395-2797
ssoloway@brockport.edu

The Saucy Sounds of Brazil are Presented in Bossa Nova Concert

The event will take place on September 16 at 7:30 pm on the Tower Fine Arts Center Mainstage.

Brockport, NY – If Latin rhythms get to you… If the chic cocktail lounge atmosphere of Mad Men seduces you… If the sunny beaches of Rio de Janeiro beckon to you… you can blame it on the bossa nova. On Thursday, September 16, 2010, at 7:30 pm, the Bossa Nova in Portuguese ensemble swings the smooth, soothing sound that first came to prominence in Brazil during the 1950s and 60s and has won fans in each successive generation. The concert takes place in the Tower Fine Arts Center Mainstage, 180 Holley Street, Brockport. Tickets prices are $15/General, $10/Seniors, College at Brockport Alumni, Faculty and Staff and $8/Students and are available by phone at (585) 395-ARTS or at the Tower Fine Arts Center Box Office. Visit www.brockport.edu/finearts for more information.

In the US, the bossa nova has been thought of as a sultry, cadenced soundtrack to the 1960s, but this belies its origins amongst the middle and upper classes of Brazilians. Due to that genesis, the bossa nova also took on political overtones in its native land, where the working class rebelled against the genre’s seemingly carefree lyrics, depicting leisurely strolls up and down the beaches, for example. Following a Brazilian military coup in 1964, a new generation of bossa nova composers and lyricists emerged, adding a much more nationalistic influence to their musical export.

The Bossa Nova in Portuguese ensemble is the brainchild of Dr. Hilda Chacon and Tim Sullivan. Chacon is a professor in the foreign languages and literature program at Nazareth College, where Sullivan is professor emeritus in the music department. As a graduate student, Chacon sang bossa nova in clubs in her native Costa Rica and in Spain.

The Bossa Nova in Portuguese concert is a fitting conclusion to the College’s 10th annual Diversity Day. The keynote address at this year’s event is Tony Award®-winning actress, Phylicia Rashad, known to millions for her work on The Cosby Show. She will speak at 9:30 am in the Seymour College Union Ballroom. For more information, visit www.brockport.edu/divconf/2010/index. -end-

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The College at Brockport, State University of New York
350 New Campus Drive * Brockport, New York 14420-2931
(585) 395-2754 * FAX (585) 395-2723 * www.brockport.edu