film

Girl Beat: Power Of The Drum

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Producer(s)	Suzanne Girot
Director(s)	Suzanne Girot
Release Date	2003
Work In Progress	n
Runtime	47 min
Youth Media	n

Film Description

This video profiles members of Banda Dida, an all-girl drumming and vocal group in Salvador, Brazil. Their music grows out of the Portuguese colonial history of the nation, where, in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, slaves were brought from Africa for auction to plantation owners. Although slavery was abolished in Brazil in 1888, an economic separation of black and white is still entrenched throughout the country, especially in Bahia in the Northeast, where eighty percent of the population has African roots. The young musicians of Banda Dida derive a sense of empowerment from their ancestors’ slave background, incorporate slave stories into their lyrics, and perform in the same town square where slaves were once sold. In addition to providing historical background, the video visits with several members of the group in their homes, shows their auditions and rigorous rehearsal sessions, plus parade performances and a lively concert presentation.