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for the book

BLOCOS AFRO

START THE MUSICAL JOURNEY

BLOCOS AFRO -
BOOK & CD
The music of the Blocos Afro has become very
popular in the last couple of years.
Their rhythms inspire many amateur and
professional musicians, dancers and audiences of
all ages around the world.
However, little has been written about this
Brazilian music style.
The only comprehensive collection of specified
information was a book by
Goli Guerreiro entitled "A trama dos tambores",
which was published only in Portuguese.

A while back one summer's day, when Matthias

Haffner and Michael de Miranda,
both musicians, met in Rotterdam, Netherlands to
record a video tutorial for YouTube,
they came up with the idea to write a book about
the
Blocos Afro and their diversity of thythms.

"Being experienced musicians they decided to add

an Audio CD for better understanding of all
rhythms
and create the music for the recordings
themselves."

A year later, their plans became reality.

They hopped on a plane to the heart of the action -
Salvador da Bahia in the North-East of Brazil.
Armed with cameras, microphones, and a pile
recording equipment they visited rehearsals,
performances, concerts and interviewed the VIP's
of the Blocos Afro.

It took another year until all the material was

finally reviewed, analysed and transcribed,
the photos chosen, the interviews translated, text
written and the CD recorded.

We hope this book takes you - the reader - on the

good musical path, maybe even all the way to
Salvador da Bahia in Brazil. For nothing compares
to the real experience of feeling the pounding
beats of a Blocos Afro.

BUY THE - BOOK & CD

SET
You can order your copy of Blocos Afro here.
Choose between the physical book &
accompanying CD with postage to either:
(1.) Netherlands & Germany, (2.) the European
Continent or (3.) Rest of the World.
Additionally you can choose for a digital
download.
After payment you will receive a download link
for the PDF book
and the MP3 playlist.
Should you choose the physical book you have the
option of adding the
PDF version to your order for only €15,00.
You can find the options in the drop-down menu
below.

Book & Postage options

PDF & Digital Download only €35,00 EUR

THE STORY
Time-line of the Project

July 2013
The Idea is Born...
When musicians Matthias and
Michael met in the summer of
2013 to record an instructional film
for YouTube, the idea quickly came
up to write a book about the music
of the Blocos Afro.

One of the reasons was that there

are few books with musical
notation from the Blocos. However,
there appears to be a great deal of
interest around the world for this
subject.

June 2015
The Brazilian Tour
The years of experience of
Matthias Haffner and Michael de
Miranda with these musical
groups in addition to their mutual
analytical skills meant travelling
together was a natural
progression.

One year late they flew to Salvador

da Bahia armed with cameras,
microphones and recording
equipment, visited rehearsals,
performances and interviewed
prominent figures in the world of
the Blocos Afro.

A Multi-media
Publication
This book uses today's technology
to create more than just a musical
transcription on a sheet of paper.

There is a CD of excellent quality

with the different rhythms of the
Blocos.
The photos also give a nice
impression of the world of the
Blocos Afro.

Hopefully this book will get

readers on the right track.
However, the ultimate experience
remains to travel to Salvador da
Bahia to experience the groups
live.

Be Part
Of Our
Story!

BLOCOS AFRO - THE BOOK

ABOUT THE RHYTHMS
AND HISTORY OF THE GROUPS
OF BAHIA

Blocos Afro - The book about the r…

Assistir ma… Compartilh…

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THE BOOK
Take a Look inside....

DIDÁ "Banda Feminina"

page 84

DIDÁ "Banda Feminina"

page 85

African Influences
page 6

Caribbean Influences
page 7

Merengue Olodum
page 34

Merengue Olodum
page 35

THE MUSIC
Listen to a few samples from the CD....

! ! " !

Ile Aiye Afro samba 3 - Blocos Afro

Ile Aiye Afro samba 3 - Blocos Afro

Ile Aiye Afro samba 3 - Blocos Afro

Olodum Repinique feature - Blocos Afro

Cortejo Afro Afro samba - Blocos Afro

Crie o seu próprio Music Player - de graça!

THE AUTHORS

Matthias Haffner

Haffner studied Latin American percussion at the

Conservatory in Rotterdam, Netherlands from 1996
till 2002.

Since then, he has relevantly contributed to

spreading Brazilian music in the Netherlands.
He has toured in Europe, Africa, Asia, South and
North America.

Many of his field trips lead him to Brazil, always in

his luggage: his Brazilian frame drum, the
pandeiro. He works with Brazilian musicians on
many occasions, both in Europe as well as in
Brazil.

Haffner studies not only the Brazilian pandeiro,

but also the little frame drums's close relatives: the
Italian tamburello, the Egyptian riq, the Spanish
pandereta or the oriental mizhar.

He enthusiastically passes on his knowledge

about drumming culture and techniques during
his workshops and master classes.

He teaches percussion at the EPM Holanda in

Rotterdam, the first school for Choro and Samba
outside of Brazil.
The school is an offshoot of the renown EPM in
Rio de Janeiro. Since 2016, he has been teaching
Brazilian and other percussion instruments in
Berlin.

One of his latest trips led him to the Brazilian

states of Pernambuco, Bahia, Minas Gerais and Rio
where he started his unique project - a
documentation about the pandeiro.

In 2018, Haffner released his comprehensive

instructional tutorials about the pandeiro,
produced by frame drummer David Kuckermann.

Matthias Haffner also develops, designs and builds

high quality hand-made pandeiros together with
his Finnish colleague
Anders Perander.
Their pandeiro lines are known and played
worldwide under the name HP Percussion.

>www.matthiashaffner.com

Michael de Miranda