Line-up announced for Liverpool’s Brazilica festival
An impressive line-up of international artists have been announced for Liverpool’s annual Brazilica festival, which is set to have carnival goers Samba-ing on the city streets this summer.
Some of the most exciting and talented musicians from home and abroad are set to bring the pulsating sounds of the Latin American beat to the banks of the Mersey. The festival, which is taking place on Friday July 14 until Sunday July 16, will take place at the city’s Pier Head for its 10th year.
Organised by Liverpool Carnival Company, the waterfront is set to be awash with the sights, tastes and especially the sounds of Brazil.
The music line-up includes São Paulo 10-piece Bixiga 70, who will be performing at the Pier Head Village stage. The band, formed in 2010, mixes elements of Latin, African and Jazz music with Afrobeat and Brazilian rhythms, and the musicians, from diverse backgrounds, operate as a collective, sharing composer credits and running their own recording studio.
Visitors to the festival can also expect to enjoy music from Papa JACA, an Afro-Brazilian power fusion band which plays a variety of Brazilian rhythms along with its own compositions and Afrosamba is a UK-based band paying homage to the great names of Afro-Brazilian Jazz, Samba and Bossa Nova.
Saxophonist and songwriter Sam Qureshi will also take to the stage, as well as Suéli Gil and Aleh Ferreira.
The night-time Carnival Parade which features Samba bands from across the UK and overseas will remain the main festival highlight on the Saturday night. Thousands of people are set to line the route, which makes its way from Abercromby Square through the city centre streets before coming to a colourful conclusion in Williamson Square.
Maeve Morris, Artistic Director of Liverpool Carnival Company, said: “Music and life intertwine in Brazil, and you can’t have Brazilica without a soundtrack of Latin American and Afro-Brazilian grooves.
“So I’m excited to be able to announce the line-up of talented bands and performers from here in the UK and much further afield who we have invited to help make this 10th anniversary Brazilica the most memorable yet.”
The Brazilian Film Festival will also return for a third year running, along with a Fringe Festival packed with exhibitions and workshops, with many artists and bands already confirmed from around the world to take part and events will take place in venues across the city.
