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World On Your Street: The Global Music Challenge
Pedro Martins
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Describe the atmosphere and live music at a local pub, restaurant, festival, church or temple, club night.... inspire other people to check it out!


Musician: Pedro Martins

Location: Brighton

Instruments: voice, guitar, bass, keyboard, percussion, flute, cavaquinho

Music: Brazilian

HOW I CAME TO THIS MUSICÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýWHERE I PLAYÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýÌýA FAVOURITE SONG Click here for Hande Domac's storyClick here for Mosi Conde's storyClick here for Rachel McLeod's story


ListenÌýÌýListen (4'48) to 'Viva A Povo Brasileiro' from Pedro Martin’s band, Bazeado, taken from their album Requebra Nega (Mr Bongo MRBCD 20).

ListenÌýÌýListen (00'55) to Pedro Martins talk about his music.


'I wanted to do good music and I kept in mind bossa nova, the gentleness of it. I didn’t want to make music that hurt people. Music that was kind to people, that was my concept.'

How I came to this music:

I was born in the south, the Parana, it’s where the coffee comes from. After my mum’s breast milk, coffee was the first thing I drank. We shifted to Sao Paulo when I was three and I lived there ‘til 1985. I began playing music seriously in the 1970s and we had a big group called Passrgada which was theatre and music and I ended up doing some acting - that’s how I got the role on a TV soap. It was a fashion at the time to have actors and musicians together.

I then had a group called Farinha Seca and we’d mess with traditional Brazilian music. In concert we’d start out formal and end up with distorted accordion like a punk group! I then had a rock group called Lente Decontacto and we did lots of concerts and TV but the corruption in the Brazilian music scene... I was writing songs for lots of artists but having a contract there is like being in the army. You’re not supposed to speak to the music director or president of the company and these people make sure their songs get pushed first. Another problem in Brazil is the music is ruled by fashion and if you’re out of fashion there’s no way you’re going to get your music heard. A lot of Brazilian music is like Boyzone over here, manufactured crap being pushed on TV and radio.

I was so frustrated by Brazil. I felt strangled by the contract I had so I shifted to Europe. Yet being in Europe and initially not speaking most of the languages made me concentrate on Brazilian music, really think about it, and I fell in love with it all over again. Jobim! The words of that man!

I lived in Portugal, Spain, Denmark and France and mainly made my living through busking or playing in restaurants. It was Brazilian music I was playing and I really concentrated on it so I certainly improved as a musician. I never intended to settle in Brighton but four years ago my girlfriend got pregnant and she’s English so she wanted to live here and I just followed her. It turned out to be a good decision as I immediately fell in with a good crew of musicians - in Brighton musicians are very open and enjoy playing Brazilian music. We’d play every day. I was cleaning carpets at Marks & Spensers to survive and studying English and playing with these great musicians. I instantly adapted to Brighton.

I was inspired by these musicians to take my music forward. One of my friends was Chris Franck (Smoke City/De Lata) and he had a gig booked under the name Bazeado and couldn’t make it so he asked me and my group to do it and it went really well and so the name stuck. Bazeado is Portuguese slang for marijuana which is ironic as I don’t smoke! I’ve kept on playing all kinds of Brazilian music as I’ve always been open to all of it so with Bazeado I tend to mix up bossa nova, samba and batucada. And, of course, I listen to what music people are making in the UK so there’s the influence of some of the UK dance sounds. I wanted to do good music and I kept in mind bossa nova, the gentleness of it. I didn’t want to make music that hurt people. Music that was kind to people, that was my concept.

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