Tropicália

Tropicália (Portuguese pronunciation: [tɾopiˈkaʎɐ, tɾɔpiˈkaljɐ]), also known as Tropicalismo ([tɾopikɐˈlizmu, tɾɔpikaˈ-]), was a Brazilian artistic movement that arose in the late 1960s and formally ended in 1968. Though music was its chief expression, the movement was not solely expressed so, as it enveloped other art forms such as film, theatre, and poetry. Tropicália was characterized by the amalgamation of Brazilian genres. Notably the union of the popular and the avant-garde, as well as the melding of Brazilian tradition and foreign traditions and styles.The term Tropicália (Tropicalismo) has multiple connotations in that it played on images of Brazil being that of a "tropical paradise." Tropicalia was presented as a "field for reflection on social history." Today, Tropicália is chiefly associated with the musical faction of the movement, which merged Brazilian and African rhythms with pop-rock. The movement was initiated by a group of musicians from Bahia notably Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Gal Costa, Tom Zé,and the poet/lyricist Torquato Neto. Later the group would move from Salvador (the state in which Bahia is located) to São Paulo. Where they would meet with collaborators Os Mutantes and Rogério Duprat among others. They would go on to produce the 1968 album Tropicália: ou Panis et Circencis, which served as the movement's manifesto. Tropicália was not only an expression in analyzing and manipulating culture but also a mode of political expression. The Tropicália movement came to fruition at a time when Brazil’s military dictatorship and left wing ideas held distinct but prominent amounts of power simultaneously. The Tropicalist’s rejection of both side’s version of nationalism (the military government’s conservative patriotism and the left wing anti-imperialism) was met with criticism and harassment. The movement officially ended in 1968. However the dissolution of the collective birthed a new wave of soloists and groups identifying as “post-tropicalist”. The movement has inspired many artists nationally and internationally. Additionally Tropicalia continues to be a main feature in the original Bahian group and their fellows’ work.