July 9, 2009

80's-90's Brazilian Rock Concert!

Ok, so I was planning to have a language/ non-event post next... but then I just found out about what looks like a very fun event for me and all NYC Portuguese students out there coming up this Saturday... so I had to post it!

It seems like this group is a very casual, non-pro group of Wall street Brazilian guys who decided to play gigs for fun... their wives are the back vocals and the a crowd is full of their friends.... sounds like an awesome garage band kind of vibe.

One very cool thing is that they play classic 80's-90's that most Brazilians the same age as your Portuguese teacher here just love.... All those who know me know that I love samba, bossa/ brazilian jazz and forró, but you can usually find that more easily (ainda bem!)... a band playing the fun 80's stuff is much harder to find! (Don't you love New York City?). So if you are really getting into the culture, this could be a great cultural experience (even if you end up finding out that it is not really your bossa-nova-ear's thing).

The concert is this Saturday at Sullivan Hall at 9:30 pm. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased in advance here. They say to arrive early because they are opening for another band (Shitty Shitty Jam Band, doesn't that sound like a night!).

For those advanced Portuguese learners, you can listen to this video about the band and see what you understand (I may post supporting learning notes/glossary later):



I am going and trying to drag some of my local students with me. Hope to see you there!

July 8, 2009

Brazilian Film Festival in NYC: MoMA Premiere - Brazil 2009

Long time no language related post, huh? I promise to add another tip on learning Portuguese soon.

For the moment though, here is another fun event for those learning Portuguese in New York City: the MoMA is hosting the seventh annual Rio de Janeiro Festival from July 16th - August third. The selection seems really cool, with classics and some newer stuff. It is definitely worth a trip to the MoMA and a great way to get some exposure to the language!

I will probably try and organize a trip with some of my students there. (Ping me if you want to meet us :-))