Happy New Year!
Welcome to the Gafieira New York Newsletter for upcoming events, gafieira insights from around the world, and tidbits of samba history.
In 2025, we danced in the park and in the studio, to live music and DJ’s, and hosted our first samba residency with Jaguar Santana and Tainah Damasceno. Now we're on break for the winter, spending time in Rio de Janeiro, studying, training, and soaking up samba de gafieira essence to bring it back to our NYC community. We’ve had the chance to study with dance greats including G’Leu Cambria, Rosângela Silvestre, João Carlos Ramos, and Gustavo Reis, and have visited samba centers such as Cozinha da Gafieira, Versátil Dance, Artance, KVS Dances and Centro Cultural Carioca. In December, Laurie performed in the Cozinha da Gafieira student choreo at the Atlético Clube Helênico. You can watch a recording of it here .
In the Meantime
Our friends in LA (@gafieiralosangeles), Bay Area (@bras_arte), and Miami (@gafieiramiami), are active with classes and events. If you are traveling to any of these cities, it’s a great idea to reach out to the organizers and see if you can join a class or practice session. Actually, wherever you may be traveling, there is likely to be some samba action. Respond to this email with your destination cities and we’ll be more than happy to help you get in touch with sambistas in other cities!
Eyes on Rio
The last two major samba events of 2025 were the Swing do Black (November 20-23) and Copa pra Sambar (December 11-14). They each featured competitions where gafieira couples showed their best choreos as well as improvisos. This year, the couple Arthur e Alana blew away Swing do Black, while Joana e Klebinho took gold at the Copa pra Sambar. Check out their instagram pages for their impeccable musicality, playfulness, and creative variations at @arthuealana and @joanaeklebinho.
Samba History
Pé do meu samba is an iconic song written by Caetano Veloso and most popular in the version sung by Martnália, daughter of Martinho da Vila. It pays homage to the city of Rio de Janeiro, citing its unique geography (a curva de Copacabana, the route along the coast from Leme to Pontal), places that gave birth to samba (escolas de samba in the Largo do Estácio, Vila Isabel, and Mangueira, alluded to by the Buraco Quente outside of its quadra), and popular festivals (Feira da Penha, feira nordestina at São Cristóvão, and circus/carnaval acts Intrépida Trupe and Lona Cultural de Guadalupe). You can listen to it here, and try not to melt with nostalgia for this cidade maravilhosa.
Looking Forward
Gafieira Los Angeles is hosting a Summer Intensivo with Leo e Robertinha and Gustavo e Fernanda, from July 10-12, 2025, with workshops, socials, and shows. Early bird tickets are on sale now. We highly recommend checking it out!
Until Next Time
Did you know we founded a non-profit? NYC Samba, Inc., is officially a 501(c)(3) dedicated to bringing you artists from Brazil and organizing events in the spirit of cultural exchange and learning. If you would like to make a tax-deductible donation, click here.
Also, if you want a Gafieira New York t-shirt, fill out this order form and we will deliver it when we return to NYC.
Beijos!
