Salvador Bahia Brazil Matrix
  • Sign in
  • Join Everybody Here
    Loading ...
View All Updates Mark All Read
  • Matrix Home
  • Categories are Here!
  • Showcase Music
  • Add Videos/SC
  • Add Photos
  • (Bahia)
  • Questions?
  • From Brazil with love →
  • @ Ground Zero
  • El Aleph
  • If You Can't Stand the Heat
  • Harlem to Bahia to the Planet
  • Why a "Matrix"?

From Brazil with love →

@ Ground Zero

 

Have you, dear friend, ever noticed how different places scattered across the face of the globe seem almost to exist in different universes? As if they were permeated throughout with something akin to 19th century luminiferous aether, unique, determined by that place's history? It's like a trick of the mind's light (I suppose), but standing on beach or escarpment in Salvador and looking out across the Baía de Todos os Santos to the great Recôncavo, and mindful of what happened there, one must be led to the inevitable conclusion that one is in a place unique to history, and to the present*.

 

 

"Chegou a hora dessa gente bronzeada mostrar seu valor / The time has come for these bronzed people to show their value..."Música: Assis Valente of Santo Amaro, Bahia. Vídeo: Betão Aguiar.

 

*More enslaved human beings entered the Bay of All Saints and the Recôncavo than any other final port-of-call throughout all of mankind's history.

 

These people and their descendants created some of the most uplifting music ever made, the foundation of Brazil's national art. We wanted their music to be accessible to the world (it's not even accessible here in Brazil) so we created a platform by which everybody's creativity is mutually accessible, including theirs.

 

El Aleph

 

The network was built in an obscure record shop (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar found it) in a shimmering Brazilian port city...

 

...inspired in (the kabbalah-inspired fiction of) Borges' (short story) El Aleph, that in the pillar in Cairo's Mosque of Amr, where the universe in its entirety throughout all time is perceivable as an infinite hum from deep within the stone.

 

It "works" by virtue of the "small-world" phenomenon...the same responsible for the fact that most of us 7 billion or so beings are within 6 or fewer degrees of each other.

 

It was described (to some degree) and can be accessed via this article in British journal The Guardian (which named our radio of matrixed artists as one of ten best in the world):

 

www.theguardian.com/travel/2020/apr/17/10-best-music-radio-station-around-world

 

With David Dye for U.S. National Public Radio: www.npr.org/2013/07/16/202634814/roots-of-samba-exploring-historic-pelourinho-in-salvador-brazil

 

All is more connected than we know.

 

Per the "spirit" above, our logo is a cortador de cana, a cane-cutter. It was designed by Walter Mariano, professor of design at the Federal University of Bahia to reflect the origins of the music the shop specialized in. The Brazilian "aleph" doesn't hum... it dances and sings.

 

If You Can't Stand the Heat

 

Image above is from the base of the cross in front of the church of São Francisco do Paraguaçu in the Bahian Recôncavo

 

Sprawled across broad equatorial latitudes, stoked and steamed and sensual in the widest sense of the word, limned in cadenced song, Brazil is a conundrum wrapped in a smile inside an irony...

 

This is not a European nation. It is not a North American nation. It is not an East Asian nation. It straddles — jungle and desert and dense urban centers — both the equator and the Tropic of Capricorn. Brazil absorbed over ten times the number of enslaved Africans taken to the United States of America, and is a repository of African deities (and their music) now largely forgotten in their lands of origin. It was a refuge (of sorts) for Sephardim fleeing an Inquisition which followed them across the Atlantic (that unofficial symbol of Brazil's national music — the pandeiro — was almost certainly brought to Brazil by these people). Across the parched savannas of the interior of Brazil's culturally fecund nordeste/northeast, where wizard Hermeto Pascoal was born in Lagoa da Canoa (Lagoon of the Canoe) and raised in Olho d'Águia (Eye of the Eagle), much of Brazil's aboriginal population was absorbed into a caboclo/quilombola culture punctuated by the Star of David. Three cultures — from three continents — running for their lives, their confluence forming an unprecedented fourth. Pandeirista on the roof. Nowhere else but here.

 

Oligarchy, plutocracy, dictatorships and massive corruption — elements of these are still strongly entrenched — have defined, delineated, and limited Brazil.

 

But strictured & bound as it has been and is, Brazil has buzz...not the shallow buzz of a fashionable moment...but the deep buzz of a population which in spite of — or perhaps because of — the tough slog through life they've been allotted by humanity's dregs-in-fine-linen, have chosen not to simply pull themselves along but to lift their voices in song and their bodies in dance...to eat well and converse well and much and to wring the joy out of the day-to-day happenings and small pleasures of life which are so often set aside or ignored in the European, North American, and East Asian nations.

 

For this Brazil has a genius perhaps unparalleled in all other countries and societies, a genius which thrives alongside peeling paint and holes in the streets and roads, under bad organization by the powers-that-be, both civil and governmental, under a constant rain of societal indignities...

 

Which is all to say that if you don't know Brazil and you're expecting any semblance of order, progress and light, you will certainly find the light! And the buzz of a people who for generations have responded to privation at many different levels by somehow rising above it all.

 

"Onde tem miséria, tem música!"* - Raymundo Sodré

 

And it's not just music. And it's not just Brazil.

 

Welcome to the kitchen!

 

* "Where there is misery, there is music!" Remarked during a conversation arcing from Bahia to Haiti and Cuba to New Orleans and the south side of Chicago and Harlem to the villages of Ireland and the gypsy camps and shtetls of Eastern Europe...

 

Harlem to Bahia to the Planet



Why a "Matrix"?

 

I was explaining the ideas behind this nascent network to (João) Teoria (trumpet player above) over cervejas at Xique Xique (a bar named for a town in Bahia) in the Salvador neighborhood of Barris...

 

Like this (but in Portuguese): "It's kind of like Facebook if it didn't spy on you, but reversed... more about who you don't know than who you do know. And who doesn't know you but would be glad if they did. It's kind of like old Myspace Music but instead of having "friends" it has a list on your page of people you recommend. Not just musicians but writers, painters, filmmakers, dancers, chefs... anybody in the creative economy. It has a list of people who recommend you, or through whom you are recommended. It deals with arts which aren't recommendable by algorithm but need human intelligence behind recommendations. And the people who are recommended can recommend, creating a network of recommendations wherein by the small world phenomenon most people in the creative economy are within several steps of everybody else in the creative economy, no matter where they are in the world. Like a chessboard which could have millions of squares, but you can get from any given square to any other in no more than six steps..."

 

And João said (in Portuguese): "A matrix where you can move from one artist to another..."

 

A matrix! That was it! The ORIGINAL meaning of matrix is "source", from "mater", Latin for "mother". So the term would help congeal the concept in the minds of people the network was being introduced to, while giving us a motto: "We're a real mother for ya!" (you know, Johnny "Guitar" Watson?)

 

The original idea was that musicians would recommend musicians, the network thus formed being "small world" (commonly called "six degrees of separation"). In the real world, the number of degrees of separation in such a network can vary, but while a given network might have billions of nodes (people, for example), the average number of steps between any two nodes will usually be minuscule.

 

Thus somebody unaware of the magnificent music of Bahia, Brazil will be able to conceivably move from almost any musician in this matrix to Bahia in just a few steps...

 

By the same logic that might move one from Bahia or anywhere else to any musician anywhere.

 

And there's no reason to limit this system to musicians. To the contrary, while there are algorithms written to recommend music (which, although they are limited, can be useful), there are no algorithms capable of recommending journalism, novels & short stories, painting, dance, film, chefery...

 

...a vast chasm that this network — or as Teoria put it, "matrix" — is capable of filling.

 

  • John McWhorter
    I RECOMMEND

CURATION

  • from this node by: Matrix

This is the Universe of

  • Name: John McWhorter
  • City/Place: New York City
  • Country: United States

Life & Work

  • Bio: John McWhorter teaches linguistics, American studies, philosophy and music history at Columbia University, where he is Associate Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University.

Media | Markets

  • ▶ Book Purchases: http://www.bookdepository.com/author/John-McWhorter
  • ▶ Articles: http://www.theatlantic.com/author/john-mcwhorter/

Clips (more may be added)

  • 1:04:05
    Our Oppressive Moment: John McWhorter on Cancel Culture | Free Thought Live
    By John McWhorter
    132 views
  • 1:10:22
    Chronicling the Race | Glenn Loury & John McWhorter [The Glenn Show]
    By John McWhorter
    151 views
  • 1:11:18
    #217 - THE NEW RELIGION OF ANTI-RACISM - A Conversation with John McWhorter
    By John McWhorter
    163 views
  • 1:06:40
    The End of Wokeness? | Glenn Loury & John McWhorter [The Glenn Show]
    By John McWhorter
    144 views
  • 0:45:51
    John McWhorter: America Has Never Been Less Racist
    By John McWhorter
    151 views
Previous
Next

YOU RECOMMEND

Imagine the world's creative economy at your fingertips. Imagine 10 doors side-by-side. Beyond each, 10 more, each opening to a "creative" somewhere around the planet. After passing through 8 such doorways you will have followed 1 pathway out of 100 million possible (2 sets of doorways yield 10 x 10 = 100 pathways). This is a simplified version of the metamathematics that makes it possible to reach everybody in the global creative economy in just a few steps It doesn't mean that everybody will be reached by everybody. It does mean that everybody can  be reached by everybody.


Appear below by recommending John McWhorter:

  • 0 Author
  • 0 Columbia University Faculty
  • 0 Linguist
  • 0 New York City
  • David Virelles Jazz
  • Yvette Holzwarth Composer
  • Justin Stanton Keyboards
  • Antônio Queiroz Bahia
  • Milford Graves Drums
  • Yilian Cañizares Jazz
  • Jacám Manricks Composer
  • Henrique Araújo Choro
  • Yoron Israel Jazz
  • Kiko Souza Jazz Brasileiro, Brazilian Jazz
  • Beeple VJ Loops
  • Alessandro Penezzi Composer
  • Felipe Guedes Guitar
  • Ben Paris Bahia
  • Danilo Pérez Boston
  • Matthew F Fisher Painter
  • Daniil Trifonov New York City
  • Karsh Kale कर्ष काळे Indian Classical Music
  • Terri Hinte Liner Notes
  • Warren Wolf Piano
  • Alma Deutscher Composer
  • Wilson Simoninha Music Producer
  • Django Bates Multi-Instrumentalist
  • Ivan Sacerdote Composer
  • Lucinda Williams Singer-Songwriter
  • Reena Esmail Hindustani Classical Music
  • Capinam Salvador
  • Andrés Beeuwsaert Multi-Cultural
  • Courtney Pine Radio Presenter
  • David Bragger Record Label Owner
  • Andrés Beeuwsaert Piano
  • Benoit Fader Keita Techno
  • Chris Cheek Composer
  • Kiko Freitas Brazil
  • Wouter Kellerman Fife
  • Third Coast Percussion Percussion Ensemble
  • Amitava Kumar Screenwriter
  • Nettrice R. Gaskins Afro-Futurist
  • Julie Fowlis Scotland
  • Brian Blade Jazz
  • Jim Hoke Saxophone
  • Jorge Aragão Multi-Instrumentalist
  • Cláudio Jorge MPB
  • Stuart Duncan Americana
  • Dadá do Trombone Bahia
  • Scott Devine United Kingdom
  • Anouar Brahem Oud
  • Emicida MC
  • Melanie Charles Soul
  • Avishai Cohen Trumpet
  • Bhi Bhiman Los Angeles
  • Tia Fuller Jazz
  • Perumal Murugan Poet
  • Goran Krivokapić Montenegro
  • Nilze Carvalho Samba
  • Kaveh Rastegar Music Director
  • Tito Jackson Soul
  • Tom Piazza Screenwriter
  • Linda May Han Oh Jazz
  • Natan Drubi Bahia
  • Nicolas Krassik Composer
  • Timothy Duffy Folklorist
  • Vijay Gupta Violin
  • Chico César São Paulo
  • Joachim Cooder Multi-Cultural
  • Jess Gillam Saxophone
  • João Callado Music Producer
  • Afel Bocoum Singer-Songwriter
  • Urânia Munzanzu Cineasta, Filmmaker
  • THE ROOM Shibuya Cocktail Bar
  • Tiganá Santana Violão, Guitar
  • Philip Cashian Contemporary Classical Music
  • Matt Ulery Composer
  • Yoruba Andabo Cuba
  • Donny McCaslin Jazz
  • Nancy Ruth Multi-Cultural
  • Serwah Attafuah Digital 3D Artist
  • Tambay Obenson Journalist
  • Joe Newberry Raleigh
  • Kermit Ruffins Trumpet
  • Laura Marling London
  • Karla Vasquez Food Writer
  • Lionel Loueke Guitar
  • Armandinho Macêdo Mandolin
  • Philip Watson Cork
  • Samuca do Acordeon Chamamé
  • Papa Mali Record Producer
  • Norah Jones Piano
  • Rebeca Omordia Nigeria
  • Brad Mehldau Film Scores
  • David Hoffman Documentary Filmmaker
  • Mahsa Vahdat Tehran
  • Andra Day Los Angeles
  • PATRICKTOR4 Bahia
  • Ben Harper Singer-Songwriter
  • André Mehmari Composer
  • John Patitucci Bass
  • Casa da Mãe Bahia
  • André Becker Salvador
  • Nigel Hall New Orleans
  • João do Boi Brazil
  • Onisajé Brasil, Brazil
  • Zachary Richard Singer-Songwriter
  • Andrés Beeuwsaert Argentina
  • Cinho Damatta Brasil, Brazil
  • Danilo Brito São Paulo
  • Curtis Hasselbring Jazz
  • Raul Midón Songwriter
  • Jen Shyu Composer
  • Bobby Sanabria Composer
  • Stefano Bollani Brazilian Music
  • Donald Vega Composer
  • Marko Djordjevic Balkan Music
  • Reena Esmail Piano
  • Jorge Alfredo Cantor-Compositor, Singer-Songwriter
  • Del McCoury Old-Time Music
  • J. Pierre Illustrator
  • Christopher Wilkinson Guitar
  • Hugo Rivas Composer
  • As Ganhadeiras de Itapuã Samba de Roda
  • Dave Smith Alternative, Improv
  • Walmir Lima Songwriter
  • Ronald Bruner Jr. Drums
  • Fernando César Brazil
  • Jimmy Greene Composer
  • Saul Williams Filmmaker
  • Ajeum da Diáspora Brazil
  • Steve Cropper Guitar
  • Ana Luisa Barral Mandolin
  • Martyn DJ
  • Peter Evans Trumpet
  • Etan Thomas Writer
  • Lizz Wright Blues
  • Marília Sodré Bahia
  • Otmaro Ruiz Jazz
  • Sam Eastmond Composer
  • Miles Okazaki Composer
  • Gilad Hekselman Composer
  • Luciano Salvador Bahia Bahia
  • Dorian Concept Synthesizer
  • Tarus Mateen New York City
  • Léo Rugero Film Scores
  • Gonzalo Rubalcaba Piano
  • Alma Deutscher Classical Music
  • Mike Moreno Aaron Copeland School of Music Faculty
  • Béco Dranoff Brazilian Music
  • Asali Solomon Essayist
  • Musa Okwonga Poet
  • Kurt Andersen Screenwriter
  • Cláudio Jorge Arranger
  • Paul McKenna Singer-Songwriter
  • Juçara Marçal Brazil
  • César Camargo Mariano Piano
  • Parker Ighile Progressive Afro Pop
  • J. Velloso Brazil
  • Jonga Cunha Percussion
  • Issac Delgado Salsa
  • Ryan Keberle Manhattan School of Music Faculty
  • Jerry Douglas Resonator Guitar
  • G. Thomas Allen Columbia College Chicago Faculty
  • Miho Hazama Composer
  • Oscar Bolão Author
  • Kirk Whalum Jazz
  • Mavis Staples Chicago
  • Casa Preta Brasil, Brazil
  • Mauro Refosco Brooklyn, NY
  • Mona Lisa Saloy Writer
  • Benjamin Grosvenor Classical Music
  • Hugues Mbenda Marseille
  • Francisco Mela New York City
  • Marisa Monte Rio de Janeiro
  • Dafnis Prieto Afro-Cuban Jazz
  • Jocelyn Ramirez Online Cooking Classes
  • João Bosco Brazil
  • Mateus Aleluia Samba
  • Jamel Brinkley Novelist
  • David Byrne Film Scores
  • Marko Djordjevic Composer
  • Afel Bocoum Guitar
  • Bodek Janke Tabla
  • The Weeknd R&B
  • Juliana Ribeiro Samba
  • Eliane Elias Brazil
  • Lalah Hathaway Singer-Songwriter
  • Dale Farmer Old-Time Music
  • Andrés Beeuwsaert Piano
  • Mart'nália Rio de Janeiro
  • Isaak Bransah Salvador
  • Jean Rondeau Paris
  • Georgia Anne Muldrow Multi-Instrumentalist
  • Gian Correa Guitar
  • Chau do Pife Forró
  • Casey Benjamin Record Producer
  • Caroline Keane Concertina
  • Lucian Ban Romania
  • Ruven Afanador New York City
  • Nomcebo Zikode Singer-Songwriter
  • Lenine Brazil
  • Paulinho da Viola Brazil
  • Nublu Record Label
  • Alisa Weilerstein Contemporary Classical Music
  • Larissa Fulana de Tal Cineasta, Filmmaker
  • Rebeca Omordia Piano
  • Ofer Mizrahi Indian Slide Guiter
  • Siphiwe Mhlambi Visual Story Teller
  • Aditya Prakash India
  • Cimafunk Singer-Songwriter
  • Amit Chatterjee Sitar
  • Tony Austin Sound Designer
  • James Strauss Brazil
  • Gerald Clayton Blue Note Records
  • Manolo Badrena Multi-Instrumentalist
  • Antonio Sánchez Drums
  • Guto Wirtti MPB
  • Tab Benoit Blues
  • Harold López-Nussa Cuba
  • Arifan Junior Rio de Janeiro
  • Raelis Vasquez Painter
  • Stephanie Foden Toronto
  • Laércio de Freitas Piano
  • Alex Conde Jazz
  • Gerônimo Santana Trombone
  • Michel Camilo Composer
  • Paulão 7 Cordas Record Producer
  • Alexa Tarantino New York City
  • João do Boi Chula
  • Michael Pipoquinha Brazilian Jazz
  • Keola Beamer Hawaiian Music
  • Brian Stoltz Singer
  • Chris Cheek Brooklyn, NY
  • Tray Chaney Songwriter
  • Meshell Ndegeocello Singer-Songwriter
  • Tom Bergeron Bossa Nova
  • Willie Jones III Drums
  • Sheryl Bailey Berklee College of Music Faculty
  • Diedrich Diederichsen Writer
  • Cedric Watson Louisiana Creole Music
  • Mário Pam Brazil
  • Isaiah J. Thompson New York City
  • Olga Mieleszczuk Poland
  • Terreon Gully Composer
  • Karim Ziad Jazz
  • Mykia Jovan New Orleans
  • Beth Bahia Cohen Tanbur
  • Johnny Lorenz Essayist
  • Nettrice R. Gaskins Ford Global Fellow
  • Robertinho Silva MPB
  • Eli Degibri אלי דג'יברי Jazz
  • Issa Malluf Daf
  • Nels Cline Guitar
  • Jennifer Koh Contemporary Classical Music
  • Shankar Mahadevan Composer
  • Brandon J. Acker Classical Guitar
  • Michael Janisch Funk
  • Moreno Veloso MPB
  • MonoNeon Bass
  • Fidelis Melo Bahia
  • Richard Galliano Paris, France
  • Snigdha Poonam Journalist
  • Chico César Singer-Songwriter
  • John Doyle Dublin
  • Jam no MAM Jazz Brasileiro, Brazilian Jazz
  • Filhos da Pitangueira Samba
  • Yazz Ahmed Composer
  • Rumaan Alam Novelist
  • Peter Erskine USC Thornton School of Music Faculty
  • Peter Slevin Northwestern University Faculty
  • Goran Krivokapić Classical Guitar
  • Tomoko Omura Composer
  • Marcello Gonçalves Samba
  • Carl Allen Drums
  • Kiko Horta Brazil
  • Kaveh Rastegar Multi-Instrumentalist
  • Derrick Hodge Hip-Hop
  • Teodor Currentzis Conducter
  • Arismar do Espírito Santo Choro
  • Sergio Krakowski Jazz
  • Hercules Gomes Piano
  • Thomas Àdes London
  • Mestre Nelito Salvador
  • Zé Luíz Nascimento Paris
  • Léo Rodrigues Percussion
  • Isaak Bransah Brazil
  • Yoko Miwa Composer
  • John Santos Record Producer
  • Dr. Lonnie Smith Jazz
  • Donald Harrison Composer
  • Sunna Gunnlaugs Iceland
  • Benoit Fader Keita Mënik
  • Joe Chambers Vibraphone
  • Pretinho da Serrinha Brazil
  • VJ Gabiru Salvador
  • Saileog Ní Cheannabháin Classical Music
  • Rowney Scott Jazz Brasileiro, Brazilian Jazz
  • Ilê Aiyê Bahia
  • Simon Shaheen Arabic Music
  • Omer Avital Brooklyn, NY
  • Julien Libeer Brussels
  • Alyn Shipton Radio Presenter
  • 小野リサ Lisa Ono Singer
  • Matt Ulery Bass
  • J. Velloso Songwriter
  • Nego Álvaro Brazil
  • John Archibald Podcaster
  • China Moses R&B
  • Dorian Concept Record Producer
  • Leonardo Mendes Cantor-Compositor, Singer-Songwriter
  • João Bosco Guitar
  • Gino Sorcinelli Music Production, Rapping, Sampling, Beatmaking
  • Bernardo Aguiar Percussion Instruction
  • Stuart Duncan Fiddle
  • Cédric Villani Paris
  • Paulo César Figueiredo Brasil, Brazil
  • Chris Acquavella Mandolin
  • Roberta Sá MPB
  • Fatoumata Diawara African Music
  • Kenny Barron Jazz
  • Larissa Luz Music Producer
  • Sheryl Bailey New York City
  • Daniel Jobim Bossa Nova
  • Mona Lisa Saloy Dillard University Faculty
  • Joe Chambers Drums
  • Antonio Sánchez Jazz
  • Joey Alexander Composer
  • Jim Farber Writer
  • Sarah Jarosz Folk & Traditional
  • Anouar Brahem Tunis
  • Scotty Apex Los Angeles
  • Jas Kayser Drums
  • Brenda Navarrete Percussion
  • Corey Harris Folk & Traditional
  • Immanuel Wilkins Jazz
  • David Sánchez Ropeadope
  • Celso de Almeida Brazil
  • Jakub Józef Orliński Opera
  • Miles Mosley Film Scores
  • Ron Carter Jazz
  • Yuja Wang China
  • Stephen Guerra Bronx Conservatory of Music Faculty
  • Eli Teplin Los Angeles
  • Ethan Iverson Avant-Garde Jazz
  • Sebastian Notini Produtor Musical, Music Producer
  • Tatiana Campêlo Bahia
  • Jacob Collier Multi-Instrumentalist
  • Patrice Quinn Singer
  • Stuart Duncan Guitar
  • Imani Winds Multi-Cultural
  • Isaiah J. Thompson Piano
  • Tom Green Contemporary Classical Music
  • Jerry Douglas Dobro

 'mātriks / "source" / from "mater", Latin for "mother"
We're a real mother for ya!

 

Copyright ©2022  -  Privacy  -  Terms of Service  -  Contact  - 

Open to members of the worldwide creative economy.

You'll use your email address to log in.

Passwords must be at least 6 characters in length.

Enter your password again for confirmation.

This will be the end of your profile link, for example:
http://www.matrixonline.net/profile/yourname

Please type the characters you see in the image. May take several tries. Sorry!!!

 

Matrix Sign In

Please enter your details below. If are a member of the global creative economy and don't have a page yet, please sign up first.

 
 
 
Forgot Password?
Share