The Prague Post - Brazil bagpipe band channels sound of Scotland

EUR -
AED 4.282398
AFN 79.8236
ALL 97.613623
AMD 446.033943
ANG 2.087016
AOA 1069.288982
ARS 1574.740199
AUD 1.794938
AWG 2.09893
AZN 1.984602
BAM 1.958096
BBD 2.349355
BDT 142.146679
BGN 1.957894
BHD 0.439697
BIF 3477.177281
BMD 1.166072
BND 1.499258
BOB 8.085481
BRL 6.329324
BSD 1.165867
BTN 102.160792
BWP 15.65322
BYN 3.952435
BYR 22855.017416
BZD 2.344749
CAD 1.612014
CDF 3344.295676
CHF 0.936863
CLF 0.028656
CLP 1124.23332
CNY 8.33916
CNH 8.345002
COP 4704.227246
CRC 587.48888
CUC 1.166072
CUP 30.900916
CVE 110.394447
CZK 24.544188
DJF 207.617901
DKK 7.464915
DOP 73.125746
DZD 151.435516
EGP 56.654672
ERN 17.491085
ETB 165.524792
FJD 2.638799
FKP 0.864456
GBP 0.864736
GEL 3.14259
GGP 0.864456
GHS 12.999243
GIP 0.864456
GMD 83.37901
GNF 10107.852301
GTQ 8.936479
GYD 243.821128
HKD 9.089731
HNL 30.533803
HRK 7.537611
HTG 152.548876
HUF 396.340402
IDR 19022.662442
ILS 3.907567
IMP 0.864456
INR 102.143859
IQD 1527.390993
IRR 49047.923296
ISK 143.205545
JEP 0.864456
JMD 186.668885
JOD 0.826739
JPY 171.857483
KES 150.621522
KGS 101.944225
KHR 4673.580362
KMF 486.25243
KPW 1049.442605
KRW 1625.300771
KWD 0.356387
KYD 0.971531
KZT 623.481084
LAK 25277.640144
LBP 104939.650503
LKR 352.263058
LRD 233.752089
LSL 20.565415
LTL 3.443108
LVL 0.705346
LYD 6.305394
MAD 10.528145
MDL 19.45865
MGA 5147.035329
MKD 61.612246
MMK 2447.821992
MNT 4195.295239
MOP 9.367985
MRU 46.576615
MUR 53.604312
MVR 17.958697
MWK 2021.65322
MXN 21.778762
MYR 4.915579
MZN 74.570647
NAD 20.565415
NGN 1789.408055
NIO 42.900304
NOK 11.805036
NPR 163.457668
NZD 1.989593
OMR 0.448353
PAB 1.165867
PEN 4.101009
PGK 4.857696
PHP 66.362921
PKR 330.639903
PLN 4.259925
PYG 8437.894135
QAR 4.251185
RON 5.057722
RSD 117.136603
RUB 93.807713
RWF 1688.165037
SAR 4.375611
SBD 9.581693
SCR 16.600598
SDG 700.23162
SEK 11.141873
SGD 1.498485
SHP 0.91635
SLE 27.165716
SLL 24451.951088
SOS 666.295572
SRD 44.689138
STD 24135.342675
STN 24.528762
SVC 10.200961
SYP 15161.65757
SZL 20.571121
THB 37.827377
TJS 11.163429
TMT 4.092914
TND 3.415505
TOP 2.731054
TRY 47.847209
TTD 7.921288
TWD 35.613597
TZS 2944.332229
UAH 48.258888
UGX 4153.87076
USD 1.166072
UYU 46.624671
UZS 14346.822848
VES 162.377483
VND 30743.496642
VUV 138.818914
WST 3.121132
XAF 656.741164
XAG 0.030231
XAU 0.000345
XCD 3.151369
XCG 2.101164
XDR 0.816712
XOF 656.727067
XPF 119.331742
YER 280.061438
ZAR 20.56298
ZMK 10496.054787
ZMW 27.198893
ZWL 375.47481
  • RBGPF

    0.0000

    75.55

    0%

  • CMSC

    0.0600

    23.86

    +0.25%

  • NGG

    0.4500

    70.94

    +0.63%

  • RELX

    -0.0500

    47.74

    -0.1%

  • AZN

    0.4500

    80.11

    +0.56%

  • GSK

    0.1400

    39.78

    +0.35%

  • RYCEF

    0.0000

    14.2

    0%

  • RIO

    -0.4350

    61.895

    -0.7%

  • VOD

    0.0000

    11.87

    0%

  • BTI

    -0.6250

    57.175

    -1.09%

  • CMSD

    -0.0710

    23.949

    -0.3%

  • BCC

    0.1600

    90.14

    +0.18%

  • SCS

    0.3100

    16.7

    +1.86%

  • BP

    -0.4500

    34.52

    -1.3%

  • BCE

    -0.1900

    25.03

    -0.76%

  • JRI

    -0.0400

    13.39

    -0.3%

Brazil bagpipe band channels sound of Scotland
Brazil bagpipe band channels sound of Scotland / Photo: MAURO PIMENTEL - AFP

Brazil bagpipe band channels sound of Scotland

It's a gorgeous day at the beach in Brazil: the bright blue ocean sparkles in the sun, the palm trees sway in the breeze and the peaceful sound of... er, bagpipes?

Text size:

Thousands of kilometers (miles) from the United Kingdom, the kilts are out on a Rio de Janeiro beach that suddenly looks like something out of the Scottish Highlands.

Eleven-year-old Davi Portugal is playing a set of bagpipes nearly as big as he is, inflating his cheeks to tennis-ball-size with every breath.

"I love the sound. It's beautiful and different," says the young Brazilian, whose dream is to join the navy.

He and his older brother Caio, 14, are both members of their school band in Sao Goncalo, a poor neighborhood on the outskirts of Rio, where playing the bagpipes is a surefire way to turn people's heads.

"The first time I saw the bagpipes, I definitely did not want to play them, because I thought it was weird to wear a kilt. It looks like a skirt, which is kind of taboo in Brazil," says Jhonny Mesquita, 32, the director of the school band.

"But later, I fell in love with the sound. When I started learning about the history of the instrument and what it represents to the Scottish people, it turned into a passion."

- 'The Pele of bagpipes' -

In 2017, Mesquita got the chance to pursue his passion back at its source when he traveled to Scotland for two weeks.

He shot to fame there thanks to a video of him juggling a football at a stadium in Aberdeen, all while playing "Asa Branca," a Brazilian classic, on the bagpipes.

"It was a huge success. The local newspapers called me the 'Pele of the bagpipes,'" he says, sporting a black, red and white tartan kilt and leather pouch, called a sporran, like the other members of the group.

Mesquita, a grade school music teacher, is famous in Sao Goncalo, too: he has played the bagpipes on Brazilian TV and at Rio's famed Municipal Theater.

But he says his proudest moments are seeing young people from tough neighborhoods fall in love with music via the bagpipes.

"The essence of the project is engaging young people and occupying their minds so they stay away from drugs and crime," he says.

In addition to leading the school band, he is head of the Brazil-Scotland Association, a group of 18 bagpipers who play in "places people don't want to go," such as juvenile detention centers.

- Next generation of kilt-wearers -

Mesquita himself learned the bagpipes at 15, thanks to a serviceman who played in a navy band.

He says he decided to teach kids how to play the instrument at the school he attended -- the same one where he is now band director, training the next generation of kilt-wearing Brazilians.

Mesquita mainly relies on donations and ingenuity to keep his association going on a shoestring budget.

"Most of our bagpipes were donated, mainly from overseas. The kilts are made by the mom of one of our members," he says.

The group was invited to play a festival in Belgium in July, but did not have money for plane tickets.

But the "Pele of bagpipes" is not letting that get his spirits down.

He sees the instrument opening new horizons for his students all the time, he says.

"It's been a watershed for them. I've seen young people who didn't seem to have a promising future win scholarships or join the navy and air force bands," he says.

"It's very moving to watch my son play," says Alice Cortes da Silva, a former student at Mesquita's school, as she watches her nine-year-old play tambourine in the group.

"His dream is to move from tambourine to bagpipes. He's very dedicated. He's even started doing better at school," she says proudly.

Z.Pavlik--TPP