“Whenever you talk about Brazil, the first thing that comes into mind is football, are the words of Arnaldo Freire, the popular Brazilian musician. Recently on his trip to Dhaka, the guitar maestro enthralled the audience with his solo performance at La Galerie, Alliance Française de Dhaka, and he also conducted a workshop.
Arnaldo Freire is a guitarist, teacher, cultural producer and composer. He is a graduate of Consevatório Musical Guarulhos. He also studied at the Conservatory of Music and the Instituto Paulista Booklyn Souza. He is currently majoring in Composition at the Federal University of Goiás - UFG.
His composition “Apocalypse” for solo guitar was awarded by the Culture Secretariat of Goiania.
When Dhaka Tribune caught up with the internationally-acclaimed musician, he share his recent ventures and visions about music:
Tell us about the workshop you conducted.
I conducted a master class on “Brazilian guitar: Techniques and styles” with Bangladeshi students at AFD’s auditorium. I focused on different Brazilian music styles, chords, and rhythmic structure, such as Bossa Nova, Samba, Choro and Frevo during the sessions.
How were you inspired to come to Bangladesh?
Last year I performed at the first “International Classical Guitar Festival” held in China. After that experience, I was looking forward to coming to Asia and enjoing their music.
I have a big interest in Asia and have seen a performance video by the Classical Music Academy of Dhaka on Facebook. Intrigued with the video, I found Iftekhar Anwar, who is the President of that association. His students are amazing on that video. Finally, I am here in Bangladesh; maybe I will come here again to teach more about classical guitar. It’s not that difficult, especially if the students are so talented.
What do you think should be the next steps of Bangladeshi classical guitarists, to get them involved with international musicians?
I have seen them performing and they play guitar like professionals. They are skilled and strong, but it is a challenge to reach the international platform for them as they have minimal support.
They can easily compete with the other countries if they get proper support from the government. Another way for them to reach the international platform if they get support from international associations or organisations.
You have been invited to Bangladesh by Madam Ambassador again. What will be the aim of your next visit?
I am going to make a stop-by in Dhaka as part of my world tour that includes a series of concerts in Poland, China, Malaysia and Nepal.
I believe in exchanging cultures, so, I would love a cultural exchange session between Bangladesh and Brazil. I think, they (musicians from both countries) should know more about each other’s culture, tradition and music. Provided that I get good support, I am thinking of arranging a festival here.
What did you like most in Bangladesh?
The best aspect of my visit was the students I got to meet in my workshop. They are very talented and hard-working. I think, if they get proper support, they have the potential to make Bangladesh proud.