Sol Samba

Formed in the summer of 1999, Sol Samba is a Brazilian percussion and dance group based in Oxford.

As a community group, our aim is to inspire people with the beauty and power of authentic Brazilian carnival music and dance, and to encourage people who have never performed publicly to get on their feet and be part of it.

In 2016 we celebrate our 17th birthday. Since our formation, we have trained hundreds of local people in Brazilian percussion and dance. We have helped set up a samba band and dance troupe in our local primary school which performs every year at Cowley Road Carnival; and have given numerous outreach community classes in Brazilian percussion and dance.

We are the heart of Cowley Road Carnival and regularly perform at local and national arts events, carnivals and gigs – from Notting Hill Carnival and Aylesbury Roald Dahl Festival to the Isle of Wight Rhythmtree Festival, Wilderness Festival and One Love Festival. We are passionate about linking with the roots and culture of Brazilian carnival: our musical and dance directors have all lived, trained and performed in Brazil, and in 2010 we hosted three carnival band directors from Pernambuco who gave cultural talks at our local primary school. We hope we can inspire hundreds more local people over the coming years.

Our current repertoire focuses on the laid back grooves of samba reggae that hail from Salvador. In the past, we have also played Rio samba, maracatu, afoxê, afro-samba, samba duro, batucada and baião. We are always looking to expand and change our material, taking influences both from within the band and from external teachers.

Find out more about samba from this article in DV Magazine, which features an interview with one of our longest-standing members, Dan Faircloth.

For more information you can contact us.