MUSICIANS
Author: Luna Cohen
Quinteto Violado Members:
Vocals, violin, and viola: Marcelo Melo
Flutes and violin: Ciano Alves
Percussion and vocals: Roberto Medeiros
Keyboard and vocals: Dudu Alves
Bass: Sandro Lins
QUINTETO VIOLADO
A VIDA DA GENTE PODE SER MELHOR (“PEOPLE’S LIVES CAN BE BETTER”)
LYRICS: A VIDA DA GENTE PODE SER MELHOR (“PEOPLE’S LIVES CAN BE BETTER”)
LUNA COHEN BAND//QUINTETO VIOLADO
Having Chagas is not the end of the world
Just know that people’s lives can be better
Hope is the engine that powers the world
You must believe that health is the most important thing
And there is a place
Where someone can help you
Let’s go together without fear, for we have much ground to cover
Never fear
Fear will never give you life
Your healthy beating heart knows
That you deserve to be happy
Never fear
Fear will never give you life
Your healthy beating heart knows
That you deserve to be happy.
COORDINATING INSTITUTIONS
COLLABORATING INSTITUTIONS
FC Barcelona Foundation; “What are we talking about when we talk about Chagas?” Group, Argentina; Outpatient Clinic for Chagas Disease and Heart Failure, PROCAPE, Federal University of Pernambuco (UPE), Brazil; Leo Messi Foundation; International Federation of Associations of People Affected by Chagas Disease (FINDECHAGAS); Chagas Disease Control Program at the World Health Organization (WHO).
QUINTETO VIOLADO AND BEATCHAGAS
Some time after recording the song “A vida da gente pode ser melhor” (“People’s Lives Can Be Better”), Dr. Cristina Carazzone and Dr. Wilson Oliveira Jr. from PROCAPE (Outpatient Clinic for Chagas Disease and Heart Failure, Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil) suggested that we record another version of the same song in the frevo musical style, which is traditional in the northeast of Brazil.
We thought it was a wonderful idea–we could get closer to the affected people and their daily rhythms of life in different contexts. Quinteto Violado, a Brazilian band, worked on the music and came up with a version full of joy, life, and rhythm.
HOW DID QUINTETO VIOLADO START?
Quinteto Violado is a Brazilian instrumental-vocal band formed in 1970 in Recife, State of Pernambuco, Brazil. They are known for their northeastern-style music and for conducting research on Brazilian folklore.
The band performed for the first time in January 1970 at the Faculty of Philosophy of the Federal University of Pernambuco, although they didn’t yet have the name Quinteto Violado for which they became famous. In October 1971, when they performed at the New Jerusalem Theater (Fazenda Nova, Pernambuco, Brazil), their members were called “the violated ones”, and the name Quinteto Violado was born. Gilberto Gil introduced the band to the producer Robert Santana from Phonogram Records, and their performance was praised by Caetano Veloso. They began immediately showing their work throughout Brazil and in other countries. In addition to music, they also did work in music education, giving seminars about music in the schools of Pernambuco.
Quinteto Violado’s international debut occurred a year later at the International Market of Records and Musical Publishing (MIDEM) event in Cannes, France. Participating in the event led to the launch of the band’s first album and their LP “A Feira no Japão” (“The Fair in Japan”). During the same trip, the band went to Paris where they performed at the Olympia along with Jorge Benjor, Toquinho, and Vinícius de Moraes.
