For the 40th anniversary of the Festival Nuits d’Afrique, the organisers decided to dedicate the 7 p.m. show to female artists. This year, the series opened with Suraras dos Tapajós, an Indigenous women’s musical group from the Pará region of Brazil. Having this group perform was quite a privilege for Montrealers. It is not every day that we get to connect with traditional music from the Amazon, a region that many of us have never visited. Yet we recognize it as one of the most important tropical forests on the planet, now under imminent threat from deforestation, with serious consequences for Indigenous communities, biodiversity, and the global climate.
The group entered the stage wearing their traditional garments and headpieces. One of the members was playing a small ceramic wind instrument called an “ocarina,” which mimics the sounds of birds. As each woman took her place and picked up her instrument, I could only think about what this concert would be like in their territory, surrounded by the forest. Each member performed with her whole being. Their music carried their ancestry and their commitment to defending Indigenous women’s rights and territory. The group quickly created an atmosphere of celebration. They invited the audience to form a roda, or dancing circle, where people could enter the middle and dance with one another. The Brazilian community was full of joy, recognizing one another in the dance, hugging each other, and connecting.
In the middle of their performance, the sky became cloudy and the atmosphere grew quite windy. Earlier that day, we could barely see the sun because of the smoke generated by the wildfires Quebec, and Ontario. Suraras dos Tapajós’ concert was canceled because of the risk of lightning. Rain began to fall, bringing relief from the heat while leaving us disappointed that we could not watch the entire concert. As this sudden sequence of events unfolded, I returned to the Amazon I had been imagining. Every summer, wildfires seem to become more present here in Canada, sadly affecting Indigenous communities in Canada. Like the communities in the Amazon confronting environmental devastation, many Indigenous nations in Canada are also disproportionately affected by increasingly severe wildfires, facing evacuations, threats to their territories, and disruptions to cultural and everyday life. At that moment, the distance between the Amazon and Canada felt much smaller.
Fortunately, the next day Suraras dos Tapajós led a workshop where they shared that the group emerged from a community organization. The musical group is its major project; however, they also have bio-economic projects and textile production. The group specializes in carimbó, the principal cultural manifestation of the region—an ancestral dance centred around the drum of the same name that blends Indigenous and African traditions. Practiced in a circle that brings together musicians and community members, carimbó helps keep culture alive through songs about everyday life, nature, and spirituality.
The group was able to perform again, this time on the ground, where the distance between stage and audience disappeared, leaving only a shared circle of music and movement. We all formed a circle and were invited to join the roda, wear their skirts, and dance together as one of the members guided us. I appreciated having this more intimate moment with the group because it allowed us to connect more directly and experience this tradition more closely. I only wished there had been more time to talk about what is happening in their territory, how we could amplify their commitment to protecting the Amazon forest, and how their struggles resonate with what is happening here in Canada. As the wildfires continue to remind us that forests in Canada are also under threat, I hope there will be more opportunities to build these connections, because they are where understanding—and action—begins.
Photo Credit: André Rival
