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Rio Samba Schools

The Rio Samba School Guide

Read this page to learn and understand about how the Rio samba schools work.
It explains, how you can go to a samba school night. It gives samba night
(rehearsal) details and full addresses.The Samba Schools are associations or
social clubs, representing a particular neighborhood.

* They provide entertainment through popular dance nights, just like dance clubs
do

* Prepare for and compete annually in the Samba Parade

BEIJA-FLOR
Pracinha Wallace Paes Leme 1025 - Nilópolis
Samba nights: Thursdays 21:00
Colors: blue and white
Established in 1948
2010 SAMBA SONG

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Samba Schools History

The best Rio
Carnival has been celebrated in Brazil
and in Rio de Janeiro for centuries, but
Samba Schools
samba schools were only first
The 12 schools in
inaugurated in Rio Carnival in the
the Special Group for 2011
1920s.

BEIJA-FLOR
At the end of the 19th century,
GRANDE RIO
immigrants from Bahia state brought
IMPERATRIZ
with them the tradition of playing
UNIAO DA ILHA
candomble and dancing a bahian dance
MANGUEIRA
'Beija Flor' means 'Humming Bird' which is a beloved and omnipresent bird in the Rio called the samba. In the slums of
MOCIDADE
region. The school is based outside of Rio (in a place called Nilopolis). However it is downtown Rio, a place referred to as
'Little Africa', they established a number PORTELA
currently ranked the highest among all Rio samba schools. It has achieved the
of religious houses devoted to religious PORTO DA PEDRA
reputation of being the best school by a combination of outstanding and
unparalleled artistic organizational management with a strong determination to win. ceremonies where they played and SALGUEIRO

It is the only school with a whole team of Carnival Designers (currently 5 of them) danced the early forms of samba. UNIDOS DA TIJUCA

whereas most other schools only have one. It imposes strict rules and has the VILA ISABEL

highest expectations towards all of its parading members. It began its recent SAO CLEMENTE

winning streak in 1998 and won again in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007 and 2008. In the
years it didn't win it has come very close and competitive. It is well-known for its
creative extravagance and powerful colors.
Samba Parade
ALL SCHOOLS

GRANDE RIO
Colégio São José, Av. Presidente Kennedy - Duque de Caxias
Samba nights: Fridays 22:00
Colors: red, green and white
Established in 1988
2010 SAMBA SONG
However African religions were illegal in
a dominantly Catholic Brazil. These
roots of samba remained invisible to the
white elite for a long time.
The schools compete in the
The samba schools' parading structure
samba parades
originates from groups parading during
WHAT IS IT LIKE?
Carnival in the 19th century. Even at
PHOTOS
this juncture they already had included;
VENUE - SAMBODROMO
the Vanguard Commission, a chosen
BUY YOUR TICKETS
theme, floats, and the flag bearing
WHAT KIND OF TICKET?
couple, all of which are essential parts
Grande Rio is one of the newest schools, however currently one of the most of today's samba schools. TAKE PART AND PARADE

successful members of the Special Group. It has come close to winning in all the last 2011 SCHEDULE
The first group to call itself a samba
10 years. It represents Caxias, a satellite town of Rio. Lots of media celebrities REHEARSALS
school was a group known as Deixa
support and parade with them. COSTUMES
Falar, which came from the district of
RESULTS & RANKING
ALL SCHOOLS Estácio, on the hill above Praça Onze,
ACCOMMODATIONS
considered the cradle of samba. They
IMPERATRIZ LEOPOLDINENSE called themselves samba school
because they met right next door to a
Rua Professor Lacê 235 – Ramos local children's school.
Samba nights: Sundays 20:00
Colors: green, white and gold Deixa Falar and Mangueira were both
Established in 1959 founded at the end of the 1920's, Deixa
2010 SAMBA SONG Falar first, in 1926, and Mangueira soon
after, in 1928. Deixa Falar was
disbanded and later refounded as
Estácio de Sá. Mangueira is the oldest
existing samba school, however it was
not the first.

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Three-time winner in a row (in 1999, 2000 and 2001 - 'coincidently' in the same
years that the School President was heading the Judging Committee) which is the
only current record holder challenged by Beija-Flor. Its success is due to its
technically excellent performance. The School's long-time female Carnival Designer,
Rosa Magalhães makes idiosyncratic fairy-tale like artistic creations.

ALL SCHOOLS

MANGUEIRA
Rua Visconde de Niterói 1072 - Mangueira
Samba nights: Saturdays 22:00
Colors: green and pink
Established in 1928
2010 SAMBA SONG

Brazil's most popular samba school due to its old tradition, a very strong support
community and the most successful samba hall. It was the winner of the first Samba
Parade held in the Sambodromo and has been ranked very high year by year ever
since, for its consistently strong performance. It is the oldest among the existing Rio
samba schools.

ALL SCHOOLS

MOCIDADE
Rua Coronel Tamarindo 38 - Padre Miguel
Samba nights: Saturdays 22:00
Colors: green and white
Established in 1955
2010 SAMBA SONG

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It is one of the oldest samba schools in Rio, with its history of more than 50 years. It
is well-known for its futuristic creations such as the one time only flying parader on
the Avenue. Similar to some other old school names like Estácio, Portela and Imperio
Serrano, it currently tries to reside in its history (once it was really famous for its
percussionists). However it fails to capitalize on its old traditions (like Mangueira
does) and usually does not even score among the first 6 able to return on
Champions' Saturday.

ALL SCHOOLS

PORTELA
Rua Clara Nunes 81 – Madureira
Wednesdays 20:00
Samba nights: Fridays 22:00
Colors: blue and white
Established in 1923
2010 SAMBA SONG

It is one of the oldest schools despite several name changes in the past. Only its
symbol, the eagle, remains unchanged. It is considered to be the oldest Rio samba
group, however not the oldest school. It traditionally used to be also one of the very
best schools for a long time running, winning 21 times, the absolute record.
However it somewhat had lost its excellence since the 1980s for a long period. It
had only managed to remain in the Special Group for years mainly because of its
history and fame. However it has recovered its original glory in the last two years
again.

ALL SCHOOLS

PORTO DA PEDRA
Rua Lúcio Tomé Feteira 290, Vila Lage - São Gonçalo
Samba nights: Wednesdays 20:00
Colors: red and white
Established in 1978
2010 SAMBA SONG

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It was originally part of a soccer club established by a teen street gang. A relative
new-comer both as a school and in the Special Group (only among the elite since
1995). It has achieved its quick success due to huge investments from its sponsors
buying very well-known carnival designers from its competitors. It is based in in the
suburbs of Niteroi, across the bay from Rio.

ALL SCHOOLS

SALGUEIRO
Rua Silva Teles 104 - Tijuca
Samba nights: Saturdays 22:00
Colors: red and white
Established in 1953
2010 SAMBA SONG

The Grand Champion of the 2009 Parade. It is a truly elitist school (some call it
racist) that draws in celebrities on name alone. It was, originally among the first
schools to show-case the achievements of the Afro-Brazilians, in stark contrast to its
current middle-class fan club. Salgueiro became really famous in the 1960s for its
outstanding samba dance performers. It has a very popular samba hall, close to the
city center in one of the safest areas (compared to the other schools based on the
hills in the slums). Every year, it uses its symbol, the fire, in its parade.

ALL SCHOOLS

UNIDOS DA TIJUCA
Clube dos Portuários, Av. Francisco Bicalho 47 – São Cristóvão
Samba nights: Fridays and Saturdays 20:00
Colors: yellow and blue
Established in 1931
2010 SAMBA SONG

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This is the 3rd oldest Rio samba school. It became noticed again in 2004, as a
surprise to everyone, with its creative and innovative artistic work, viewed as
controversial by some. It is the only school paying homage to Brazil's background as
a Portuguese colony. Its samba hall is very popular among gay men.

ALL SCHOOLS

VILA ISABEL
Av. 28 de Setembro 382 - Vila Isabel
Samba nights: Tuesdays 20:00, Saturdays 22:00
Colors: blue and white
Established in 1946
2010 SAMBA SONG

A very old, traditional school which almost went into oblivion. It lingered in the
Access Group for a long time until recently when it re-joined the Special Group in
1995, with an astonishing championship. After that, in 1996, it hired one of the most
energetic up-and-coming carnival designers and has scored very high again in the
last few years.

ALL SCHOOLS

UNIAO DA ILHA
Estrada do Galeão,322 - Ilha do Governador
Samba nights: Tuesdays 20:00, Saturdays 22:00
Colors: blue, red and white
Established in 1953
2010 SAMBA SONG

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Founded in March 07, 1953, Grêmio Recreativo Escola de Samba União da Ilha do
Governador is known by its irreverent themes. Even though it has not won any titles
in the Special Group throughout its history, the school has memorable themes and
sambas, which are remembered until today, such as "Domingo"(Sunday), in 1977
and "Bom, bonito e barato" (good, nice and cheap), in 1980. The samba “É hoje O
Dia?” (Today is the day), of 1982, is one of the most well known and recorded
sambas in the history of Carnival.

ALL SCHOOLS

SAO CLEMENTE
Av. Presidente Vargas, 3102 - Centro
Samba nights: Tuesdays 20:00, Saturdays 22:00
Colors: yellow and black
Established in 1961
2010 SAMBA SONG

Founded in 1961, Sao Clemente's main characteristic is its irreverence combined

with samba themes that make reference to the Brazilians quality of life. Taking the
carnival of 1984 for example, the samba-school brought to Sapucaí the theme "Não
Corra, Não Mate, Não Morra: O Diabo Está Solto no Asfalto" (Don´t run, don´t kill,
don´t die: the devil is free in the streets) referring to the chaos and violence of Rio's
road traffic. In the following year, the school presented the samba " Quem Casa,
Quer Casa", a entertaining satire about the serious problem of the housing deficit in
Brazil. In 1987, the school broke new grounds, taking to its front commission real life
street children, with the samba "Capitães do asfalto", that talked about the children
who lived on the streets of Rio.

ALL SCHOOLS

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