FogoAzul NYC is NYC's Favorite All Women Samba Drumming and Dance band. We are part of a larger global arts project called Grooversity. We are a community group and encourage all women regardless of any prior experience in music or dance to join our group.
Our mission and vision is to be a community based drumming band that teaches any woman regardless of musical experience to play the powerful rhythms of Brazil. This encourages self-expression and self-confidence. Fogo Azul NYC focuses on community outreach, school workshops and shows, as well as social justice and feminism.
As a community based organization we thrive on exposing a wider audience to this alluring music and engaging as many people as possible in the art and music of Brazil to catalyze authentic, cross-boundary communities through the collaborative art form of drumming, music and dance. For the members, the experience of playing in front of live audiences is incredibly unique and liberating. It's also a place to be able to find community without judgment, and to play with others even if they’ve never played an instrument before. This creates an unusually animated and supportive environment of growth and exploration. There’s nothing like it!
Our members range in age from their teens to 80s, come from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds, and work in various professions, including medicine, education, the arts, non-profit organizations, restorative justice, business, and technology. We play throughout the NYC Area, bringing the infectious joy of drumming and dancing to community events and charity walks, educational institutions and corporate venues, nightclubs and private parties.
We have no paid staff, including our directors. We are committed to serving under-resourced communities (e.g., youth, incarcerated, elderly) and a majority of our performances are community based, with no or nominal pay, often donated.
Learn More: http://www.fogoazulnyc.com