Some important considerations:
1 - The songs are in Portuguese and the translation of the mentioned verses goes at the end of each chapter;
2 - Also at the end of the chapter will be posted comments on artists and video suggestions on Youtube.
3 – Review!
…
TROPICÁLIA OR THE BOOK OF THE VIGILANTES.
"Sobre a cabeça os aviões/ sob meus pés os caminhões/ aponta contra os chapadões meu nariz/ eu organizo o movimento/ eu oriento o carnaval/ eu inauguro o monumento no planalto central do país"(1)
"Stop it", director William Schuester got up from his chair. "Finn, try to put a little more straight in your voice. Not yet on point. Think that's the character's epiphany. You have to be emphatic."
"I'm doing my best, Mr. Schue, but I don't understand this song."
"The show is about purisms versus..."
"How did this idiot get the lead role?" Santana Lopez, who was sitting at the back of the theater, whispered to her next colleague as the director explained for the umpteenth time the concept of the show.
"Because he's Rachel Berry's boyfriend, the star of the show, and Mr. Schue wouldn't put an actor in a wheelchair, even if he's the best actor in the group, to be the center of attention," replied Mercedes Jones.
"I don't know if I thank you or curse you for reminding me," Santana growled.
"You know that Mr. Schue has ambitions this year." Artie Abrams tried to soften. "This is the first time that our theater works on a non-miserable budget. Finn is a popular guy in this town and he has the right stepfather."
Finn Hudson was stepchild of Burt Hummel, aspiring politician who was part of the Municipal Council. It was the type of office in which well-intentioned people, still without partisan ties or a fair amount of money for campaigning, were able to elect themselves into political office in a small town. Either that or simply join the educational board that oversaw and legislate on some local school issues as long as they don't circumvent state and federal principles. For example, a school council could prohibit activities that can be carried out at school on Wednesday evenings because this is the time when church masses usually take place in the city. Even if a person declares himself an atheist, he must respect the rule, after all, the majority of the population that believes in God must fulfill the religious obligation and the school can't compete with it. This also applies to agnostics.
Finally, Burt is part of the Municipal Council responsible for legislating on the rules that govern the county. He was elected not by being the owner of the largest mechanical workshop in the city, but by being a technical assistant and one of the sponsors of the baseball Razors, the city's most popular high school team and the owner of 4 state and 16 regional titles over the years. Burt won the chair in a direct election held every four years that occurred one year after the municipal elections for mayors, police commissioners and prosecutors.
In theory, Burt Hummel was a privileged vote that received a salary to discuss and propose rules of social and political conduct of that county. In practice, it was only a conservative whose biggest liberal campaign was in providing punishment for practices of racial and sexuality prejudice. Action motivated by the bullying suffered by Kurt Hummel, his only biological child, during a certain moment of his school life. Kurt was homosexual.
Finn Hudson was Burt's stepson and benefited from the public figure of his stepfather. He appeared in the social column of the local newspaper sponsored by the government. He wasn't academically smart enough to be accepted into the university based in the city. Nor was he interested in any subject in community college. Finn was a mechanic who helped run Burt's workshop, and twice a week he worked as a technical assistant for the Titans, the football team of a traditional junior high school. That was enough for him to be admired. And also by the physical appearance that made him desirable. Finn, as well as Kurt, belonged to the amateur theater and it was because of them and of the political influence of Burt that William Schuester obtained the surprising budget to make viable the assembly of the spectacle Tropicália. Surprising given the nature of the leftist story of the play.
Not that the money was so great and there were certain savings to consider. An example: none of the actors were there for a salary. Starting with the director himself, who made his living as a history teacher. Many of the people also volunteered, such as Emma Pilsburry, the assistant director (and Schuester's wife).
The star of the group was Rachel Berry. She was the best singer, despite not being the best actress. She was a hardworking student of Performing Arts and Communication at Community College, a waitress and singer at the city's most elegant restaurant, and Finn Hudson's girlfriend. She, Kurt, and Finn formed a united and influential trio within community theater. All three were Schuester alumni during high school, when they joined amateur theater. They were also the original remnants of the project alongside Noah Puckerman and Tina Chang. Throughout the group's six years of existence, many people have stepped in and out, such as Sam Evans, another from the original group who left the city to continue their academic education elsewhere. The current group had established itself about a year ago when Tina invited colleagues from the University to join the theater.
Santana Lopez, Mercedes Jones and Artie Abrams moved to the city because of the University. The journalism student Mercedes used to sing in the choir of her hometown church. The theater was a way to continue feeding her supposed artistic vein, even though she was a good singer, but a fiasco as an actress. Santana, a student of architecture and urbanism, was more interested in getting into the pants of dance teacher (and choreographer hired for the show along with Mike Chang) Brittany Pierce. Artie Abrams, who was network engineer, only accompanied his friends and was by chance a good actor.
Outside the wonder trio and college group were Quinn Fabray, a saleswoman at the bookstore and a mother. The theater functioned as therapy. Matt Rutherford, a carpenter, was with her.
"That's not working..." Schuester lamented after Finn Hudson's always below-acceptable performance.
"How about trying the replacement?" Santana shouted from the back of the auditorium.
"How about shutting up?" Rachel protested from the stage.
"I know a great way to keep my mouth shut." She flashed a confident smile, a defiant look, and relaxed arms against the small theater armchair. It was the kind of attitude that made Rachel Berry mad with anger.
"Guys!" The director called out, "Concentration here, please. Finn, one more time. Rachel, Puck, Quinn and Brittany on the markings."
The tall amateur actor took a deep breath. He stared into the back of the theater where the other castmates were watching the boring rehearsing one of the scenes that in theory should impact the show under construction. But it wasn't easy for Finn Hudson. Despite hearing that he was special from the mouths of people he loved, Santana Lopez's taunts and Schuester's frustration reminded him that he was rather mediocre for such an occupation.
The recognition that Finn wasn't good enough wasn't something simple for the 21-year-old who was used to pampering. The colleagues had no idea of the exercise of humility that Finn had to do in order not to burst or give up. On the other hand, the chance that he would be the star next to his talented girlfriend was a message he gave to others who, though intellectuals and cunning, could do nothing within a field in which he dominated. He might not know how to make calculations like Artie, write like Mercedes, dance like Mike and Brittany, sing like Rachel, act like Quinn, draw like Santana. It didn't matter, nothing took away the fact that he was a leader.
Who didn't want to be the highlight of something? Show to people that he was special. Finn also had vanity. He took a deep breath and tried to sing again.
"Sobre a cabeça os aviões/ sob meus pés os caminhões/ aponta contra os chapadões meu nariz/ eu organizo o movimento/ eu oriento o carnaval/ eu inauguro o monumento no planalto central do país/ Viva a bossa-sa-sa-sa/ Viva a palhoça-ça-ça-ça..."
"Stop!" He heard the director's cry again. Schuester, frustrated, got up from his chair and ran his hand over his face. He himself was exhausted. "Finn and folks, we're all tired. So let's close for today and here is your homework: practice. At our next meeting we'll rehearse this scene, okay?"
The exit from the theater was fast. The "college students" were the first to leave. Santana had this old Ford sedan, a 16-year-old car her parents gave to her as a gift for being accept to the University (she was the first of her family). It became the main transport of her two best friends as well. Puckerman said privately to Finn that he has a girlfriend waiting for him. He always had some among dazzling girls and women who were just after a good fuck and used the 'pucksaurus' as a relief for their itch. Quinn took her usual ride with Matt, who lived in the same building, two stories below. The saleswoman couldn't wait to get home and put her feet up. With luck, the nanny put Quinn's daughter, little Beth, to sleep, and so Quinn would pay the 20 dollars due and celebrate the extra rest. Tina would ride Mike and Brittany. She still lived with her parents (she didn't think it made any sense to pay for a dormitory when she was studying in her hometown), and Mike and Brittany's houses were on the way.
Kurt, Finn and Rachel, as well as Schuster, were the ones who turned out the lights and locked the doors. Finn put his hand on Rachel's shoulders and strode to the truck in the parking lot.
"It was just a bad rehearsal." Rachel sought to motivate her boyfriend. "I'm sure Friday will be a lot better. This is really a difficult song, full of nuances. I'll help you with the exercises and you'll improve one hundred percent in two days."
"Not wanting to cut the romance, but can we leave?" Kurt said bored.
Finn nodded to his ever-enthusiastic girlfriend and turned on the ignition. Rachel searched the radio for a station she thought was interesting, and the two of them returned home in the soft voice of Nara Leão, coincidentally an artist they have to cover on the play. The soft song that came out of the boxes of the truck had soft images: "o barquinho vai, a tardinha cai".(2)
"I hate bossa nova," Kurt grunted.
Bossa nova had no divas for his exotic taste. Kurt was a fan of singers like Dolores Duran. In spite of the popular belief of melancholic songs, merely because it was fashionable at the time, Dolores Duran was a cheerful, fun woman with a strong voice. Dolores wrote the most beautiful post-sex song of all times: "É de manhã/ Vem o sol/ mas os pingos da chuva que ontem caíram/ ainda estão a brilhar/ ainda estão a dançar/ vento alegre/ que me traz esta canção..."(3)
"I don't care if you don't like the song." Finn said.
"It's relaxing and I need to relax." Rachel ended the brief discussion.
"Should I leave you at home?" Finn asked, hoping his girlfriend had another idea. Luckily, for him, Rachel denied and decided to go to her boyfriend's place.
Kurt was left in front of the small three-story building. Finn and Rachel headed for Finn's studio apartment. They went upstairs like a bored old couple, entered the private space carrying out routines like hanging the coat and leave the shoes at the door.
"Hungry?" Finn asked. Rachel liked to eat something before the sexual activities she was sure would happen. The girlfriend would never sleep there if it weren't for fucking.
"A little bit."
"I can make a sandwich for us."
"Do it. I'm just going to have a shower before, okay? "
Finn nodded. As Rachel poured the salt out of her body for an intense day, Finn went to the kitchen counter to prepare a snack. He turned on the television on the news channel. The press still echoed the action of an alleged group of anonymous vigilantes who left two men tied up in front of the police office and left evidences that they were involved in a pedophilia scheme.
"Who said that Batman only lives in Gotham." He put his typical half smile on his face and finished the snack.
"Seeing something interesting?" Rachel left the bathroom wearing her boyfriend's clean t-shirt. Finn always think Rachel was sexy when she wore his clothes.
"Now I am." The smothered smile widened.
Rachel kissed him before eating the sandwich. Losers also had moments of pleasure.
…
…
(1) Tropicália, by Caetano Veloso
"Over the head the aircraft / under my feet the trucks / points against the high lands, my nose / I organize the movement / I mentor the carnival / I inaugurate the monument in the central plateau of the country"
Music released in 1967 for the Tropicalist movement. Tropicália was a Brazilian artistic movement that rescued the anthropophagic proposal of the Brazilian poet Oswald de Andrade. In the 1920s, he said that Brazilian art should devour all influences (at the time, the modernist proposals of art) and vomit a new one. It was an answer to the conservative critics who defended a genuinely Brazilian art, without 'contamination'. In the 1960s, Brazil lived under a military dictatorship and there was a clash between people who defended the purity of Brazilian music. Ironically, these were the leftists and opponents of the military regime. They especially despised rock (in Brazil it was called Jovem Guarda), because they considered alienated music that endorsed the establishment. The so-called Tropicalists then positioned themselves and made a manifesto saying that all music was good, and that the mix could bring something new.
And the "monument in the central plateau of the country" is the city of Brasília…
Search Youtube: Tropicalia Caetano Veloso
(2) O Barquinho, by Roberto Menescal/ Ronaldo Bôscoli
"The little boat goes, the afternoon falls."
Music of bossa nova's first generation. Although it was one of the most re-recorded Brazilian songs, the most famous version is in Nara Leão's voice. Legend says that the bossa nova born in Nara Leão's apartment in the late of 1950s. Of course this is an exaggeration, since the bossa nova is the fruit of the evolution of the samba-canção and was shaped inside the nightclubs of Rio. But it is a fact that many bossa nova musicians liked to meet in Nara Leão's apartment to play and sing. Nara lived in Copacabana, in an apartment facing the sea. There is a sign in front of the building where she lived saying: "bossa nova was born here".
Search Youtube: O Barquinho Nara Leao
(3) Estrada do Sol, by Tom Jobim/ Dolores Duran
"It's morning / The sun comes / but the raindrops that yesterday fell / are still shining / are still dancing / wind up / that brings me this song ..."
This song made the transition between samba-canção and bossa nova. Composed in 1956, by Tom Jobim and Dolores Duran. Tom Jobim had made the melody and was waiting for the lyrics of the poet Vinicius de Moraes, his close friend. Dolores Duran heard Tom play the melody and she was fascinated. She quickly wrote the lyrics in 15 minutes on a napkin with an eyeliner. Dolores's lyrics were so beautiful and perfect that Vinicius de Moraes humbly withdrew his.
Search Youtube: Estrada do sol Nina Becker
