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A flash mob of over 50 young musicians aged between 11 and 25 years old from World Heart Beat Music Academy and Brazilian orchestra Maré do Amanhã took shoppers by surprise at London’s newly restored Battersea Power Station one Saturday in July. The group performed a spontaneous and uplifting version of Aquarela do Brasil, meaning ‘Watercolour of Brazil’, one of the country’s most famous songs which featured at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, held in Brazil.
Following an introduction from the Brazilian Embassy in London, World Heart Beat and the Orquestra Maré do Amanhã decided to collaborate on the project, bringing young musicians together from Brazil and the UK.
’We love the vibrancy of Brazilian culture and the flash mob brought pure joy and energy to the musicians and Battersea Power Station shoppers alike,’ said Sahana Gero MBE, founder and artistic director of World Heart Beat. ’The project celebrates the power of music to connect communities across the world, to be ”as one”, to showcase Brazilian culture and to give our young people agency and voice.’
The Brazilian orchestra were visiting London for the first time ever to perform at the Brazilian Embassy following 28 previous performances across Europe. The Maré do Amanhã Orchestra was set up by the conductor Carlos Eduardo Prazeres and aims to bring classical music to children in one of the most deprived favelas in Rio de Janeiro. Today, the project is present in 23 schools in Rio de Janeiro and helps improve thousands of lives of young people from very poor backgrounds.
The World Heart Beat Music Academy operates two music learning centres in Wandsworth, London. Founded in 2009, over half of its students learn for free, with all students receiving instruments free of charge. It offers an ‘open door’ approach that welcomes any young person interested in learning music.
Both organisations have a similar ethos, which aims, through music education, to positively transform the lives of young people by nurturing their talent and providing a richly diverse, unique and inclusive teaching environment. They offer a broad programme of music lessons, workshops and events in Brazil and the United Kingdom respectively.
The video of the flash mob has been released to coincide with the start of The Battersea Games, Battersea Power Station’s new summer event running until 3 September, which features a calendar of sports and games for all ages and interests including a pop-up padel court, climbing wall, 3x3 basketball zone, 100m running track, a range of classes including yoga, boxing and HIIT training, dog agility and training, giant board games and live screenings of the latest sports events, plus free movies in the evening.
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