Samba-exaltação

Samba-exaltação is the grandiose, patriotic branch of Brazilian samba that crystallised with *Ary Barroso*'s "Aquarela do Brasil" in 1939. Where the sambas of the escolas and the intimate samba-canção stayed close to everyday life, samba-exaltação enlarged everything: long, arching melodies, full orchestral accompaniment with brass and strings, and texts that exalt the beauty, abundance and promise of Brazil itself. Promoted by national radio and favoured by the Estado Novo regime of Getúlio Vargas as a musical emblem of the nation, it was sung by the great radio voices of the era and exported abroad as Brazil's official popular sound.