Banda Do Corpo De Bombeiros

The Banda do Corpo de Bombeiros is the most famous Brazilian band of all time. They had around 30 musicians at the time of their foundation and were organized and first conducted by the famous Anacleto de Medeiros. In 1896, Medeiros was invited by the lieutenant-colonel Eugênio Jardim to organize the Banda do Corpo de Bombeiros and did so by recruiting former colleagues of the War Arsenal, like the trumpet players Luís de Souza and Casemiro Rocha and other proficient chorões (choro players). The quality of the musicians and arrangements (by Medeiros himself, who was a fine melodist, great harmonizer, and excellent orchestrator, according to the standards of the time) made it possible for the band to take the forefront of the musical scene, becoming sensibly better than the competition. They were the first band to record in Brazil and the Casa Edison catalog of 1902 had several cylinders and plates registered by the band. Among the cylinders, there is the "Sinfonia do Guarani" (three cylinders), the valses "Albertina," "Despedida," "Marília," "Cecília," "Noites de Luar," the polkas "Jurandi," "Lídia," "Depois do Casamento," "Riso de Anjo," "Delicada," "Tatá," "29," "Anacleto de Medeiros," "Em Família," "Geni," "Perereca," among others, and, among the plates (small and big), there is the National Anthem, "S. José" and "Espanhola" (marches), "Flamengo," "Cosmopolita," and "Nenê Mendes" (military marches). The main musicians were Antão (clarinet), Casimiro Rocha (trumpet), Lucas, and Gonzaga (basses), among others. After Anacleto de Medeiros's demise on August 14, 1907, the following masters took over the band's direction: Agostinho de Luís Gouveia, Albertino Pimentel (the "Carramona"), Antônio Pinto Júnior, Ilídio Antônio do Nascimento, Adjalme Rodrigues da Silva, Luís Paulo da Silva (1960), Dionísio Rosa Reis (1961/1962), and Otônio Benvenuto da Silva. The Banda do Corpo de Bombeiros has recorded several LPs for several labels, after the Odeon album Marchas de Rancho, which had significant success. ~ Alvaro Neder