Favela Brass is a free music school in the Pereirão

favela Favela () is an umbrella name for several types of working-class neighborhoods in Brazil. The term was first used in the Providência neighborhood in the center of Rio de Janeiro in the late 19th century, which was built by soldiers who had ...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, Brazil. It was set up by Englishman Tom Ashe in 2013 and drew international attention when the children performed at the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

History

Favela Brass was established in the Pereirão

by Englishman Tom Ashe after he moved to

in 2008 to follow his career as a musician. After seeing the lack of opportunities for children growing up in the favela, he decided to set up a free school in 2013. Beginning with one student, as of 2016 the school had over 40 students. The students practice three times a week. They played at the

which took place in Rio. Ashe is originally from

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

and was inspired by his childhood participation in the Doncaster Youth Jazz Association. He appealed for second-hand instruments to be sent from England to Rio, and a Doncaster brass band fund-raised for the school. He set up a curry club with all proceeds going to the school and the teachers work as volunteers. Funds were also generated by artists in Rio selling their work in an Instagram auction hosted by actress Juliana Boller. By 2019, the school had found a permanent home and Ashe was arranging performances outside the

state of Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil. It has the second largest economy of Brazil, with the largest being that of the state of São Paulo. The state, which has 8.2% of the Brazilian population, is responsible for 9.2% of ...

. The COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil forced the temporary closure of the school.

References

External links

Official website
{{coord missing, Brazil 2013 establishments in Brazil Brass bands Music schools in Brazil Schools in Rio de Janeiro (city) 2016 Summer Olympics