• The Brazilian Consulate-General, Los Angeles is Proud to Announce
    The Launch of the New Website & Streaming App For
    Brazilian Hour
    One of the Longest Running International Radio Shows Heard on NPR Stations Across the U.S.
    As it Gears Up for 2014 World Cup & 2016 Olympic Games
    With Multiplatform Offerings

    New Website Launches on Friday, September 7, 2012 on Brazil’s Independence Day – Sete de Setembro
    App Launches in Late September 2012

    LOS ANGELES, CA – August 27, 2012 – With the World Cup and Olympic Games coming to Brazil in the next few years, bringing unprecedented international attention to the country, the Cultural Sector of the Brazilian Consulate-General in Los Angeles is preparing for its global close-up by expanding its Brazilian Hour radio program into new multimedia platforms, including a new media-rich website as well as a brand new streaming music app.  With a 34-year history showcasing the country’s music and culture, the program is one of the longest running international radio shows in the U.S. – its mission to provide audiences worldwide with a rich and deep taste of Brazilian culture.  The expanded multimedia offerings will allow a new generation of listeners across the globe greater access to enjoy the show’s music along with guest interviews and exclusive features on the web, as well as through the mobile application.  The new website, redesigned to enhance the listener experience, launches on Friday, September 7, 2012, which is Brazil’s Independence Day – Sete de Setembro.  The app, which allows for easy access to the show via iPhone, iPad and Android, will be available on iTunes in September 2012.  For more information, please see www.brazilianhour.org.

    “With the World Cup and Olympics coming to Brazil in 2014 and 2016, respectively, the country will be getting a remarkable amount of attention across the globe over the next few years,” says Sergio Mielniczenko, host and producer of the Brazilian Hour and staff member of the Cultural Sector of the Brazilian Consulate-General in Los Angeles.  “The move into new multimedia platforms is part of our efforts to prepare for that.  The show, including the new site and app, is a very unique cultural resource, unlike any other in existence, to explore the country’s music and culture further.”

    The Brazilian Hour was created 34 years ago by the Cultural Sector of the Brazilian Consulate-General in Los Angeles originating at radio station KXLU 88.9FM in 1978.  The program is available in English, Portuguese, Spanish, French and Mandarin.  Currently, 35-40 NPR affiliates in the US broadcast the Brazilian Hour.  Locally, the show still broadcasts from KXLU 88.9FM in Los Angeles on Saturdays and Sundays, 9:00-10:00am (PST).  Listeners can also access the show 24/7 through the Brazilian Hour‘s website and Live 365.  Made possible by the Brazilian Ministry of External Relations, internationally, the show is heard in diverse lands such as Sri Lanka, Cuba and Gabon in West Central Africa.  The show is also distributed to hundreds of Brazilian diplomatic missions and cultural centers around the world.  The show features not only the most popular styles of Brazilian music – bossa nova, músicA popular Brasilera (MPB) and samba – but also a full range of traditional and contemporary Brazilian music including choro, Brazilian jazz, forró, frevo, and many other styles.

    “Most people think of Brazilian music as upbeat and energetic, and this is certainly true in a number of cases.  But the musical traditions of the country are so much more varied and rich, with an incredible variety of styles – melodically, harmonically, and rhythmically,” says Mielniczenko, “There’s amazing depth and a tremendous number of musical styles coming from Brazil – it’s like its own planet.”

    Anyone who is anyone in the Brazilian music scene has been on the show.  The “short list” of notable guests includes Tom Jobim, Sergio Mendes, Oscar Castro Neves, Laurindo Almeida, Moacir Santos, Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, João Bosco, Ivan Lins, Dori Caymmi, Egberto Gismonti, Djavan, Gal Costa, Milton Nascimento, Chico Buarque de Hollanda, Jorge Benjor, Roberto Carlos, Céu, Luisa Maita, Bebel Gilberto, Tita Lima, João Donato, Tania Maria, Eliane Elias, Nana Caymmi, Joyce, Luciana Souza, Hermeto Pascoal, Azymuth, Martinho da Vila, Beth Carvalho, Alcione, Seu Jorge, Daniela Mercury, and Olodum, to name just “a few.”

    New Multimedia Offerings –

    • Website:
    The Brazilian Hour’s new website will launch on September 7, 2012, Brazil’s Independence Day, Sete de Setembro.  It will feature an enhanced interface that improves the user experience and puts the music upfront and center.  The new site provides listeners with a variety of new tools to access the show’s streaming content, including an integrated player built into the banner on each page, which automatically broadcasts the current show, and an external pop-out player streaming the most recent program.  Visitors will also be able to explore the archive to review playlists from dozens of recent shows, watch featured videos (Brazilian Hour TV) of past guests, and browse the show’s photo gallery.  The new site also includes a rotating featured artist spotlight, program news, and additional background information about the show in five languages – English, Portuguese, Spanish, French, and Mandarin.

    • iPhone/iPad/Android App:
    Also launching in September 2012, the Brazilian Hour’s new app will allow anyone with an iPhone, iPad or Android to listen to music and interviews from the latest Brazilian Hour program (in over 150 countries).  The app features easy access to the Brazilian Hour show, along with Brazilian Hour videos, and a featured artist section.  The app will feature all five languages as on the site.  Available through the iTunes and Android App stores in September 2012, the Brazilian Hour app is free.  Learn more about the app creator, Straw Into Gold, at www.straw-gold.com.

    Brazilian Music –
    For years, impressions of Brazilian music in the popular U.S. media have been dominated by visions of the colorful Carmen Miranda singing and dancing happily in a fruit-laden headdress, Muzak renditions of the 1960s international hit song Girl from Ipanema, and the exuberant sounds of Rio’s Carnival as portrayed in the award-winning film Black Orpheus.  While these are all certainly noteworthy examples of Brazil’s creative production, there’s so much more to the country’s cultural contribution.  Brazilian music is full of passion, sentiment, and joy – encompassing styles influenced by a simmering mix of African, European and Amerindian musical heritage.  Brazil’s musical traditions, which have developed over a few centuries, include numerous unique and original styles such as bossa nova, samba, choro, frevo, forró, maracatu, MPB, funk carioca, sertanejo, Brazilian rock, pagode, tropicalia, samba rock, axé and others.  Samba is perhaps the best-known form of Brazilian music and dance worldwide, particularly with the popularity of the country’s carnival.  Internationally, bossa nova has also received substantial attention around the globe since the 1960s.  Brazilian instrumental music is largely performed and cultivated in Brazil, ranging from classical to popular and jazz influenced forms.  The country also has a growing modern/experimental composition community, including electroacoustic music.

    More About the Brazilian Hour
    Created in 1978, the Brazilian Hour promotes the best Brazilian music and culture to audiences all around the world.  Made possible by the Brazilian Ministry of External Relations, the Brazilian Hour was first introduced at Los Angeles radio station KXLU 88.9FM on March 5, 1978.  Since the beginning, the show has been hosted, written and produced by Sergio Mielniczenko.  To this day it continues to be broadcast on KXLU 88.9FM on Saturdays and Sundays, 9:00-10:00am (PST).  Show content is also available 24/7 through Brazilian Hour’s website, Live 365, and the new app.  In 1981, the Brazilian Hour started national distribution via satellite to public radio stations in the United States.  Currently, 35 to 40 NPR stations are broadcasting the show across the country and additional outlets globally.  The Brazilian Hour also distributes the program internationally to Brazilian diplomatic missions and centers of Brazilian studies.  Currently, the show is produced in English, Portuguese, Spanish, French and Mandarin.  Public radio stations that are interested in carrying the show can receive it, free of charge, weekly through the Public Radio Satellite System (PRSS).

    Sergio Mielniczenko, Brazilian Hour Producer/Host –
    Sergio Mielniczenko, staff member of the Cultural Sector at the Consulate-General of Brazil in Los Angeles, has spent the past three decades of his professional career introducing worldwide audiences to the best of Brazilian music and culture. He is the producer/host of the Brazilian Hour heard on KXLU 88.9FM in Los Angeles, NPR stations across the country, and beyond.  He is also a weekly host of KPFK 90.7FM’s Global Village every Friday, an international open format program featuring live music performances and interviews from around the world.  He is an accomplished musician, multimedia project producer, and film documentarist.  After studying composition and conducting in São Paulo for two years, he moved to the States to finish his music education, but instead became interested in mass media studies resulting in a BA in Radio & Television Broadcasting from CSU Northridge and a Professional Designation Certificate in Recording Arts and Sciences at UCLA.  He has been honored throughout his career by the Brazilian Government (Ordem de Rio Branco), twice by the International Press Association, the City of Los Angeles, and KPFK 90.7FM.

    “As consulate projects go, the Brazilian Hour is a bit unusual,” says Mielniczenko, “We are very proud of our music – it’s one of the most important resources we have.”

    Links –
    Brazilian Hourwww.brazilianhour.org
    Brazilian Hour Facebook – www.facebook.com/pages/Brazilian-Hour-Radio-wwwbrazilianhourorg-247/255577401134087
    – Cultural Sector of the Brazilian Consulate-General, LA – losangeles.itamaraty.gov.br/en-us
    – Public Radio Satellite System (PRSS) – contentdepot.prss.org/portal

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    For more information, images, or to request an interview, please contact Green Galactic’s Lynn Tejada at 213-840-1201 or lynn@greengalactic.com.

    PHOTO of Sergio Mielniczenko courtesy Brazilian Hour


     

    Posted on August 27th, 2012 lynn-hasty No comments

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