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Entre Nós have certainly made a mark in Goa with a concept quite distinctive and musical prowess of high calibre.
The musical group that comprises Omar de Loiola Pereira (vocals, guitar and musical director), Nadia (vocals), Selwyn Menezes (violin and mandolin) and Nigel Vales (keyboards and backing vocals), impress with their immense talent and ability to improve and cement Goa’s position on the global music scene.
And now, Entre Nós will be performing in Portugal with their concert tour being kicked off at Museu do Oriente, Lisbon, on September 12, 2024.
The tour includes a workshop with differently-abled children at the Pais em Rede association, which advocates for persons with disabilities, in Aveiro.
They will also be performing in support of Pais em Rede in Aveiro on September 21, 2024.
The group has carved a niche for itself by performing various genres of Goan music, emanating from different sections of Goan society, from the fugddi to the fado.
The group has carved a niche for itself by performing various genres of Goan music, emanating from different sections of Goan society, from the fugddi to the fado.
Talking about the forthcoming concert tour, Omar says, “Our concert is a story of music in Goa that covers traditional and folk songs such as the fugddi, dekhni and mando, music from Goan cinema and tiatr, music from some very noted Goan composers, as well as a fado or two, to shine a spotlight on the influence the fado has had on Goan music.”
But, from where did this concept of amalgamation of musical genres in a concert arise?
Brainstorming with PR professional, Schubert Fernandes, during the COVID-19 doldrums, about changing up the presentation and consumption of Goan music, Omar and Schubert arrived at the brilliant notion of curating intimate concerts that would not only present Goan traditional music to their audience, but ones that would accentuate the Goan ethos.
This resulted in them founding 'Sounds from Goa'.
Omar and Schubert arrived at the brilliant notion of curating intimate concerts that would not only present Goan traditional music to their audience, but ones that would accentuate the Goan ethos.
Omar elaborates, “It wasn’t enough to make it just about music. So, we made it an experience that included four elements of Goan heritage – music, dance, cuisine and location."
"The concert itself starts and ends with Goan folk songs, which are completely different from each other in every way, except in the fact that they are equally Goan. The rest of the curation is a narrative that joins these two ends of the Goan music spectrum,” he explains.
“Of these four elements in the Heritage Home Concert experience, we are only taking the musical element to Portugal. Sadly, circumstances do not permit us to take the other elements along for the moment,” he goes on to say.
The concert tour ties in perfectly with Portugal’s year-long celebrations of its 50 years of democracy to place Goa, once a Portuguese colony, in the spotlight.
The tour takes place thanks to the efforts of Communicare Trust, a non-profit organisation that avidly encourages the promotion of Goan and Portuguese language and culture.
Omar explains how the concert tour came about, saying, “Entre Nós has been staging its Sounds from Goa Heritage Concerts at various heritage venues around Goa for the last couple of years. The uniqueness of these concerts came to the attention of Communicare Trust, who then invited Entre Nós to stage them in various locations around Portugal.”
The concert tour ties in perfectly with Portugal’s year-long celebrations of its 50 years of democracy to place Goa, once a Portuguese colony, in the spotlight.
Talking about the content and style of the concert performances to be staged in Portugal, Omar says, “Our concert will be similar to the one we stage locally, but we are hoping that taking it to new audiences will spread awareness of, and interest in, Goan music to new audiences.”
Entre Nós’ itinerary also includes a workshop and performance with students at Oficina de Música de Aveiro (OMA); a roundtable with travel and tourism stakeholders at Landscape Travel Agency in Ovar; and a collaboration with Portuguese musicians SENZA at Praça das Galinhas, Ovar.
These have the primary focus of laying the groundwork for future collaborations with Portuguese artistes, besides acting as a platform for Goa’s music and culture.
“Anything we do there is for the promotion of Goan culture and music. We don’t look at our role as just musicians. We look at our role as being ambassadors of Goan culture,” says Omar, enthusiastically.
Reflecting on audience response to the varied genres of Goan music, Omar says, “Our concerts cover more of the Indo-Portuguese aspect of Goan traditional music.
"Our audiences consist of local Goans and non-resident Goans, who want to connect or reconnect with their roots; domestic and international tourists, as well as settlers in Goa, who want to connect further with Goan culture. We have had very encouraging responses from each of these sections of our audience,” he shares.
Entre Nós sees representing Goa through this forthcoming concert tour in Portugal as much a responsibility as it is a privilege.
Omar says emphatically, “We hope this trip will not only take a representation of Goa to the Goan diaspora in Portugal, but in addition, take our music to new Portuguese audiences, who have never had the opportunity to interact with Goan culture and tradition before.”
ITINERARY
September 12: Opening concert at Museu do Oriente, Lisbon
September 17: Workshop with differently-abled children at the Pais em Rede association in Aveiro
September 18: Workshop & performance with students at Oficina de Música de Aveiro (OMA)
September 19: Roundtable with travel & tourism stakeholders at Landscape Travel Agency in Ovar
September 20: Concert, including collaboration with Portuguese musicians SENZA, at Praça das Galinhas in Ovar
September 21: Solidarity concert in support of Pais em Rede in Aveiro