A Bloco Built Between Bahia and London
TRIBO is an international, cross-cultural drumming, performance and education project. Its philosophy is simple: everyone can make music, and music changes what people believe they are capable of.
Community gathering in Gamboa, Bahia · Photo: TRIBO archive
What TRIBO Is, in Their Own Words
A short film about the project, the rhythms and the people behind TRIBO.
Music as a Tool for People
TRIBO exists to make Afro-Brazilian music and culture genuinely accessible — to children, adults, schools, community groups and audiences who may never have held a drum before.
Through the power of collective rhythm, TRIBO helps each participant nurture their own creative life force without needing to be musically trained or gifted, and develop skills that enrich their lives well beyond the session.
As a community interest organisation, TRIBO reinvests its work into education, participation and cultural exchange between Brazil and the United Kingdom.
The TRIBO Timeline
2005
Founded in Morro de São Paulo
Marcos Santana founds TRIBO on the island of Tinharé, Bahia, creating a place for local children to develop their personalities, creativity and musical abilities through percussion.
Brazil
A social and cultural project
The project grows around cultural identity, discipline and opportunity, using Afro-Brazilian music as a tool for personal and community development.
London
Crossing the Atlantic
TRIBO establishes regular samba-reggae sessions and drumming workshops in London, introducing participants to both technique and Afro-Brazilian and South-American Indigenous culture.
Today
Two countries, one bloco
TRIBO performs at events across the UK, Europe and Brazil, delivers education programmes, and gathers people from many backgrounds into a single drumming community.
Samba-Reggae and Afro-Brazilian Culture
Samba-reggae was born in the Black neighbourhoods of Salvador, Bahia — a rhythm created by community blocos as a statement of identity, pride and belonging. TRIBO teaches it with that history attached.
The rhythm
Surdos, caixas, repiques and timbal locked into interlocking patterns that only work when the group listens to each other.
The culture
Language, movement, call-and-response and the history of the bloco tradition are part of every workshop.
The exchange
Brazilian tradition meets London's multicultural present — a two-way conversation, not a performance of the exotic.
What TRIBO Stands For
Community
Music made together, for and with the people in the room.
Creativity
Space to experiment, improvise and find your own voice.
Cultural respect
Afro-Brazilian traditions taught with their history intact.
Inclusion
Sessions designed so anyone can take part, whatever their experience.
Education
Clear teaching, progression and transferable skills.
Discipline
Rhythm demands attention, listening and commitment.
Collaboration
Partnerships with schools, artists, councils and organisations.
Opportunity
Pathways from first workshop to public performance.
The Social and Cultural Project in Bahia
TRIBO's origin is a social project: giving the children of Morro de São Paulo a place to belong, learn an instrument and develop confidence through music.
The Brazilian side of TRIBO continues to focus on young people, cultural identity and access to music education on the island of Tinharé.
Support the Project