African Traditions in Brazil Bahia
is a cultural history tours destinations of
the Recôncavo of Bahia. Developed by Professor Kenneth
Dossar, African Traditions in Salvador Bahia is designed
for individuals and groups interested in the African presence
in Brazil -- particularly Bahia. The programs’ goals
are educational and engaging. All programs are based in
the magical city of Salvador with its stunning, rich,
natural beauty, and spiritual energy. From there, the
programs move out into the surrounding region. Study tours
are well suited for high school and college students,
researchers, artists, dancers, musicians, and community
cultural organizations.
Brazil has the largest population
of African descendants living outside of Africa.
Bahia, the cultural capitol of Brazil, was for many years
the main entry port for enslaved Africans transported
to Brazil. The country has a rich cultural legacy that
is rooted in the African traditions brought there during
the more than three hundred years of trans-Atlantic slavery.
Today, Bahia is a vital center for many contemporary cultural
manifestations and political movements created by African
Brazilians. Bahia remains a rich and essential repository
for African derived cultural practices
PROFESSIONAL PROFILE
African Traditions in Brazil was
created by Dr. Kenneth Dossar, an arts consultant and
cultural historian, who has collaborated closely with
numerous traditional leaders and cultural/arts organizations
in developing public programs which explore the common
heritage of people of African descent. He has a doctorate
in African American Studies from Temple University where
he worked as assistant to the renowned Afro-Brazilian
scholar Abdias do Nascimento.
Since 1983, Professor Dossar
has traveled to Brazil to research Bahia’s African
heritage. Dr. Dossar has also performed research in the
Caribbean, and Cuba on the continuance of African traditions
in music, dance, belief systems and other cultural practices.
He developed, and teaches a variety of courses in Latin
American, African American, and Atlantic World Studies.
His photos of the African Brazilian martial
art - Capoeira Angola appear on the Smithsonian CD Capoeira
and in John Lewis’ book: Ring of Liberation. His
recent solo photographic exhibition entitled “Spiritual
Mothers” was presented by the Annenberg
Center for the Performing Arts at the University of Pennsylvania.
Through the Partners of the Americas and
other organizations, he oversaw numerous exchange programs
between Brazil and the United States. Professor Dossar
consults national cultural arts organizations including
the American Museum of Natural History, the Caribbean
Culture Center, and Dance Brazil in New York. He works
with the Capoeira Foundation, the International Capoeira
Angola Foundation, and regional cultural institutions
including the African American Museum in Philadelphia,
and the Folklife Center. He currently evaluates a variety
of cultural programs for the Pennsylvania Humanities Council.
Dr. Dossar is a founding member of the US/Brazil
Center for Culture and Education. He has produced an array
of public events including film festivals, exhibits, music
and dance events, and lecture series. His radio program
of African Atlantic music – Under on Sun –
aired for seven years on Temple University’s radio
network.
Professor Dossar created and directs
the Temple in Brazil Study Programs which takes
students from North American universities to study African
Culture and Portuguese in Brazil. He continues to lecture
and develop public programs on the African presence in
the Atlantic World.
Tours detail aspects of the multifaceted
cultural heritage of Bahia. The programs focus
on traditions coming from West
Africa, principally from the Yoruba; and on those
of the BaKongo of West Central Africa. and explore contemporary
manifestations of these traditions. Program participants
examine: resistance movements, spiritual traditions, popular
music and dance, politics, social organizations, and popular
festivals.
Bahia The Soul of Brazil
This beautiful northeastern state is the
most quintessentially ‘Brazilian’ region of
the country.
Whichever Brazil you are looking for –
beautiful deserted beaches, African heritage, colonial
architecture, dramatic national parks, exotic cuisine,
exhilarating music or the greatest carnival on Earth –
Bahia has it in abundance and we at African American
Travel Agency would be delighted to show it to you.
Brazil has its history complete of differents
cultures. The most present is the African Culture Traditions,
Diaspora, Heritage, where we can see it in a lot of Afro
popular celebrations.
Our services not only
include traditional travel services, but non-traditional
ones as well. Among them are:
advertising and promotion of tours and workshops
we can provide details on cultural nuances
establish networking opportunities for business travelers
overseas
provide cultural and education tours and services
hold conferences and handle event planning / management
design full-color graphics, brochures and flyers
we have an archive of extensive photographic files with
one-of-a-kind images
we can produce multimedia presentations of desired destinations
