Marcos Odara has been playing the conga drums for 39 years and teaching for the last 20. Odara hails from Salvador da Bahia, Brazil and now calls Oakland home. The drum master teaches Brazilian ...

RIO DE JANEIRO — At a classical orchestra, a conductor’s raised hands often means the start of a performance. Tracing shapes in the air could point to how each beat must come. And one’s free fingers ...

Many say the heart of every Samba School is their drum section. To keep it pumping in the right tempo, Mocidade Samba School's 240 rhythmists obey the many hand swings, flicks, twists and pointing of ...

Samba can’t be learned from a textbook alone. Brazil’s musical tradition is best understood first-hand and up close — close enough to feel the drumbeat reverberate inside you. “ It's like an ocean of ...

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — At a classical orchestra, a conductor’s raised hands often means the start of a performance. Tracing shapes in the air could point to how each beat must come. And one’s free ...