Alcione was introduced to the traditional Brazilian music by her father. He was a military musician who worked as the conductor of the corps marching band. At the age of thirteen, she was already able to give vocal performance in college parties. At this same age, she began to study clarinet, and then learnt to play the trumpet.
At age 20 Alcione moved to Rio de Janeiro. There she worked at the city's TV Excelsior, and later went on tour in Argentina and Chile for four months. On returning to Brazil, she settled in São Paulo, working in nightclub and making appearances on television. In 1970, she started her two-year tour in Europe, performing as a vocalist and a trumpet artist.
In 1972, when back to Brazil, Alcione recorded her first single. The following year, she traveled to sing in Mexico and, in 1974, Portugal, where she recorded her first full-length album. In 1975 Alcione released her LP, A Voz do Samba, which achieved gold sales status and featured several hit tracks. The most successful songs were Não Deixe o Samba Morrer, written by Edson and Aloiso, and O Surdo, written by Totonho/Paulinho Resende.
In the late 1970s, Nazaré became well-known as a samba artist and achieved international recognition. She recorded Alerta Geral for Philips Records and, in 1978, released this album, the title of which was taken from a television show that Alcione had hosted on TV Globo for two years. Following its success, Alcione continued to release several other full-length albums in late 1970s and early 1980s, including her self-titled album.
In 1997, Alcione signed with Universal Records, subsequently releasing a label debut named Valeu, through Polygram the next year. This was followed by Celebração that same year, and Claridade---Uma Homenagem A Clara Nunes in 1999. In December 2002 Alcione was recognized for playing an important part in founding the Paraíso School of Samba in London, England. She also helped organizing and preparing the stage for a British version of the Carnival Brasil, Paraíso dos Orixás (Brazil, Paradise of the Gods). In 2003, her 2002 album, Ao Vivo, received the Best Samba/Pagode Album Award at fourth Latin Grammy Award ceremony.
She has interpreted several hits such as Não deixe o samba morrer, Lá vem você, Gostoso veneno and Ilha da maré.
On July 7, 2007 she performed at the Brazilian leg of Live Earth in Rio de Janeiro.
Canto Das Três Raças
Alcione Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Um soluçar de dor
No canto do Brasil
Um lamento triste
Sempre ecoou
Desde que o índio guerreiro
Foi pro cativeiro
Negro entoou
Um canto de revolta pelos ares
No Quilombo dos Palmares
Onde se refugiou
Fora a luta dos Inconfidentes
Pela quebra das correntes
Nada adiantou
E de guerra em paz
De paz em guerra
Todo o povo desta terra
Quando pode cantar
Canta de dor
Ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh,
Ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh
Ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh,
Ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh
E ecoa noite e dia,
É ensurdecedor
Ai, mas que agonia
O canto do trabalhador
Esse canto que devia
Ser um canto de alegria
Soa apenas
Como um soluçar de dor
These lyrics are from the Brazilian song Canto Das Três Raças by Alcione. It touches on the pain of the three races that make up Brazil - the Indigenous people, Afro-Brazilians, and European settlers. The song talks about the unheeded pain that has been echoing through Brazil since colonization. The Indigenous people were taken captive and still sing songs of sorrow, while the Afro-Brazilians sang songs of revolt and sought refuge in Quilombo dos Palmares. The Inconfidentes tried to fight for freedom, but it was ultimately in vain. The people of Brazil continue to sing songs of pain that are deafening and agonizing, despite the fact that they should be singing songs of joy.
The song is a tribute to Brazil's history and the struggle that its people have endured. It is a call to remember the country's past and honor the people who have suffered in order to create a better future. Through its moving lyrics, Canto Das Três Raças aims to unite the races of Brazil and make sure that nobody forgets the past or the contributions of those who have come before us.
Line by Line Meaning
Ninguém ouviu
No one heard
Um soluçar de dor
A sigh of pain
No canto do Brasil
In the corner of Brazil
Um lamento triste
A sad lament
Sempre ecoou
Always echoed
Desde que o índio guerreiro
Since the warrior Indian
Foi pro cativeiro
Was put into captivity
E de lá cantou
And sang from there
Negro entoou
Negro intoned
Um canto de revolta pelos ares
A song of revolt through the air
No Quilombo dos Palmares
In the Palmares Quilombo
Onde se refugiou
Where they took refuge
Fora a luta dos Inconfidentes
Except for the struggle of the Inconfidentes
Pela quebra das correntes
For the breaking of the chains
Nada adiantou
Nothing helped
E de guerra em paz
And from war to peace
De paz em guerra
From peace to war
Todo o povo desta terra
All the people of this land
Quando pode cantar
When they can sing
Canta de dor
They sing of pain
Ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh,
Oh oh oh oh oh oh,
Ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh ôh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
E ecoa noite e dia,
And echoes night and day,
É ensurdecedor
It's deafening
Ai, mas que agonia
Oh, what agony
O canto do trabalhador
The song of the worker
Esse canto que devia
This song that should
Ser um canto de alegria
Be a song of joy
Soa apenas
Only sounds
Como um soluçar de dor
Like a sigh of pain
Contributed by Jasmine K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
João Marcos Silva
Essa música é um hino !
Diz tudo sobre à miscigenação do Brasil e às injustiças !
É um canto de dor, de paz e união entre todas às raças !
Demais !
É de arrepiar !
Muito linda na voz da Alcione, porém com a Clara Nunes é sensacional !
👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
Fabio Castro
Q coisa mais linda !!!!! Clarinha sendo muito bem representada ! Isso não é uma musica ... Isso é um hino !
Luiz henrique de oliveira Henriques
Essa musica é uma verdadeira poesia
Salve o povo brasileiro
Salve clara
Paulo Silva
Se fosse norte-americana, Alcione seria uma diva, como Sarah, Ella, Aretha, Dionne e outras.
Jorge Milhomens
Que Maravilha de interpretação com Alcione. Essa musica deveria ser o Hino Nacional Brasileiro.
Marise Coimbra
Lindo demais!!
Bruno Jose Beato Silva
Ficou incrível, cresci ouvindo Clara Nunes e a Marrom, dois grandes nomes da música brasileira, duas mulheres de alta representatividade, tanto em vida quanto em memória...
Haah Freitas
Lindaaaaa música mais que perfeita capta perfeitamente a injustiça. E toda a dor
Evaldo Mendes
O canto do trabalhador, do negro, do índio....um canto de dor.
A injustiça social na terra das três raças ainda é grande.
Maria Do Socorro Melo
Essa música ficou linda na voz da Marrom!!! ouvi muito na voz da saudosa Clara Nunes.☆☆☆