Cafofo da Surica
The band´s interesting name did not come about until journalist João Piment… Read Full Bio ↴The band´s interesting name did not come about until journalist João Pimentel, writing for Brazil´s top selling daily paper O Globo, made a reference in one of his articles to the group of musicians that played with Teresa Cristina every Saturday night at the bar Semente, placed in one of Rio´s most bohemian neighborhoods, Lapa. It was in 1998 that Bernardo, João, Pedrinho, Ricardo Cotrim (no longer a member of Semente) and other friends, got together for the first time. Back then, Teresa was selecting repertoire for a tribute show she intended to put together in honor of Brazilian music virtuoso Candeia, and handpicking the musicians. Bernardo, at the time a member of group Acorda Bamba, invited band mate Alexandre Bittencourt (who, in turn, invited other musician pals, including Pedrinho, João and Ricardo) to Teresa´s 30th birthday party. That was when the invitation was formalized and well accepted, prompting a routine of meetings between Teresa and the guys to rehearse Candeia´s repertoire, though, in the end, the show never made it to the stage. Still in that year, Teresa and the boys played together for the first time at a show celebrating the International Women´s Day at the Planetário da Gávea theatre. Their premiere on the pulsating night of Lapa, one of Rio de Janeiro´s musical cribs, took place right after this, when Teresa and the group were invited by a certain well known character "Seu Guaracy", of Portela Samba School, to launch the new night music program at local bar Semente, known as a health food place, up until then. It worked out so well that soon Teresa Cristina and Grupo Semente were being called the "rescuers of Lapa´s night life", that had been going down since the eighties. After becoming a hit band playing at Semente, Teresa and the guys went on to perform at other venues in Lapa, such as carioca da Gema and Centro Cultural Carioca, for an ever growing audience. Media recognition came with the release of the first album, a double tribute to Brazilian idol Paulinho da Viola´s 60th birthday, which won Teresa a couple of awards - "Prêmio Rival BR" and "Prêmio Tim"- as "Best New Artist", and a "Best Samba Album" nomination at the 2003 Latin Grammy´s. After that, many were the invitations that took Teresa and Semente all over Brasil and even to Japan, showing the world all the beauty of the good genuine Brazilian music. In 2004, Teresa, Bernardo, Pedrinho and João welcomed Mestre Trambique, coming to replace Ricardo Cotrim, who was leaving the band, and they went in the studio once again to record the band´s second album "A Vida Me Fez Assim" ("Life has Made Me This Way"), which featured Teresa´s premiere as a songwriter. They gathered an excess of overwhelming reviews, and sold-out theatres on which they performed. On that same year, the band hit the road with the "Projeto Pixininguinha" tour, performing at the main cities of the Northeast of Brazil. In 2005, they performed at the "Brazilian Year" Celebrations in Paris, while recording their fist live CD and DVD, suitably titled: "O Mundo é Meu Lugar" ("The World is My Place").

Cafofo da Surica
Teresa Cristina Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

David no pandeiro
Casemiro na cuíca
Olha a festa já vai começar
No cafofo da Surica

David no pandeiro
Casemiro na cuíca
Olha a festa já vai começar
No cafofo da Surica

Seu Osmar do cavaco
Puxou um partido
Com mestre Casquinha
Que versou com Argemiro
Lembrando dos tempos
Lá da Portelinha

Velha Guarda no samba
Conduz a emoção
De quem plantou semente
Da flor da canção

A solidão ninguém sabe
Onde é que fica
Porque a festa já vai começar
No cafofo da Surica

O samba do Monarco
Com Doca e Eunice
Sambando no chão
É samba da Portela
Olha a Áurea chegando
E batendo com a mão
Guaracy 7 cordas
Tem seu violão
Cabelinho no surdo
Só na marcação

E o tamborim
Seu Jair, como é que fica?




Porque a festa já vai começar
No cafofo da Surica

Overall Meaning

The song "Cafofo da Surica" by Teresa Cristina is a celebration of traditional samba music and the community that surrounds it. The lyrics describe a gathering in the titular "cafofo," a slang term for a small, humble home, where musicians and friends have come together to play samba and share in the joy of the music. The first stanza introduces some of the musicians and instruments present, with David on the pandeiro (a type of Brazilian tambourine) and Casemiro on the cuíca (a percussion instrument with a distinctive sound similar to a monkey's call). The repetition of this stanza throughout the song reinforces the idea that the music is the central focus of the gathering.


The second stanza references the Portelinha, a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro known for its samba culture, where "Seu Osmar" (likely a reference to Osmar de Oliveira, a famous samba composer) and "mestre Casquinha" have come together to play music. The "velha guarda" (old guard) of samba, who have been playing and composing for many years, lead the emotion and energy of the music. The final lines of the stanza suggest that the gathering is a respite from loneliness or hardship, as the focus on the joy and warmth of the community of samba musicians and enthusiasts.


Overall, "Cafofo da Surica" is a celebration of samba music and the community that surrounds it. The lyrics emphasize the importance of tradition and communal celebration, as well as the emotional healing and connection that music can provide.


Line by Line Meaning

David no pandeiro
David playing the pandeiro (a Brazilian percussion instrument)


Casemiro na cuíca
Casemiro playing the cuíca (another Brazilian percussion instrument)


Olha a festa já vai começar
Look, the party is about to start


No cafofo da Surica
In Surica's cozy and small house


Seu Osmar do cavaco
Osmar playing the cavaquinho (a small Brazilian guitar)


Puxou um partido
He started a particular musical rhythm or song style


Com mestre Casquinha
With master Casquinha (a well-known Brazilian songwriter)


Que versou com Argemiro
Who composed lyrics together with Argemiro (another Brazilian songwriter)


Lembrando dos tempos
Remembering the old times


Lá da Portelinha
From the old Portelinha neighborhood


Velha Guarda no samba
The Old Guard of samba (a Brazilian music genre)


Conduz a emoção
Leading the emotion


De quem plantou semente
Of those who planted the seeds


Da flor da canção
Of the flower of the song (referring to samba)


A solidão ninguém sabe
Nobody knows about loneliness


Onde é que fica
Where it is


Porque a festa já vai começar
Because the party is about to start


No cafofo da Surica
In Surica's cozy and small house


O samba do Monarco
The samba of Monarco (a Brazilian singer and songwriter)


Com Doca e Eunice
With Doca and Eunice (Brazilian singers)


Sambando no chão
Dancing on the floor


É samba da Portela
It is samba from Portela (a samba school in Brazil)


Olha a Áurea chegando
Look, Áurea is arriving (a Brazilian singer)


E batendo com a mão
And clapping with her hands


Guaracy 7 cordas
Guaracy playing the 7-string guitar


Tem seu violão
Has his guitar


Cabelinho no surdo
Cabelinho playing the surdo (a Brazilian percussion instrument)


Só na marcação
Only in the rhythm section


E o tamborim
And the tamborim (a small Brazilian drum)


Seu Jair, como é que fica?
Seu Jair, how does it sound?


Porque a festa já vai começar
Because the party is about to start


No cafofo da Surica
In Surica's cozy and small house




Writer(s): Teresa Cristina Mace Gomes

Contributed by Henry D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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