BRAZIL - INTERNATIONAL CERTIFICATE

Hello, guys! How's life? Keep studying! Below some information on our country followed by a text about the 50th year of BOSSA NOVA! Any doubt, please, post on commentary!
God be with you all!


General Information on Brazil

Official Name: Federative Republic of Brazil
Capital: Brasilia (Current local time)
Government Type: Federal republic
Chief of State: Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, president
Population: 190.01 million
Area: 3,290,000 square miles; slightly smaller than the U.S.
Languages: Portuguese (official), Spanish, English, French
Literacy: Total Population: [89%]
Male: [88%];
Female: [89%]
GDP (gross domestic product) Per Capita: $8,800
Year of Independence: 1822
Web site: Brasil.gov.br


Bossa Nova’s Jubilee

Compiled by LAWRENCE VAN GELDER
Published: March 3, 2008

Brazil celebrated the 50th anniversary of bossa nova on Saturday, when Rio de Janeiro organized a free concert on the beach at Ipanema starring pioneers of the style, mixing samba and jazz, that originated in 1958 and spread worldwide in 1963 with the release of “The Girl From Ipanema,” Agence France-Presse reported. The song was written by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Vinicius De Moraes and performed by João and Astrud Gilberto, with saxophone accompaniment by Stan Getz. Saturday’s lineup included veterans like Roberto Menescal, Carlos Lyra and Oscar Castro-Neves as well as contemporary artists like Bossacucanova, a group that mixes bossa nova with electronica. Solange Kafuri, an organizer of the show, said, “Bossa nova has its eternal audience, and there is also a new one.” ... The sounds of Brazil will be saluted at Birdland in New York from April 15 through 19 at the BossaBrasil Festival, featuring the Grammy Award-winning pianist and composer Cesar Camargo Mariano; the vocalist, guitarist and composer João Bosco; and the saxophonist Harry Allen.