When Did Samba Become Samba?

This chapter discusses the contrast between two types of samba that, in the late 1920s, defined Brazilian popular music and above all else, Afro-Brazilian music in Rio de Janeiro. The old style of samba was represented by composers such as Donga and Sinhô—the latter being known, until his death in 1930, as “the King of Samba”—and was associated with the area surrounding the city port, including the neighborhood of Cidade Nova. The new style was represented by composers linked to the Estácio de Sá neighborhood, home of the Carnival group Deixa Falar, which is usually recognized as “the first samba school.” Ismael Silva, author of “Se você jurar” (“If You Swear”), was the most representative composer of this group.