Sounding Northeast Brazil: musical genre manifestations onthe island of Fernando de Noronha

Despite the richness of Northeast Brazil’s musical culture, popular music from the region has received relatively little public and scholarly attention. This article, based on field research by the authors in 2012 and 2014, examines manifestations of Brazilian musical genres on the island of Fernando de Noronha—a pocket of concentrated musical activity within the Northeast state of Pernambuco. While musicians service the tourist market by offering an eclectic mix of Brazilian genres, several genres closely associated with the Northeast region (Brazilian reggae, maracatu, and forró) have an especially prominent place on the island. Through their engagements with these genres, Fernando de Noronha musicians contribute to the maintenance and extension of Northeast musical culture.