As part of this month’s Polyphonic Ground Digital Residency, we’re profiling the organizations and professionals who support Toronto’s culturally diverse music scene. See all of the profiles here.
What’s your name, role and organization?
Alexander Bordokas, artistic director, Uma Nota Culture.
Tell us about Uma Nota Culture’s signature events.
We do mostly tropical lifestyle jams with a strong lean towards Brazilian, Latin, Caribbean, funk and soul music. We are presenting Liniker e os caramelows from São Paulo Brazil on July 12. Their style, as they say in Brazil, is on the “black soul” tip – with that mega-metropolis edge that is São Paulo.
We do it all: festivals, live music presentations, block parties and often our events have resident DJ General Eclectic anchoring the show. We also regularly work with Maracatu Mar Aberto, Tdot Batu and Batucada Carioca, our resident Brazilian baterias.
Beyond providing great cultural programming, does Uma Nota Culture have a larger mission you’re working towards?
We care about the positive vibe, the artistry and crowd around the genres we present. We look to continue expanding the depths of artistry in these genres, pushing the envelope so that new genres and styles arise, yet also further deepening the understanding of traditional forms. In tandem with this is the community and public that surround these arts. We like to be the dance floor, the magical portal, between the crowd and the artists. They operate together for a fully participatory scene.
Tell us about one highlight from a past Uma Nota Culture event that illustrates why you love what you do.
The moment comes at almost every jam we throw … the moment when the music connects with the crowd, whether they are newbies or old-schoolers. When that sweet line, melody or rhythm drops and you see heads nodding, bodies moving and faces smiling, in sync with the vibe. When the music and crowd are so together a liminal state is created and we exist together on a whole other level. That high is what keeps me in this hustle despite the challenges.
I’m thinking at the end of our Saturday Night Jamboree a few years back when we had Vox Sambu just holding the crowd and people linked in to every word, every move. Or more recently, in April of this year, when Friendlyness and The Human Rights brought the real reggae flavour to an old vaudeville theatre in the east end.
Describe some of the specific challenges organizations like yours face in promoting world music in Toronto.
I don’t even know what “world music” is. I mean WTF does that mean? We present music – music mostly in genres rooted in strong rhythms, often from Brazil, usually from the tropical world. And it is danceable, more often than not. People who think that music that is not from the commercial anglo-world is all “world music” is probably the single biggest challenge we face. Also, complacency and winter in this city kinda suck. However, if you are a person with a spirit that wants to explore and revel in different and engaging artistic forms, our events are for you.
Name one artist, band or performer who’s taking part in an upcoming Uma Nota Culture event that you think audiences will love.
Liniker e os Caramelows on July 12 at Lula Lounge.
Toronto music venues have been struggling to stay open in recent years. Have these challenges affected Uma Nota Culture in any way?
Yes, it means fewer locations to present our events and more demands by the ones that still do. There is even a lack of DIY places and with the cost of a liquor license doubling, it is harder than ever to get the culture out to the people.
What are some of the benefits of partnering together with similar music/event promoters in Polyphonic Ground?
Cross-pollination, working with different people and learning from and with them.
