In 1994, Associação Pracatum Ação Social – APAS, a non-profit civil society, offering education, cultural and community development programs in the neighborhood Candeal Pequeno de Brotas, in Salvador, state of Bahia, was founded. In order to address the needs reported through an analytical diagnosis of the territory, two action programs: have been created: “Tá Rebocado Desenvolvimento Comunitário” (Community Development Program) and “Pracatum Educação e Cultura” (Educational and Cultural Program).
OUR MISSION
Pracatum aims to contributing for the improvement of Candeal’s community quality of life through cultural and educational initiatives valuing the community’s knowledge and needs, also reapplying and sharing this social transformation model with other entities.
Located in the city of Salvador, Bahia, Candeal is a historical community whose population is composed of around 1300 families, most of them of African ancestry and strongly linked to their cultural roots.
When the Association was founded, in 1994, Candeal’s neighborhood had a significant socioeconomic vulnerability and most of its population lived in shacks, with no access to basic sanitation.
Despite the situation of poverty, music has always been a significant cultural asset of Candeal, where it could be heard everywhere: during Candomblé’s rituals and Capoeira (Afro-Brazilian religion and martial art), at catholic litanies, in the sound of washerwomen’s buckets and of the traditional drums. All these musical elements are now symbols of social transformation in classrooms, recording studios, street rehearsals, jam sessions, performances at the Guetho Square, resulting in a varied and artistic soundscape all over the place.
EIXOS DE ATUAÇÃO
- Tá Rebocado - Community development program.
- Pracatum - Education and Culture.
PROGRAMS
1. TÁ REBOCADO - COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
Back in 1994, the Pracatum Association was launched and Candeal's community conceived the urbanistic Program "Tá Rebocado". In 1996 an Assembly and a Community Council were created to promote a remarkable impact in the community’s self-image and sense of belonging.
The process of urban transformation was shaped by hands and minds committed to the reconstruction of an unusual social space, especially regarding an urban context of megacities.
The program implied in the development of integrated projects in areas such as urbanization, housing, income generation, health and environment, all based on a participative and democratic methodology.
Residents constituted a legitimating basis for the process, identifying the real needs experienced by the community and collaborating with practical and tangible solutions, from the identification of demands to the construction of proposals and implementation of activities, in addition to monitoring and evaluating processes already under development.
Based on the mobilization of residents, the Program articulates communication and partnerships between different segments of the society such as the third sector, private entities and the government.
HOUSING AND URBANIZATION
- Expansion of sewage, water and electricity supply networks;
- Drainage;
- Construction of 120 housing units;
- Improvements in 50 homes;
- Painting and plastering in 60 houses;
- Improvement of the soccer field;
- Recovery and enhancement of the water source;
- Strengthening of micro-enterprises, through training and qualification courses;
- Implementation of 01 health post;
- Creation of 01 children's school;
- Formation of 01 music school;
- Construction of 02 public squares.
ENVIRONMENT, SUSTAINABILITY AND FEMALE ENTREPRENEURSHIP
OIL RECYCLING - Cooperative formed by sixty women for the productive inclusion through the manufacturing of soap and biodiesel. With 240 hours of training over a 12-month period, the project integrated a set of actions in 3 areas: Supportive Economy and Cooperativism, Production and Marketing of Inputs and Conflict Management.
CRAFT ARTS - Training classes for around 40 persons, aged 17 to 23, focusing the generation of work and income, through the production and marketing of fashion products within the fair trade principles (800 hours).
FACTORY SCHOOL - Course attended by almost 200 young students, aged 16 to 24, about design and assembling of accessories, fashion, afro aesthetics, percussion for Afro Brazilian cults, transversalizing contents such as: ethics, citizenship, world of work, personal image, ethnicity, sexual orientation, health and environment.
QUALIFICATION AND SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP - CANDEAL TERRITORY
CANDEAL TERRITORY - Candeal afro tourism project aims at stimulating the sustainable development of the community as well as increasing and boosting the local economy through tourism and community leaderships’ reinforcement.
The project intents to strengthen and enhance the neighborhood's economy through the management of the cultural attractions as well as the existing human resources and capital.
In partnership with AECID (Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation), City Government of Salvador, SENAC (National Service for Commercial Learning), SEBRAE (Service to support micro and small companies) and a network of public partners have contributed for the promotion of public actions and policies aimed at strengthening the capacities of the resident community.
Some actions based on the three axes were developed:
Axis 1 - Products and Market: Study of tourism competitiveness, registration of enterprises and situational research, registration of artisans and music producers, visitor’s profile research.
Axis 2 - Consultancies: analysis of tourism competitiveness, action plan to improve enterprises, identification of tourist visitation points and meetings with local governance groups.
Axis 3 - Training: seminars, individual assistance, meetings and courses about financial control, pricing, customer service and cultural projects development, among others.
Based on the mapping and analysis of the neighborhood’s business projects it was possible to identify:
- 142 entrepreneurs, formal and informal small companies;
- 60% of the companies operate in commerce and 40% in services;
- Food and drink businesses are the majority: 23 bars and 19 snack bars, followed by beauty and cosmetics shops (18 establishments);
- Around 70% of outlets installed in front of the owners' houses and around 30% in their backyard (more informal activities).
Aiming at implementing this project, an analysis based on the 13 dimensions of tourism competitiveness defined by the Brazilian Ministry of Tourism, Sebrae and Getúlio Vargas Foundation (FGV) was done, permitting to identify strengths and weaknesses in each dimension of competitiveness, scoring each one and generating an index of the territory’s capacity.
The result of this analysis pointed out three differentials and potentialities of the neighborhood: culture, especially music, tourism (for the history of the place) and social development, driven by the social and community organizations.
“MY DREAM SCHOOL IS A PLACE THAT PUTS AN END TO SOME CURISITIES AND, AT THE SAME TIME, CREATES NEW ONES". (CARLINHOS BROWN)
MAIN PROJECTS IN THE AREA OF EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL TRAINING:
PROFESSIONALIZING SCHOOL OF MUSIC
Founded in 1999, the Pracatum - School of Music and Technologies focuses on professional training within the music production area. As it is already well known, the school aims at qualifying its students within the musical universe, especially in the area of new technologies, practical learning of instruments, musical theory, repertoires and historical processes.
Thinking about music in its rhythmic and cultural dimension, PRACATUM dedicates its efforts to an intellectual and pedagogical work. Over six thousand musicians and professionals have been part of this project, in a pedagogical space that goes beyond the classroom, providing the development of studies, research and content production. The school has a structure of a recording studio, classrooms, library, individual and group practice studios and a special room with over 600 different instruments.
In 2014, Pracatum became a professional education school, regulated by the State Education Council, offering musical instruments and phonographic process technical courses.
PROFESSIONAL TECHNICAL COURSES
- Technical Course in Musical Instrument, 1200 hours
- Technical Course in Phonographic Processes, 864 hours
PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATION COURSES IN ART AND MUSIC
Drums | African drums | Wind instruments conducting | Coral singing arrangement | Piano music production | Recording and mixing | Mixing and mastering albums | Rhythm and electronic music | Visual arts digital recording: Protools | Audiovisual: Audio capture for cinema and TV | Community radio and convergent media | Digital recording in home studio | Stage technician (Roadie) | DJ (Mixing and Electronic Music) | Vocal Performance | Phonographic Process | Dance | Capoeira | Graffiti | Social media | Cultural production | Ethnic beauty care | Fashion theater | Photography | Graphic design
LANGUAGE TEACHING ENGLISH PRACATUM ("PONTINHO DE CULTURA")
Formed in 2005, the Pracatum English School develops within a four-year training course its own schooling methodology by incorporating content experienced by the Candeal community and its cultural symbols. The English school has already welcomed 400 students and received the culture Award named “Pontinho de Cultura” in 2013, given by the Brazilian Ministry of Culture.
The school has 2 programmes:
- Kids and Teens
- Adults
TROUGH THE ERÊ'S EYES
In partnership with UNESCO, the project attends 120 children between 11 and 16 years old, through the conduction of an exploratory study on the history and cultural diversity of Candeal.
The chronological path from D. Josefa Santana, the first resident of the neighborhood, up to Carlinhos Brown, some strategies aimed at promoting and accessing the community's Intangible Heritage resulted in an itinerant exhibition of literary production and visual art.
PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP PROJECTS
For 30 years, PRACATUM has developed in the scope of its education and culture fields some professional qualification projects in different areas on basic, medium and professional level.
The projects’ targets are training for work market’s insertion trough using a continued education concept. More than 400 students have already benefited from the projects in partnership with municipalities, foundations and public institutions.
QUALIFICA BAHIA PROJECT
Training of 60 young people and adults as Cultural production | Introduction to Photography 240-hour workload.
NUFAC CANDEAL PROJECT
Training of 120 young people from age 16 to 24, developed in partnership with the Palmares Cultural Foundation. Ethnic racial pedagogical activities, contemplating reflections about the Brazilian Law 10.639 / 2003 against violence and racism.
DJ | Audio operator | Cultural producer | 200 hour workload
COLIGADOS
Training courses developed in partnership with the Government, of Bahia which has already been attended by 125 homeless and young people in the Historic Center of Salvador.
Baker's helper | Drums | Fashion | Ethnic beauty care | Young cook | Music
BOCA DE BRASA
Courses developed in partnership with the City Hall of Salvador and the Foundation Gregório de Mattos attended by 125 people from 16 years old on.
Design | Social media management | Drums | Cultural production | 220-hour workload
FESTIVAIS
NALATA
Endorsed by the Brazilian music player Carlinhos Brown, the NALATA - International Drums Festival has been taking place in Percussive Street Music, Percussive Effect Music and Electronic Percussive Music, bringing to Salvador famous world drummers and artists.
CANDYALL E TAL
Urban Art Festival that promotes the main local artistic aspects as an invitation to know a neighborhood transformed by the music.
On the 4th edition, the event has been promoting artistic, gastronomic and musical interventions with local and invited artists’ shows.
OXYGENARTE
Oxigenarte is a creative show that includes art, dance, graffiti and music. It integrates courses of Cultural Production, Management in Social Media, Design and Percussion. The project conducted by the students who subscribe to the production of the event, social networks, brand and artistic presentations.
WORKSHOPS
ENCONTRE-$E
Encontre-$e - Digital Conversations Meetings consists of lectures aimed at entrepreneurs, students, communication professionals and small producers through panels and lectures about themes such as communication, social networks and entrepreneurship.
The main target is supporting musician, entrepreneurs and students in tracing their own artistic future and ways of generating business in the current digital scenario.
Some important musicians, such as the Brazilian rapper Rashid, Manno Góes among others, have participated.
Espaço Cultural Boca de Brasa of Gregorio de Mattos’ Foundation, in partnership with Salvador City Hall financed the activities.
Musical Arrangement and Harmony in Popular Music with Brazilian musician Ian Guest.
Musical clinic with American musician Paul Gilbert held at the Candyall Guetho Square.
International Music Creation and Transformation Workshop with Brazilian musician Mokhtar Samba
Workshop with American guitarist Steve Vai held at Candyall Guetho Square.
AFROBOOK
Production of academic knowledge and the experience of masters and drumers involved in the process of rhythmic invention of samba-afro and samba-reggae.
KANDENGUE TAMBOR
A result of an exploratory sound process of teaching and learning involving 16 young students, the cultural movement Vai Quem Vem is a rhythmic research laboratory that highlights the percussive instruments invented or adequate in Candeal.
MUSIC AT SCHOOL
Pedagogical musical research that contemplates 60 songs about tales and games based on African origins for children aged 7 to 11, which objective of providing the teacher with instruments to produce knowledge as well as develop skills and cognitive competences in children, in a playful and creative way.
EQUIPE
- Presidency: Carlinhos Brown
- Executive Direction: Selma Calabrich
- Social Development Director: Ruth Buarque
- Pedagogical Coordination: Cibele Nunes
- Communication: Lumma Monteiro
- Financial: Viviane Fernandes
- Administrative Secretary: Natalia Costa
- School Secretary: Gabriela Silva
- Recording Studio Technician: Paulo César - PC
- Reception: Marilda Isidoro Alves
- Support: Lucia Maria Santos
CONTATO
☎︎ 71 3276-4255
✉︎ associacaopracatum@yahoo.com.br
📍Rua Paulo Afonso, 295, Candeal, Salvador (BA) - 40296-340