One of the leading festivals of original and independent music in the Amazon is back, made possible by the Rouanet Law, with master sponsorship from Petrobras through the Petrobras Cultural programme. The project resumes its programme in Macapá from September 2, reaffirming its commitment to Amapá's artistic production and expanding its role as a space for training, exchange, circulation and connection between artists and professionals of the cultural chain.
In its 8th edition, the festival arrives with the theme "Integrating the Guianas" and proposes a programme that goes beyond the stages. Over three months, Quebramar brings together music, theatre, literature, cinema, graffiti, visual arts, photography, sports activities, professional training and cultural exchange, creating opportunities for local artists to engage with other scenes in the Amazon and in neighbouring countries.
The programme opens with the Preamar stage, on September 2, with Quebramar na Escola, bringing cultural and educational activities into schools.
Next, Batalha de Bandas opens applications from September 20 to October 5, strengthening the discovery and projection of new names in original music.
On September 26, Maré Lançante marks a new stage of the activities, with the official launch of the festival's website, the announcement of the acts, a press meeting and the warm-up for the Batalha de MCs.
The main celebration takes place from October 27 to November 1, in downtown Macapá, facing the Amazon River, bringing together regional, national and international acts. In all, the programme features 50 fully free concerts.
In this edition, Quebramar expands its vocation for international integration, with the participation of artists and professionals from Amapá, from other Brazilian states, from French Guiana and from Suriname.
A stage that helped put Amapá on the map
More than a return to the cultural calendar, the new edition represents the revival of a space that plays an important role in the trajectory of Amapá's original music.
Across its seven previous editions, Quebramar hosted artists such as Racionais MC's, Emicida, Teatro Mágico, Torture Squad, Arnaldo Antunes and Karol Conká, placing Macapá on the circuit of major gatherings of Brazilian music and bringing local artists closer to national references.
For Amapá's original music production, this exchange left concrete results. Bands and artists who came through the festival, such as Minibox Lunar and Amatribo, found in Quebramar a platform for visibility and connection that helped broaden their touring possibilities and reach audiences beyond the state.
"The return of Quebramar means a lot to Amapá's cultural scene because the festival has always been more than a music event. It creates opportunities, brings artists together, fosters encounters and helps show that there is a powerful body of original work being made here. Reviving this space is also to reaffirm that Amapá's artists need to be on the major circuits of Brazilian music."
Integrating the Guianas
The theme of this edition stems from a geographic and cultural feature that makes Amapá strategic: its proximity to French Guiana and Suriname.
The idea is to turn this location into an opportunity for exchange and circulation, bringing festivals, artists, producers and culture professionals from the three territories closer together.
Integrating the Guianas means recognising that Amapá lies at the centre of an Amazonian territory with its own connections, histories and languages. By bringing together artists, producers, festivals and audiences from Amapá, French Guiana and Suriname, new possibilities emerge for circulation and for strengthening a cultural market that needs to be increasingly connected.
One of the highlights of the programme is the Business Round, which fosters encounters between festivals and artists interested in expanding the circulation of their work. The initiative seeks to bring those who produce closer to those who hire, creating concrete possibilities for performances, partnerships and new routes for independent music.
The programme includes music, theatre, cinema, graffiti, visual arts, photography and nature sports, broadening the festival's dialogue with different languages and audiences.
The impact of a trajectory
Over seven editions, according to the organisers, Festival Quebramar has brought together 90 artists, 14 stage performances, seven exhibitions, seven audiovisual showcases and 56 speakers, reaching more than 80,000 people.
On its return, Quebramar recovers not only a cultural programme but a platform for encounters and visibility for a scene that keeps producing, experimenting and creating new sounds in the far north of the country.
This year's edition aims to strengthen that movement and to consolidate Macapá as a meeting point for Brazilian independent music and for the cultures that make up the territory of the Guianas, bringing Amapá closer to new circuits, audiences and touring possibilities.
