The Filarmônica Fluminense Orchestra opens its 2026 season with Villa-Lobos, Ary Barroso, and Carlos Gomes. Free admission, Friday, at UFRJ.
On Friday, March 27, at 7 PM, the Orquestra Filarmônica Fluminense (OrFF) takes the stage at the Salão Leopoldo Miguez, inside UFRJ’s School of Music in Rio de Janeiro’s historic Lapa neighborhood, to open its 2026 season with the concert “Meu Brasil Brasileiro” (“My Brazilian Brazil”). Admission is free.
Conducted by Maestro Eliézer Rodrigues and featuring soprano Mariana Gomes as soloist, the program is entirely devoted to Brazilian composers. From the symphonic grandeur of Villa-Lobos to the melancholy of Carlos Gomes and the popular lyricism of Ary Barroso, the evening draws a rich map of Brazil’s classical music heritage.
A journey through Brazilian classical music
The concert’s title sets the tone immediately. “The name Meu Brasil Brasileiro refers to Ary Barroso’s immortal verses in Aquarela do Brasil, allowing us to take a ride through the diverse landscape of Brazilian classical music,” says Eliézer Rodrigues.
The name Meu Brasil Brasileiro refers to Ary Barroso’s immortal verses in Aquarela do Brasil, allowing us to take a ride through the diverse landscape of Brazilian classical music.
The program features works by six composers: Gilson Santos (Fanfarra Sul Americana), Carlos Gomes (Alvorada do Escravo), Villa-Lobos (Melodia Sentimental and Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5), Alberto Nepomuceno (Série Brasileira), Francisco Mignone (Dança do Chico-Rei e da Rainha N’Ginga), and Ary Barroso (Aquarela do Brasil).
An orchestra born in the suburbs, reaching the city
Founded in September 2024 in Duque de Caxias, in the Greater Rio metropolitan area, the OrFF was built to fill a gap: the lack of performance spaces for musicians working at intermediate to advanced repertoire levels. The orchestra made its debut in November 2024 at the Sala Villa-Lobos, at UNIRIO’s Instituto Villa-Lobos.
Today, the ensemble brings together 60 musicians from cities including Belford Roxo, Nilópolis, Nova Iguaçu, Magé, Guapimirim, Queimados, and Rio de Janeiro itself. Many came from social music programs and were seeking a more advanced environment to continue growing as professionals.
“Our main goal is to be a school and a space for practicing classical repertoire for musicians who are not yet in a professional orchestra,” says Eliézer Rodrigues, the OrFF’s artistic director.
About Maestro Eliézer Rodrigues
Eliézer Rodrigues holds a degree from the Conservatório Brasileiro de Música and a postgraduate specialization in Orchestral Conducting from the Académie Claude Brendel (France), in partnership with ICEDUPE/FACONNET of São Paulo. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Music at the Universidade do Rio de Janeiro, where he is developing an e-book project documenting the pedagogical methods of renowned conductor Isaac Karabtchevsky.
He has attended master classes with Isaac Karabtchevsky, Yeruham Scharovsky, Abel Rocha, Anderson Alves, and Roberto Tibiriçá, and conducted the Filarmônica de Goiás Orchestra during the VII Conducting Workshop led by Maestro Neil Thomson. He is also conductor of the Camerata Dias Gomes and currently studies with Maestro Claudio Cruz.
Event Info
- Event: “Meu Brasil Brasileiro” Concert — 2026 Season Opening of Orquestra Filarmônica Fluminense
- Date: Friday, March 27, 2026
- Time: 7 PM
- Venue: Salão Leopoldo Miguez — UFRJ School of Music
- Address: R. do Passeio, 98 — Centro, Rio de Janeiro
- Tickets: Free
- Program: Fanfarra Sul Americana (Gilson Santos); Alvorada do Escravo (Carlos Gomes); Melodia Sentimental (Villa-Lobos); Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 (Villa-Lobos); Série Brasileira (Alberto Nepomuceno); Dança do Chico-Rei e da Rainha N’Ginga (Francisco Mignone); Aquarela do Brasil (Ary Barroso)
