Sol Samba is a community group based in Oxford. Our aim is to inspire people with the beauty and power of authentic Brazilian carnival music and dance, and to encourage people who have never performed publicly to get on their feet and be part of it.

We are the heart of Cowley Road Carnival and regularly perform at local and national arts events, carnivals and gigs - from Notting Hill Carnival to the Isle of Wight Rhythm Tree festival. We are passionate about linking with the roots and culture of Brazilian carnival: our musical and dance directors have all lived, trained and performed in Brazil, and in 2010 we hosted three carnival band directors from Recife who gave cultural talks at our local primary school. We hope we can inspire hundreds more local people over the coming years.

Our current repertoire includes original and traditional pieces based on samba reggae, maracatu, afro-samba, samba duro, batucada and baião. We are always looking to expand and change our material, taking influences both from within the band and from external teachers.