Nomade Orquestra

Biography

Nomade Orquestra is a ten-piece instrumental band formed in 2012 in the ABC region of Greater São Paulo, Brazil, an industrial belt on the outskirts of the city that has long been a crucible for grassroots culture and independent music. Drawing on the diverse musical tastes of its members, the group quickly developed a cosmopolitan sound that treats São Paulo’s urban landscape as a meeting point for global grooves, blending local Brazilian traditions with styles from across the African diaspora and beyond. Their first, self-titled album was released domestically in 2014 and then internationally via Far Out Recordings, which helped carry the band from playing in local venues to appearing on festival stages and gaining attention from international tastemakers, specialist jazz and world-music media, and vinyl collectors.

Over the following years Nomade Orquestra expanded on this foundation with albums such as "EntreMundos" (2017), whose title encapsulates their aim of operating "between worlds" stylistically and conceptually, and later projects that continued to emphasize cinematic arrangements, heavy grooves, and political or spiritual subtexts. Their music is anchored in jazz but freely incorporates funk, Afrobeat, Ethio-jazz, reggae, dub, hip hop, rock, and library-music atmospheres, often stitched together with horn-driven themes, intricate percussion, and psychedelic keyboards. Critics frequently highlight the band’s ability to be both experimental and accessible, describing their records as wordless narratives or soundtracks that evoke everything from São Paulo’s bustling streets to speculative, cosmic landscapes, while still working effectively on dancefloors.

Although still relatively contemporary in the broader history of Brazilian music, Nomade Orquestra has already carved out a recognizable niche within the country’s jazz and groove scene, standing alongside other modern large-ensemble projects that fuse Afro-diasporic rhythms with global influences. Their work has contributed to renewed international interest in Brazilian instrumental music that exists outside of classic bossa nova and MPB canons, showing how younger generations reinterpret that heritage through a global and often more explicitly political lens. As touring and recording continue, the group’s legacy centers on its role as a boundary-crossing ensemble that treats Brazil not as an isolated tradition but as one node in a wider, constantly evolving musical network.

Fun Facts

• The group started as a smaller ensemble and gradually expanded into a full ten-piece big band, reflecting how new musicians were folded into the project as its sound evolved.
• Nomade Orquestra rehearses in the Jardim Zaíra neighborhood in the ABC region, which they honored with the track "Jardim de Zaira" as a tribute to their local community.
• Their music has drawn public praise from prominent tastemakers such as DJ and broadcaster Gilles Peterson, helping them reach broader international audiences beyond Brazil’s jazz circuit.
• Critics often liken their stylistic range and horn-driven grooves to bands such as The Souljazz Orchestra, Antibalas, and Bixiga 70, placing them in a global lineage of contemporary Afrobeat- and jazz-influenced big bands.

Musical Connections

Key Collaborators

• Guilherme Nakata - Founding drummer and core band member, part of the rhythm section that anchors the group’s hybrid jazz-funk-Afrobeat sound. (Albums including "Nomade Orquestra" (2014) and "EntreMundos" (2017).) [2012–present]
• Ruy Rascassi - Bassist whose lines provide much of the groove foundation across the band’s recordings and live performances. (Albums including "Nomade Orquestra" and subsequent releases.) [2012–present]
• Fabio Prior - Percussionist adding Brazilian and Afro-diasporic rhythmic colors to the ensemble. (Albums including "Nomade Orquestra" and "EntreMundos".) [2012–present]
• Luiz Eduardo Galvão - Guitarist contributing both rhythmic comping and psychedelic or rock-inflected solos. (Albums including "Nomade Orquestra".) [2012–present]
• Marcos Maurício - Keyboardist responsible for many of the band’s harmonic textures and spacey, soundtrack-like atmospheres. (Albums including "Nomade Orquestra" and "EntreMundos".) [2012–present]
• Beto Malfatti - Saxophonist and flutist whose lines and solos are central to the band’s horn arrangements. (Albums including "Nomade Orquestra".) [2012–present]
• Bio Bonato - Baritone saxophonist adding low-end heft and counterlines in horn sections. (Albums including "Nomade Orquestra".) [2012–present]
• Marco Stoppa - Trumpeter contributing melodic themes and improvisations within the brass section. (Albums including "Nomade Orquestra".) [2012–present]
• André Calixto - Tenor and soprano saxophonist and flutist, expanding the reed palette and taking prominent solos. (Albums including "Nomade Orquestra".) [2012–present]
• Victor Fão - Trombonist adding depth and punch to horn voicings and riffs. (Albums including "Nomade Orquestra".) [2012–present]
• Luciano Sallun - Guest oud player contributing Middle Eastern timbres on specific tracks. (Track "Garuda" on early Nomade Orquestra material.) [Mid-2010s]
• Beto Montag - Guest marimba player adding additional melodic percussion textures. (Selected tracks on the self-titled album.) [Mid-2010s]
• Mauricio Fleury - Co-producer from fellow São Paulo band Bixiga 70, helping shape the recorded sound and arrangements. (Production work on the self-titled album.) [Circa 2014]
• Cris Scabello - Co-producer and member of Bixiga 70, involved in guiding studio production and mixing. (Production work on the self-titled album.) [Circa 2014]

Discography

Albums

Top Tracks

1. Agente Russo (Vox Populi, Vol. 1)
2. Plena Magia (Vox Populi, Vol. 1)
3. Vênus (Nômade Orquestra)
4. Sonhos de Tóquio (Nômade Orquestra)
5. Chão (Chão)
6. Venus (Nomade Orquestra)
7. Sonhos de Tóquio (Nomade Orquestra)
8. Bedum (Nômade Orquestra)
9. Bedum (Nomade Orquestra)
10. Samurai (Nômade Orquestra)

External Links

• Spotify
• MusicBrainz

Tags: #brazil, #dub, #ethiojazz