PERCUSSION

CLARINET & SAXOPHONE

TRUMPET

PERCUSSION

Favela Brass is a registered Brazilian Non-profit Association.

CNPJ: 37.332.605/0001-9

Mangueirinha Vicente

Associate Musical Director (Percussion)

Born and raised in Rio de Janeiro, Carlos Henrique “Manguerinha” Vicente, earned his undergraduate degree in music education from the Brazilian Conservatory of Music in Rio. In addition to his role as associate musical director of percussion for Favela Brass, Manguerinha serves as the percussion director for the GRES Unidos Vila Isabel samba school and the famous yearly carnival parade known as Cordão do Boitatá. He also serves as an administrative coordinator and percussion instructor for the TIM Institute for children and adolescents with disabilities. Manguerinha seeks to motivate and educate youth from Rio’s favelas and help them build more promising futures through music.

Mariana dos Santos

Clarinet & Saxophone

Mariana dos Santos is a clarinet and saxophone teacher from Spain. She holds a bachelor’s degree in clarinet performance from the Conservatory of Music of Vigo in Spain. She also studied at the Haydnkonservatorium of Eisenstadt in Austria with renowned teacher Helmut Hoedl. She has played in numerous ensembles, ranging from wind and symphonic orchestras to world music groups. She was a teacher for Favela Brass when she lived in Rio in 2016 and has since returned to give one-on-one online lessons to our kids during the Covid-19 pandemic. Today she lives in Vienna, where she teaches at the American International School (AIS) and a music teaching project for children known as Superar.

Alberto Corali

Trumpet

Alberto Coralli learned to play trumpet growing up in his hometown of Imola in Italy. He focused first on classical music before expanding into jazz and traditional brass band music. Alberto moved to Rio de Janeiro in 2012 and quickly assimilated into the city’s vibrant Carnival music scene, playing in various brass bands and live music parades across the city. Alberto believes strongly in the power of playing music in public spaces, where barriers can be broken in making art more accessible to everyone. This belief aligns well with Alberto’s role at Favela Brass, where he teaches many of the project’s beginning trumpet and melodica students.

Roman Sielert

Percussion

Roman is a percussionist based in Hamburg, Germany. His passion for Brazilian music helped make the country his second home. Many trips gave him insights into the music scene of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Salvador da Bahia. After giving percussion lessons for Favela Brass in Rio de Janeiro in 2015, he recently returned to give one-on-one online lessons to our kids during the pandemic.

Mirela Rampini

President

Born in the countryside of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Mirela Rampini earned a bachelor’s degree in Economics from the Catholic University of Petropolis. She completed additional coursework in financial analysis and education at Gama Filho University and UERJ, respectively, before earning a master’s degree in economics from IBMEC. Mirela has more than 20 years of experience working in finance, and currently serves as part of a team of analysts that conduct international financial modeling for the board of the Bank of Brazil.

Sômulo Mafra

Vice President

Sômulo Mafra, born in São Luis, Maranhão, serves as a Systems Analyst for the Brazilian National Development Bank (BNDS). Somulo loves to play the guitar and is an active volunteer in the Rio community in support of youth education. In addition to his role on the board of Favela Brass, he serves as the treasurer of the parent’s association of Lycée Molière de Rio de Janeiro, a French international school. His passion for the arts and culture stems from his experience living in a range of cities across the americas–including Fortaleza, São Paulo, and New York–before settling in the city of Rio de Janeiro.

Melissa Beeko

Treasurer

Melissa was born and raised in London, England and has lived in Rio de Janeiro since 2015. She has over ten years’ experience as a classroom teacher, having taught in Primary schools in Madrid, London and Rio. Melissa is now the Staff Development Coordinator of a school in Rio and forms part of the school’s Senior Leadership Team.

Melissa comes from a family of musicians who are accomplished players in a variety of instruments. The family passion for music inspired Melissa to learn the saxophone at the age of 15, at which point her love for playing the saxophone grew and grew. One of Melissa’s highlights thus far, has been having the opportunity to play with Orquestra Voadora during carnival processions.

Melissa has been a passionate supporter of the work of Favela Brass for some time and is proud to be a member of its Board. This opportunity brings together two areas that Melissa holds dear – educating young people, and music. The project not only allows children to develop a musical skill, but develops focus, discipline, improves confidence and creates a sense of community, all in a fun way. She is thrilled to work with Favela Brass to create new partnerships and opportunities that will help the project grow.

Bindu Mathur

Bindu Mathur was born and raised in Vancouver, Canada and worked for 10 years in London as a TV producer/director, making science and history documentaries for the BBC, Discovery and Channel 4. She also made videos for international NGOs and has filmed in Asia, Africa, Europe, North America and South America. Resident in Rio de Janeiro since 2007 she is the owner of the award-winning Casa Beleza B&B in Santa Teresa, where she lives with her husband and two children. She is a long-time collaborator with Favela Brass including making films for the project. Her children also studied at the project.

Cristiane Chagas

Cristiane Chagas, born and raised in Rio de Janeiro is a physiotherapist/acupuncturist and commercial voice-over actor. As well as being a passionate music-listener and Gospel singer, she is the mother of Caique, trombone student at Favela Brass since 2019. Cristiane also serves as a parent adviser for our partner schools, CIEP Presidente Tancredo Neves.

Lucca Rizzo

Lucca Rizzo is a Brazilian lawyer, enthusiastic supporter of the socio-ambiental agenda and a big fan of Favela Brass.

A Graduate of Law at PUC-Rio, he also did a social sciences academic exchange at Sciences Po-Paris. Lucca is currently reading for a masters degree at the Institute of International Relations at PUC-Rio.

Lucca practices law at the firm Mattos Filho, where he advises Brazilian and international clients from diverse sectors of the economy about raising funds on the financial and capital markets. Through the firm’s Pro Bono program, Lucca helped to secure free legal assistance for Favela Brass, and to develop the charity’s first constitution.

Passionate about Carnaval, Lucca studied trumpet in the workshops of “Orquestra Voadora” and plays in the bloco “Nada Demais”.

Norton Fritzsche Jr.

Norton is “eternally curious”, as they say in Brazil. Lover of Brazilian culture and inveterate “Carioca” (native of Rio de Janeiro). Graduate in economics at the University of Brasilia (UnB), he dedicates himself to structuring new business in the tourism, finance and culture sectors. He founded Esta Socio-Creative Investment in 2020, in the belief that much of Brazil’s future depends on the third sector.

Tom Ashe

Founder, Executive Director

A British trumpet player and multi-instrumentalist, Tom fell in love with Brazilian music and left behind his life as a professional musician in London to try and make a new one in Rio de Janeiro in 2008. Since that time, he has been active in Rio’s music scene, playing in the resident jazz band at the Maze Jazz Club and with his own band at Cazota bar in Lapa, as well as the Lavradio Jazz Festival. Tom has also been a regular on trombone at the live samba hotspot “Pedra do Sal” for the past 7 years and has recorded on the soundtrack of various “telenovelas” produced by the media network Rede Globo. In addition to directing Favela Brass, Tom runs his own weekly workshop teaching New Orleans jazz to adult music students. From 2017 to 2020, he worked as a specialist music teacher at The British School, Rio de Janeiro. Aside from his musical and teaching experience, Tom holds a bachelor’s degree (2:1) in Management from the University of Manchester.

Tom Ashe

Founder, Executive Director

A British trumpet player and multi-instrumentalist, Tom fell in love with Brazilian music and left behind his life as a professional musician in London to try and make a new life in Rio de Janeiro in 2008. Since that time he has been active on the samba scene, playing trombone at the “Pedra do Sal” for 7 years, the jazz scene, playing in the resident jazz band at the Maze Jazz Club and with his own band at Cazota bar in Lapa and Lavradio Jazz Festival, as well as recording on the soundtrack of various of the “telenovelas” produced by the media network Rede Globo. Tom founded Favela Brass in 2014, has worked as specialist music teacher at The British School, Rio de Janeiro since 2017 and runs his own weekly workshop teaching New Orleans jazz to adult music students. Aside from his musical and teaching experience, Tom also holds a bachelor’s degree (2:1) in Management from the University of Manchester.

Joe Epstein

Associate Musical Director (Brass)

A native of Sacramento, California, Joe Epstein was the first volunteer at Favela Brass in 2014, when he came to Rio to teach English and explore the music scene. After quickly bonding with Tom at a jam session, Joe moved into the Pereira da Silva favela and gave lessons at the project until moving back to the US to complete a graduate program in international relations. Joe had such a fulfilling experience with us in Rio he wrote about it in a university student blog. After working for three years in the private sector in DC and doing a tour opening for Tash Sultana across the US, Joe is back in Rio again at Favela Brass, giving trumpet lessons and helping with the project’s development. Joe holds a master’s and bachelor’s degree in international relations from Georgetown University and University of California Davis, respectively.

Amelia Thomas

Trumpet, Videography, & Website

Amelia Thomas is a Canadian trumpeter and vocalist, who started working with Favela Brass in 2019. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Jazz Studies from Vancouver Island University, after beginning her degree at the Amsterdam Conservatory. She moved to Rio following her love of Brazilian music, and heard about Favela Brass through a previous volunteer (Sigrún!) during her time living in Iceland. Amelia helps out with lessons when possible, but also spends a lot of time documenting the kids of Favela Brass through photo and video.

Breno Assis

Design & Photography

Born in Angra do Reis, Breno Assis graduated with a degree in industrial design from the School of Industrial Design (ESDI / UERJ) in Rio. He has been a volunteer at Favela Brass since 2016. He is also an amateur photographer, and hopes to continue this passion, observing and being enchanted by the daily life of the places he passes by. Breno is a resident of Duque de Caxias in Rio.

João Luis

Copywriter & Editor

Born in Minas Gerais, João Luis graduated with a degree in journalism from Universidade Federal de Viçosa and has an MBA in Business Communication from ESPM. He currently works with corporate communication and content production. He is more than happy to assist with the social media area of Favela Brass because it is the closest that he’s ever come to knowing how to play a musical instrument or be part of a band!

Alberto Goyena

Saxophone

Alberto “Beto” Goyena holds a PhD in anthropology from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and studied saxophone at the Villa-Lobos School of Music. Since 2015, Beto has been an active member of various projects and collectives focused on social inclusion and political activism through music. He is the founder of the Gatopan music and language school and studio, which offers free instrumental music classes and space for rehearsals and recording. Beto is also a saxophone teacher for the popular Carnival parade Me Enterra Na Quarta and a weekly volunteer teacher at the Favela Brass project.

André Tandeta

Drums & Percussion

Born and raised in Rio, André Tandeta started playing drums at the age of 11 and became a professional at the age of 18. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Brazilian Popular Music from UNIRIO. In more than 40 years as a professional drummer, he has played and recorded with several renowned artists from Brazil. He has been a drum teacher since 1985 and believes in the potential of music to transform the lives of children.

Emile Saubole

Drums & Percussion

Born and raised in France, Emile Saubole started studying drums at the age of 10. He graduated from the Conservatory of Bordeaux and the Didier Lockwood school in Paris. He has lived in Rio de Janeiro since the end of 2009. A highly in-demand musician in the Rio jazz scene, Emile is a member of the bands of saxophonist Idriss Boudrioua, singer Alma Thomas, and Quinteto Nuclear among other groups. He has played and recorded with the singer Bibi Ferreira, and the saxophonists Ademir Junior (Brasilia) and Baptiste Herbin (France). Emile has taught at the project since 2015 and is very happy to share his experience as a jazz drummer with his students at Favela Brass.

Guto Mouville

Saxophone

Born and raised in Rio de Janeiro, Guto Mouville is a self-taught musician who started playing guitar and bass. After a brief hiatus, he found his passion for music on the sax. Having studied at the Escola Portátil music School, he now plays in bands such as Orquestra Pro Arte and Charanga Talismã and is an instructor in the Favela Brass project. He believes in music as a powerful tool for transformation and learning, both for young people and adults.

Pedro Pamplona

Saxophone

Born in Rio de Janeiro, Pedro Pamplona graduated with a degree in saxophone performance from the National School of Music at UFRJ. Pedro is the artistic director of the popular local brass band Fanfarrada, as well as a composer and music teacher at the Escola Sá Pereira elementary school. His career in music is deeply associated with Carnival, music, and street art.

President

Vice President

Lucca Rizzo is a Brazilian lawyer, enthusiastic supporter of the socio-ambiental agenda, and a big fan of Favela Brass. A Graduate of Law at PUC-Rio, he also did a social sciences academic exchange at Sciences Po-Paris. Lucca is currently reading for a masters degree at the Institute of International Relations at PUC-Rio.

Passionate about Carnaval, Lucca studied trumpet in the workshops of “Orquestra Voadora” and plays in the bloco “Nada Demais”.

Our Team

Our Team

PRESIDENT

VICE PRESIDENT

TREASURER

FOUNDER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

ASSOCIATE MUSICAL DIRECTOR (PERCUSSION)

ASSOCIATE MUSICAL DIRECTOR (BRASS)

TRUMPET, VIDEOGRAPHY & WEBSITE

PHOTOGRAPHY & DESIGN

COPYWRITER & EDITOR