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Rio de Janeiro Federal University Wind Orchestra (Brazil)

Rio de Janeiro Municipal Theater
Jul 21, 2026 • 18:30

The UFRJ Wind Orchestra held its first concert in October 2005, its second at the end of 2007, and has presented regular concert seasons continuously since 2008. It features an intense program of Brazilian and world music for symphonic band, and has been responsible for important premieres of works by national composers and the first performances in Brazil of international repertoire written specifically for symphonic band and wind orchestra. The orchestra is composed of undergraduate students from the UFRJ School of Music’s bachelor’s degree programs in wind and percussion instruments, enrolled in the Orchestra Practice discipline, as well as staff technicians. As an extension project, it also serves students from social projects in the city of Rio de Janeiro. Another important function is its direct support for the Bachelor’s degree in Band Conducting, offered by EM/UFRJ since 2011, where it serves as a laboratory band for the students, who perform their graduation concerts with the group. The group has been responsible for dozens of world premiere performances of Brazilian works, and hundreds of premiere performances in Brazil of Latin American and international works. In 2009, it recorded the CD “The Work for Wind Orchestra by Heitor Villa-Lobos,” and in 2017, the live CD “Dobrados para o Itamaraty.” In 2019, it premiered the work “Puri” by Edmundo Villani-Cortes, for clarinet quartet and wind orchestra. The concert, recorded live at the Sala Cecília Meireles on June 18, 2022, featured the Barcelona Clarinet Players, and the recording is on the group’s CD, “Panamericano,” which was nominated for a Grammy in 2024. In 2017, 2019, 2023, and 2024, it served as the resident group for the Funarte-UFRJ Band Symposium and, since its organization, has participated in the Panoramas of Current Brazilian Music. The orchestra is coordinated, musically directed, and conducted by Professor Marcelo Jardim, with Professor Gabriel Dellatorre as assistant conductor. It is one of the Institutional Reference Artistic Groups of UFRJ (GARINS).

Marcelo Jardim
Conductor and Musical Director
Professor of Band Conducting and Orchestra Practice at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Marcelo Jardim is the musical director of the UFRJ Wind Orchestra, an institutional representative artistic group, and a guiding professor for PROMUS – UFRJ's Professional Master's Program in Music. Furthermore, he is part of the directorial team at the UFRJ School of Music, serving as vice-director and artistic director. With a doctorate in Interpretative Practices from UNIRIO and a master's and bachelor's degree in Orchestral Conducting and Interpretative Practices from UFRJ, Marcelo Jardim is the coordinator of the Arte de Toda Gente Extension Program, a nationwide partnership between UFRJ and Funarte. The program encompasses several projects, such as: SINOS – National System of Social Orchestras of Brazil; Bossa Criativa; Projeto Bandas – Pedagogical System to Support Music Bands; Um Novo Olhar – focused on cultural accessibility; Projeto Ópera – Development Plan for Opera in Brazil; Arte em Circuito – focused on hip-hop and integrated arts. He served in the executive coordination of the XXIV and XXV Biennials of Contemporary Brazilian Music and was an artistic consultant and pedagogical coordinator for the Funarte Panels for Music Bands, a project aimed at training conductors and instrumentalists, held between 2011 and 2019 by the National Foundation of Arts (Funarte). He was also responsible for the Sheet Music Editions Project for Band. In the artistic scene, Marcelo Jardim was the director of the Pará International Music Festival (2014-2018) and the Music of the Americas Festival (2013-2018). He maintains an intense schedule as a guest conductor, speaker, and professor, working with orchestras and symphonic bands at festivals, seminars, symposiums, and congresses in Brazil, Latin America, the United States, and Europe. He also stands out for his work in the curatorship of international festivals and in the rescue, editing, and recording of Brazilian music for symphonic bands and music bands.