Terrakota

Terrakota is a group from Portugal that forms in 1999 and remains active. The line-up includes Romi Anauel and Davide.

Style and influences

The group builds a fusion rooted in African music, drawing on sounds and rhythms associated with the Sahara, the Caribbean, Hindu traditions and Western styles, alongside reggae. Its approach centres on African traditional and popular harmonies and percussion, combined with instruments from different parts of the world and standard Western instruments such as bass, guitar and drums.

Formation and development

In 1999, three members of the band, after several years of studying Mandinga percussion, travel for around three months in West Africa, including Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso and the Ivory Coast. There they meet musicians and local people, learn rhythms and harmonies, and acquire traditional instruments made from natural materials. After returning to Lisbon, they continue developing the project, later adding three more musicians from different backgrounds and then a final member, bringing the group to seven.

Music and performance

Terrakota’s work develops into a warm, energetic sound shaped by African traditions and by the importance of reggae within African music. The group is described as combining different sounds carefully so that each one has room within the overall arrangement, and its performances are presented as communal events that move from trans-African travel to dance and celebration.