How ARJ Came About

Created in 2000 in Recife by professors and students from the UFPE Music Department, the Respeita Januário Association pays homage to Januário, father of Luiz Gonzaga—a master accordionist and symbol of Northeastern musical tradition. Unlike his famous son, Januário remained in the backlands, never moving to the big city, nor exchanging his eight-bass accordion for the more modern piano-keyboard accordions.

ARJ believes that traditional music from the Northeast is more than a heritage: it is a living expression of the people. It is present in the festivals, religious celebrations, work, and daily lives of Northeastern families. It is not just sound—it is memory, identity, and resistance.

Even though its cultural value is recognized by artists and thinkers such as Ariano Suassuna, Mário de Andrade, and Villa-Lobos, this wealth still lacks effective public policies, research, and true appreciation. Therefore, ARJ works to record, disseminate, and strengthen this heritage, always in dialogue with those who keep it alive: the masters of popular culture themselves.

With initiatives ranging from research to the production of CDs, videos, seminars, and a constantly expanding digital collection, we seek to contribute to the recognition and strengthening of this knowledge—living, human, and our own. Learn who makes up the Respeita Januário Association (link to the Who Makes ARJ page).

Who Makes ARJ

The Respeita Januário Association brings together people who have maintained close contact with the world of traditional Northeastern music for several years. It also brings together highly qualified academics in the fields of music and social sciences, particularly from UFPE. Its advisory and fiscal councils include individuals with renowned expertise in the field. Finally, ARJ has as corresponding members important experts in traditional music and popular culture from other Brazilian states and also abroad.

 

ARJ BOARD OF DIRECTORS:

• General Coordinator: Luiz Henrique Costa dos Santos
• Vice-General Coordinator: Déborah Gwendolyne Callender
• Project Coordinator: Naara Souza dos Santos
• Vice-Project Coordinator: Laura Carneiro Proto
• Financial Coordinator: Rannier Venâncio de Asevedo Silva
• Vice-Financial Coordinator: Rafael Moura de Andrade
• Secretary: Akyla Alexandre Tavares Vicente Pessoa da Silva
• Vice-Secretary: Tainá Menezes Castro

 

ADVISORY BOARD:

• Amilcar Almeida Bezerra
• Cristiane Maria Galdino de Almeida
• Isabel Cristina Martins Guillen
• Janine Primo Carvalho de Meneses
• Josimar Jorge Ventura de Morais
• Lino Madureira Ferreira
• Luiz Vinícius Maciel Silva
• Mário Ribeiro dos Santos
• Mônica Pereira da Silva

FISCAL COUNCIL

• Climério de Oliveira Santos
• José Guilherme Allen Lima
• Leonardo José Aguiar da Silva
• Lucas Victor Silva
• Maria Acselrad

 

Objective

Strengthening the bonds between culture, memory, and belonging—that’s what the Respeita Januário Association exists for!

Our main goal is to contribute to the recognition and appreciation of the traditional culture of the Northeast as a living, diverse, and fundamental expression of Brazilian identity.

We believe that preserving means listening, dialoguing, and walking alongside the masters and communities that maintain this ever-vibrant cultural heritage.

We work to make this knowledge even more visible by investing in research, training, dissemination, and cultural articulation. We seek to build bridges between generations, territories, and languages—always with respect for their origins and