Brazil is a country overflowing with music. It plays a vital role in the lives of ordinary Brazilians and can be heard playing in every corner of the country. Brazilian music represents a vibrant mix of different cultures, largely because of its complex history. While indigenous music from the original inhabitants of the area is present in modern form, it is mixed with foreign influences, namely from Portuguese colonizers and their African slaves who landed on Brazilian shores in the 19th century.

As a vast country of many states, Brazil's music is regional, with each section contributing distinct musical genres. Portuguese song forms such as fado are prevalent in Brazilian music, and Portuguese influences can be found in the mournful and poetic lyrics, the exquisite melodies, and the use of accordions, guitars, and violins. While Portugal has contributed greatly to the culture and of course the language, Brazil also witnessed the arrival of settlers from Germany, Italy, and many other countries, including Lebanon and Japan.

The African influences include energetic drumming and dancing forms. These are largely expressed through communal traditions like circle dances, with people gathering to make music together. This potent music also drives the energy in martial art forms such as capoeira. As in Cuba and Haiti, Brazilian Africans were able to retain a great majority of their music, dance, and spiritual traditions. These traditions, combined with other elements, have resulted in some of the most vibrant and celebrated music in Brazil. This music was often accompanied by dance elements that were viewed as indecent back then because of the close contact between dancers.

Nevertheless, both music and dance became increasingly popular and were eventually embraced by the public. Centuries later, Brazil would again "shock" the world with dance forms such as samba.