In the studies about 1960's MPB, a hegemonic narrative was established, according to which MPB was a reactionary movement instituted "from above", while Tropicália is idealized as the apex of musical evolution. Identifying in this narrative problems like evolutionism and the ideology of national identity, this essay proposes a revision of the history of the period through the historic and ethnographic methods, using document analysis, interviews, and ethno/musicological song analysis. The conclusion is that popular participation was important to MPB, a contradictory terrain that produced complex identities, and put into question the mestizo ideology and patriarchal domination.
MPB; Tropicália; 1960