Deixa Falar

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Deixa Falar was a voluntary carnival group from the Estácio neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro. Founded on August 12, 1928, it is widely regarded as the first samba school and helped establish the idea of a formal samba school, though some historians say the status was debated and at times it was treated as a bloco (carnival group) rather than a formal school.

History
The group included notable samba musicians such as Ismael Silva, Baiaco, and Heitor dos Prazeres. They introduced the cuíca to samba and are credited with helping invent the surdo. Deixa Falar spread through the city, creating “embassies” with other samba groups and parading at Praça Onze during the carnivals of 1929, 1930, and 1931. They did not participate in the first official samba school contest in 1932. In that year, they competed with the enredo “A Primavera e a Revolução de Outubro” but received only a simple, modest rating. Conflicts over city funding for the parade led to Deixa Falar’s disbandment on March 29, 1933, and the group merged into the União das Cores bloco to form União do Estácio de Sá. Osvaldo da Papoula later joined Recreio das Flores, while Ismael Silva did not join another samba school before his death.

Tributes and legacy
In 1980, Estácio de Sá paraded in the main Carnival with the enredo “Deixa Falar” as a tribute to the pioneering group. In 2010, they performed with the enredo “Deixa Falar, a Estácio é isso aí.” Since then, Estácio has used Deixa Falar’s founding date as its own, and many consider Deixa Falar the cradle of samba.

Founding details
Foundation: August 12, 1928. Colors: red and white. Location: Estácio, Rio de Janeiro.