the word pagode - though also being a translation of 'pagoda' - arose to describe the intimate ritual celebrations of food and music, thrown by freed slaves recently emigrated to the periphery of rio de janeiro after abolition.

although the name had been used in musical recordings as early as 1959, it was not until the 1970s that pagode, as it is currently known, would come to be formalized.

the genesis of the sound is a uniquely brazilian mixture of foreign influence and local innovation. impressed by the orchestral arrangements and coordinated outfits of american soul musicians, suburban sambistas began to experiment with recording and formalizing the improvised romantic songs of their private parties into ever more expansive compositions.