since 1961, every november the villa-lobos festival has promoted Brazilian musicians and composers through a variety of concerts and shows -  both classical and popular music are presented to the audiences, with particular attention to Brazilian culture.

born on march 5th, 1887 in rio de janeiro, Heitor Villa-Lobos was composer credited with developing a music style particularly 'brazilian' - in fact, his work included and combined elements from brazilian regional cultures, folk songs, and indigenous rythms.

considered one of the most important 'modernist' musicians in brazil, his birthday was declared the national day of classical music (Dia Nacional da Música Clássica).

on this day, a variety of special events and concerts are held across rio de janeiro, in particular in venues such as the teatro municipal in the center of town, and the cidade das artes, a famous venue for  small festivals in barra da tijuca.