Benditos of Ladeira do Horto

a brief ethnography of silence

Abstract

As a result of fifteen years of immersion in the “Sertão of Cariri”, we present in this article a study on the ancient songs of penitence chanted in Juazeiro do Norte (CE). We delimit our geographic space to Ladeira do Horto, a region that for many devotees, especially for the elders, carries the presumption of being a sacred place, chosen for the manifestation of Providence. We investigate the particular relations that the elderly devotees of the “Ladeira” establish with this musical repertoire, an important element of their religious confession, but for very subtle reasons ceased to be sung, even by those who worship him the most.