Bruno Martins — also known by his nom-de-plume Bruno de Seda — recalls that in 2016 the idea was “to throw a party with music curated to serve socializing, not the other way around.” In other words, musical events that were not “mutually exclusive with dialogue and socializing.” But that’s only half the formula: each venue for Suave Geração parties is chosen with careful and loving consideration, as Zé Pedro Santos explains. “Above all, we avoid places that have a strictly commercial purpose, such as bars. And we look for places that are part of the city's history, its heritage. This is something that ultimately leads us to communities and associations.

This appreciation of an urban social fabric that once brought communities together but is now neglected and ignored has already taken Suave Geração to the Bonjóia Athletics Cultural Center, Eirinhas Desporto e Cultura, and the Pasteleira Social Neighborhood, among others. The essential requirement is to have outdoor space, since the event's banner itself reveals the adoration of the sun that drives them — Suave Geração parties are always outdoors and take place between June and the end of summer.

In contrast, but in a parallel circuit, are the itineraries of a project shared by several members of the organization—O Tardo, which takes place during the month of February and is dedicated to promoting social gatherings in equally peripheral spaces, with an equal community legacy—and with a mythological figure recovered from northern folklore as its host. Zé Pedro refers to it as a “sister party” to Suave Geração, which came about because, “throughout this year, we have been working with dozens of organizations that did not have an outdoor space that would allow them to hold a Suave Geração party, but which met all the criteria for ‘a space worthy of attention. In a way, they are inverted parties: Tardo is wintery, intimate, more cozy."

Finally, the most eagerly awaited performance takes place, and, in itself, a discovery that seems to have been created from the cultural ingredients at the root of this festival: Manuel da Zira, a second-generation emigrant in France, who takes to the stage as a reggae toaster with a Minho accent. Between tributes to mothers and the hard work of Portuguese emigrants, there was time for condemnations of arson and hymns dedicated to the figure of Aristides de Sousa Mendes. Definitely a moment when the festival went against its founding principles and gave way to conviviality for a performance.

The closing of this year's Suave Geração season will take place on September 14 at the Pasteleira Social Neighborhood Residents' Association.