Riotur opens contest to select bands from the Carnaval 2026 Popular Balls

Riotur opened the selection contest for bands specialized in Carnaval that will perform at the Popular Balls of the Carnaval of Rio in 2026. The process will choose 30 musical groups who will be hired to animate the official party schedule at different points in the city.

Registrations can be made until January 15, 2026, in person, at the headquarters of the Riotur, located in the Rua Dom Marcos Barbosa, 2nd floor, New Town, 10h to 5h. Regulation can also be requested by email invitations to tender.riotur@prefeitura.rio or consulted directly at the company.

The enrolled bands will undergo face-to-face presentations in the days 27, 28 and 29 January 2026, in a place that will still be released by Riotur. The performances will happen between 10:00 and 6:00 and are part of the qualifying stage of the competition.

Planning of presentations

The order of presentations will be defined by draw, scheduled for the 20th of January, at 16h, in the auditorium of sector 11 of the Passarela do Samba, in the Estacio. The repertoire is at the discretion of the bands, provided it is composed exclusively of carnival songs.

The evaluation will be made by a judging committee formed by five music experts, nominated by the Riotur Operations Board. Judgment criteria include rhythm, harmony, interpretation, tuning, and assembly. Each group will exceptionally have two minutes for sound adjustment before presentation.

Jurors will assign scores from 5 to 10, without fractions, and the 30 bands with the highest score will be selected to meet the programming of the Popular Balls of the Carnaval 2026. The final result will be published in the Official Gazette of the Municipality. Each hired band will receive R$ 18,500, amount for two 90-minute presentations each. Payment will be made in two instalments: 50% before and 50% after presentations, with the legal discounts provided by law.

The regulation also states that a musician cannot integrate more than one band, under penalty of disqualification.

The transport costs of musicians and instruments are borne by the groups themselves. The bands must have singers and minimal instrumental training that includes trumpet, saxophone, trombone, keyboard, electric bass and percussion instruments such as deaf, repinique or pump and box.

The places of presentation of the selected bands will be later defined by Riotur.