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"The very name "Mato Grosso," or "Thick Forest" as it means in Portuguese, epitomizes the unknown and the unexplored. In the present century this obscure Brazilian wilderness, situated almost in the geographical center of the South American continent, gained worldwide interest with the disappearance of Colonel Fawcett and his party in 1926. Even today, though it may be reached by plane from Rio de Janeiro in less than a day, Mato Grosso is only just beginning to become known to the civilized world. The Upper Xingú River, which is the area of Mato Grosso with which this album is mainly concerned, was first explored by Karl von den Steinen as recently as 1884, and the Chavante Indians were only just peacefully contacted by white men in 1946..."

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