Grupo Liberdade De Capoeira

CAPOEIRA MUSIC AND INSTRUMENTS

Berimbau
Pandeiro

Instruments

Berimbau - The musical soul of Capoeira is the berimbau, a single string percussion instrument similar to a musical bow that originated in Africa. It leads a cacophony The rhythms govern the speed and type of games played. One rhythm calls for beautiful flourishes and graceful movements, another calls for close-quartered movements, and sneaky deception to trap the opponent. As one continues to look, one sees that the contributions of the encircling players and musicians play a large part in the game. Songs rich with oral traditions are sung to references what is occurring at that very moment in the game. This gathering of musicians and artist forms a community of expression.

Pandeiro - Although the pandeiro bears a striking resemblance to the tambourine, it is a handheld frame drum. The pandeiro come in a variety of materials with natural (usually goat) or synthetic (plastic/acrylic) parts.

Rhythms

Angola
Sao Bento Pequeno
Sao Bento Grande

Sao Bento Grande Regional
Banguela
Iuna
Santa Maria
Samba

Songs

Ladainha
Chula
Corrido
Quadra

Atabaque Agogo
Reco-reco

MACULÊLÊ

In Santo Amaro do Purificação o, Brazil, an old dance was revitalized to preserve the memory of those who toiled and had their bodies broken harvesting in the sugar-cane plantations. Historically, Maculêlê was performed both culturally, to traditional rhythms and songs, and recreationally. Maculêlê is known as the dance of the sugar cane. Maculêlê is a fast and free form dance that is both a contest and play, as each player "shows their stuff". The dancers each use a pair of sticks called Grimas (cut from sugar-cane), which are sometimes replaced by machetes. It is performed to the beat of drums called Ingoma or Atabaque (amphora-shaped wooden barrels) to which the dancers carry a four beat pattern. Much of the dance is improvised movement within a set choreography. The choreography usually tells a story within the action or the songs. Songs that glorify Zumbi the leader of the Palmares Quilombo or recount the abolition of slavery are sung in a fashion similar to a capoeira roda, as a leader calls and the dancers respond.

SAMBA DE RODA

Capoeira and samba have a long historical connection. The predecessor to samba is type of music called semba from the South African country of Angola and African slaves brought it to Brazil where it evolved into the many styles of samba today. Samba can incorporate all the instruments of capoeira and some songs used in capoeira were originally samba songs. In the days when capoeira was illegal, capoeiristas would pretend to have been dancing samba to avoid trouble, since from a distance a capoeira circle looks like a samba circle. Samba is performed by men and women taking turns dancing in the middle of the circle. The dance is characterized by a shifting of weight from foot to foot with one leg always bent. It is a very sensual and playful dance with a lot of room for improvisation. Sometimes, the women would touch bellies when they switch out, a movement that was characteristic of Semba as an expression of the women's fertility.