History

What is Capoeira?

Capoeira is a Brazilian art form combining dance, fight, music and ritual, which is divided into two recognised forms: Capoeira Regional and Capoeira Angola.

History of Capoeira

During the 1500s Portugal shipped slaves into South America from Western Africa. 42% of all the slaves shipped across the Atlantic ended up in Brazil. They were made up of people from the islamised Ginea-Sudanese group of Malesian and Hausa people, and the Bantu group (among them Kongos, Kimbundos and Kassanje) from Angola, Congo and Mozambique.

Capoeira was developed by the African slaves who came to Brazil and was practised in secret as a form of self defence. As training in self defence was prohibited, the fighting element was disguised with music and dance. People caught practising Capoeira were beaten, whipped and sometimes imprisoned. It became a way for slaves to preserve some of their traditions and create a culture of their own. The homogenisation of the African people under the oppression of slavery was the catalyst of Capoeira. It became a way to resist their oppressors.

The enslaved people brought their cultural traditions and religion to the whole of the New World. Initially this form of expression was probably not unique to Brazil, as comparable forms of fight/dance can be seen in engravings and writing that describe a now lost fighting dance in Cuba, with Bantu men moving to the Yuku drums, called the Baile del Mani. Batuque and Maculele are other fight/dances closely linked to Capoeira.

After slavery was abolished, the slaves moved into the cities. With no employment the formed gangs and continued their practice of Capoeira. It became outlawed in 1892, and those caught practising it faced extreme forms of punishment. Despite this, Capoeira continued to be practised, but further and further underground. To avoid being prosecuted capoeiristas hid their identities by giving themselves nicknames, often more than one.

Capoeira suffered centuries of persecution but in 1937 Mestre Bimba was invited to demonstrate his art in front of the President. After the performance he was given permission to open the first Capoeira school in Brazil. This led to Capoeira being officially recognised as a national sport in Brazil, with Mestre Bimba’s systemisation and teaching of the art form making a tremendous contribution to Capoeira communities.

Capoeira Regional

The Filhos de Bimba School of Capoeira practises Capoeira Regional, which was created by Manoel dos Reis Machado (Mestre Bimba) in 1928. Bimba combined his knowledge of Capoeira Angola, a primitive expression of resistance born from the need for liberation of an enslaved, oppressed and suffering people; and Batuque, a fierce and powerful form of fighting where the objective was to throw your opponent to the floor using only your legs. This combination became Capoeira Regional, learned systematically through a method of teaching that includes grades and sequences, devised by Mestre Bimba and explained briefly by the following:

• Admission Exam
• White uniform
• Teaching sequence of Mestre Bimba
• Sequence of the Cintura Desprezada
• Batizado – Capoeira naming ceremony
• Esquenta Banho
• Formatura – teaching qualification
• Iúna – game only for teachers and masters
• Specialisation Course
• Emboscada (ambush)
• Music – known as ‘charangas’, played in ‘quadras’ and ‘corridos’, with one berimbau and two pandeiros (tambourines)

Capoeira Regional can be played to a number of rhythms and tempos; games range from the slow and beautiful game of banguela, to the fast paced game of Sao Bento Grande. Other games include Amazonas, Iúna, Cavalaria, Santa Maria, Samango and Idalina.