Eu sou Capoeira sim senhor
Eu tenho uma família de Ouro
A Capoeira é a minha vida
E a roda é o meu tesouro
Eu sou Capoeira sim senhor
Eu tenho uma família de Ouro
A Capoeira é a minha vida
E a roda é o meu tesouro
Quando eu ouço o som do Berimbau
O meu corpo todo se arrepia
Toca no fundo da minha alma
E completa minha energia
Eu sou Capoeira sim senhor
Eu tenho uma família de Ouro
A Capoeira é a minha vida
E a roda é o meu tesouro
Pandeiro, reco reco e agogô
Mexe com o meu corpo inteiro
E seja na Angola ou Regional
Eu me transformo em um mandingueiro
Eu sou Capoeira sim senhor
Eu tenho uma família de Ouro
A Capoeira é a minha vida
E a roda é o meu tesouro
Atabaque repicando swingado
E o canto forte de um bom cantador
Eu faço Capoeira todo dia
Mas treino pra ser um bom jogador
Eu sou Capoeira sim senhor
Eu tenho uma família de Ouro
A Capoeira é a minha vida
E a roda é o meu tesouro
I am Capoeira yes sir
I have a family of Gold
Capoeira is my life
And the roda is my treasure
I am Capoeira yes sir
I have a family of Gold
Capoeira is my life
And the roda is my treasure
When I hear the sound of the Berimbau
My whole body shivers
It touches the depths of my soul
And completes my energy
I am Capoeira yes sir
I have a family of Gold
Capoeira is my life
And the roda is my treasure
Pandeiro, reco reco and agogô
Moves my whole body
And whether in Angola or Regional
I transform into a mandingueiro
I am Capoeira yes sir
I have a family of Gold
Capoeira is my life
And the roda is my treasure
Atabaque swinging and ringing
And the strong song of a good singer
I do Capoeira every day
But I train to be a good player
I am Capoeira yes sir
I have a family of Gold
Capoeira is my life
And the roda is my treasure
Did you know?
Agogô
- The agogô is an ancient West African percussion instrument consisting of two or more hollow iron cones or gourds connected by a flexible U-shaped handle.
- It plays a crucial supporting role within the capoeira orchestra, helping to build the layered percussion that sets the rhythmic foundation for the game.
- Capoeiristas hold the handle in one hand and strike the bells alternately with a wooden or metal stick to produce distinct high and low metallic tones.
- Its sharp, piercing pitch cuts clearly through the heavy percussion, adding complex syncopated patterns that drive the energy and pace of the roda.
- Enslaved Africans brought the instrument to Brazil, where it was historically used in sacred religious rituals before being integrated into various styles of capoeira music.
- In Yoruba tradition, the word translates directly to "bell," and its iron composition pays ancestral homage to Ogum, the revered deity of iron and metalwork.
Angola
- Angola is the West-Central African nation that serves as the primary ancestral and cultural birthplace of the rhythms, movements, and spiritual roots of capoeira.
- During the transatlantic slave trade, millions of people were forcibly taken from this region to Brazil, bringing with them rich martial traditions like the combat dance N'golo.
- The country's deep historical connection is permanently embedded in the art through Capoeira Angola, the traditional style dedicated to preserving these original roots.
- The name is universally celebrated in the roda through countless traditional songs that invoke Angola as a sacred land of ancestors, memory, and profound longing.
- The primary instrument of the art, the berimbau, is directly tied to Angolan musical heritage, evolving from traditional bow instruments like the mbulumbumba.
- Today, capoeiristas view the nation as a ultimate cultural touchstone, representing the unbreakable bond between African resistance and Brazilian identity.
Atabaque
- The atabaque is a large, hand-carved wooden drum of African origin that provides the deep, foundational heartbeat and grounding bass line for the capoeira orchestra.
- In the musical layout of the roda, it holds a critical position by anchoring the pulse of the room and maintaining the strict tempo dictated by the leading gunga berimbau.
- The drum is constructed in a conical shape from wooden staves bound together with iron hoops, topped with a stretched animal hide head that is tuned using wooden wedges and ropes.
- Capoeiristas play it using open-hand palm strikes and finger slaps on the drumhead, creating low bass tones and high, sharp rims that drive the forward momentum of the music.
- In the traditional setup of Capoeira Angola, a single atabaque is placed at the far end of the instrument row, locking the rhythm tightly with the pandeiros.
- Beyond its musical purpose, it holds a sacred, spiritual role rooted in Afro-Brazilian traditions, functioning as a powerful engine that elevates the physical energy of the capoeiristas.
Berimbau
- The berimbau is a single-string musical bow of African origin that functions as the absolute leader and commander of the roda.
- The instrument dictates the exact speed, stylistic tone, and combat intensity of the capoeiristas through specific rhythms known as toques.
- A traditional berimbau is constructed from a wooden staff, a steel wire, a hollowed gourd resonator, a small stone or coin, a bamboo shaker, and a wooden thin stick.
- In a traditional orchestra, three distinct pitches are used: the deep-toned gunga to lead the group, the medium médio to hold the rhythm, and the high-pitched viola to improvise.
- Enslaved Africans historically used the live music of the bow to camouflage their outlawed martial art, making the training look like an innocent dance to colonial authorities.
- Today, the instrument holds a sacred status within the art, and capoeiristas show immense reverence toward it, celebrating its spiritual voice in countless traditional songs.
Capoeira Regional
- Capoeira Regional is a modern, fast-paced, and highly combative style of the art created in the 1930s by the legendary Mestre Bimba in Salvador, Bahia.
- The style was designed to rescue capoeira from social marginalization by transforming it into a highly structured, efficient, and respected martial art.
- Mestre Bimba revolutionized the discipline by integrating elements of batuque and gymnastics, creating a faster game played higher off the ground with explosive kicks.
- It introduced systematic training innovations, including the world's first official capoeira academy, standardized combat sequences, and a graduation system using colored scarves.
- The musical structure is traditionally minimalist compared to older styles, using only one berimbau and two pandeiros to drive a clean, aggressive, and rapid rhythm.
- Today, it stands as a monumental milestone that helped legalize the art nationwide, establishing a rigorous training philosophy followed by capoeiristas worldwide.
Pandeiro
- The pandeiro is a traditional hand-frame drum and tambourine of African and European origin that provides the essential heartbeat and syncopated drive within the capoeira orchestra.
- In the musical hierarchy of the roda, it plays a critical supporting role by filling the sonic space beneath the leading voice of the berimbau.
- The instrument features a stretched animal hide head over a round wooden frame embedded with crisp metal jingles called platinelas that cut sharply through the singing.
- Capoeiristas utilize a precise technique of alternating thumb strikes, heel-and-toe hand pivots, and sharp finger slaps to generate a driving, syncopated rhythm.
- In Capoeira Angola, two pandeiros are traditionally positioned to flank the three berimbaus, locking the baseline rhythm alongside the deep beat of the atabaque.
- Today, mastering the pandeiro is a foundational requirement for all capoeiristas, ensuring they can actively maintain the high energy, timing, and momentum of the roda.