Quem é você, que vem de la,
Quem é você, que vem de la
Sou da Bahia, vim me apresentar
Sou da Bahia, vim me apresentar
A mueda, um arame, a cabaça e um pedaço de pau
Meu berimbau só faz assim
Meu berimbau só faz assim
Meu berimbau só toca assim
Meu berimbau só faz assim
Tim tim tim dong dong, tim tim tim dong dong
Meu berimbau só faz assim
Tim tim dong, tim tim tim dong dong
Meu berimbau só faz assim
Who are you, that goes there?
Who are you, that goes there?
I am from Bahia, I came to introduce myself
I am from Bahia, I came to introduce myself
A stone, a string, a gourd and a piece of wood
My berimbau goes like this
My berimbau goes like this
My berimbau plays like this
My berimbau goes like this
Tim tim tim dong dong, tim tim tim dong dong
My berimbau goes like this
Tim tim dong, tim tim tim dong dong
My berimbau goes like this
Did you know?
Bahia
Bahia, particularly its capital Salvador and the surrounding Recôncavo region, is the historical and cultural birthplace of capoeira in Brazil.
Salvador was founded in 1549 and served as a major port for the transatlantic slave trade, bringing millions of West and Central Africans to the region.
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.