Capoeira music is the traditional musical accompaniment used in Afro-Brazilian art capoeira, featuring instruments like berimbau, pandeiro, atabaque, agogô, and reco-reco. The music plays a crucial role in capoeira roda, setting the style the energy of a game.
Music in the context of capoeira is used to create a sacred space through both the physical act of forming a circle (roda) and an aural space that is believed to connect to the spirit world.Talmon-Chvaicer, M. (2004). Verbal and Non-Verbal Memory in Capoeira. Sport in Society, 7(1), 49–68. doi:10.1080/1461098042000220182 This deeper religious significance exists more as a social memory to most capoeira groups, but is generally understood as evidenced in the use of ngoma drums (the atabaques of candomblé), and the berimbau whose earlier forms were used in African rituals to speak with the ancestors.
History
In early days, capoeira was accompanied only by the big drum (known as ngoma, conga or atabaque), hand-clapping and singing. Until the mid-nineteenth century, drums were a prominent musical instrument in capoeira. In the early to mid-nineteenth century Rio, capoeira was described by travelers as a war dance with drumbeats or hand clapping. In 1818, João Angola was arrested for possessing a small drum at a capoeira gathering. Playing a drum could lead to severe punishment, like on 5 December 1820, when Mathias Benguela, a slave, received 200 lashes for it. Despite punishment, drumming continued. An illustration from 1824 by Rugendas shows a participant in roda playing a drum.
In 1833, the playing of African drums in Rio de Janeiro was prohibited by law. Due to the drum's size, it couldn't be concealed, leading to clandestine drumming in remote locations at night. To evade arrest, slaves used makeshift percussion instruments like clay or metal pieces, shells, and stones.
In 1859, French journalist Charles Ribeyrolls described the Afro-Brazilian dances on plantations in Rio de Janeiro province, linking the conga drum to capoeira, and the berimbau to batuque:
Gerhard Kubik, a 20th century music ethnologist, saw capoeira as a discipline where the drum not only accompanies but also guides and controls the players' actions. The berimbau belongs to the candomblé tradition. It was not used in capoeira until the 20th century, and first appeared as an instrument accompanying capoeira in the early 20th century in Bahia. The transition may have been influenced not only by musical preferences but also by the berimbau's dual role as a weapon.
Mestre Pastinha formalized the inclusion of instruments into the capoeira Angola orchestra. He experimented with various instruments, occasionally incorporating guitars (viola de corda) and even introducing Spanish castanets into the roda at one point. The current standardized configuration of three berimbaus, two pandeiros, one agogô, one reco-reco, and one atabaque likely did not become established until the 1960s.
Instruments
The standard instruments in nowadays capoeira are: up to 3 berimbaus up to 2 pandeiros 1 agogô 1 reco-reco (notched wooden tube similar to a guiro) 1 atabaque or conga
Not every roda will contain all these instruments. Mestre Bimba, for instance, preferred only one berimbau and two pandeiros in his rodas, but there will always be at least one berimbau in any roda.
The berimbaus preside over the roda, their rhythmic combinations suggesting variations in movement style between the two players in the roda. Some capoeira groups insist that among the three berimbaus, the lowest-toned (called a gunga or berraboi) is the lead instrument, while other groups follow the lead of the middle (medio or viola) berimbau. The roda begins and ends at the discretion of the lead berimbau player, who may determine who plays next, can stop games, set the tempo of the music, and calm the players if they get too rough. There appears to be agreement that the treble-most berimbau (viola or violinha) is an accompaniment instrument, freely improvising based on rhythms of the middle instrument.
Songs in capoeira
In its traditional setting, there are three main styles of song that weave together the structure of the capoeira roda.
Understanding songs in capoeira is a good way to grasp and put into some historical context early Brazilian life and history. If one can identify with the music on a personal level, it goes a long way in adopting the heritage vital in the maintenance of capoeira as a cultural force. The songs of capoeira partly play the role of cultural guide and teacher.
The songs, whether ladainha, corrido, or quadra, can be placed in many categories for comparison. The following list is not exhaustive What Examples Song examples Folk lessons Acknowledging folkway the corridos Bate Dendê, Marinheiro Sou Acknowledging Slavery the corridos Návio Negreiro, a Manteiga Derramou, the interjections iaia and ioio (daughter and son of the slave master respectively) Acknowledging symbolic aspects of capoeira vadiação, mandinga/mandingueiro, malandro/malandragem Acknowledging roots through place Angola, Aruanda, Bahia, Pelourinho, Maranhão, Recife Acknowledging Religion/Spirituality/Religious Syncretism references to Catholic saints, God(s), orixás, Candomblé, Nganga, etc... Biographical, Autobiographical, Mythological references to Mestre Bimba, Mestre Pastinha, Mestre Waldemar, Besouro Mangangá, Zumbi Songs that comment on the game metaphorically the corridos a Bananeira Caiu, a Onça Morreu Songs that comment on the game directly the corridos Devagar, Donalice Não Me Pegue Não Greeting and Farewell songs (Despedidas) the corridos Camungerê, Boa Viagem Songs that welcome women into the roda to play the corridos Dona Maria do Camboatá, Sai, Sai, Catarina, and the song Quem foi te disse Capoeira é só pra homem Meta-Capoeira songs, that is, those that directly reference/invoke Capoeira by name
Many songs can be considered cross categorizational, as well.
Ladainha
The roda commences with the ladainha (litany), a solo often sung by the most senior member present, usually the one playing lead berimbau. These songs may be improvised on the spot, but are most often chosen from a canon of extant ladainhas. The ladainha varies in from as little as two lines, to 20 or more. Topics for this song type include moral lessons, stories, history, mythology, can be topical for a particular occasion as well as pure poetry, and almost always metaphorical. The song is loosely strophic and the melody is pretty much the same throughout the entire ladainha repertoire, with some variations here and there. The ladainha uses quatrain form as a template, with the first line almost always repeated.
Portuguese English translationIê...ê Eu já vivo enjoado Eu já vivo enjoado de viver aqui na terra amanhã eu vou pra lua falei com minha mulher ela então me respondeu que nos vamos se deus quiser Vamos fazer um ranchinho todo feito de sapé amanhã as sete horas nos vamos tomar café e o que eu nunca acreditei, o que não posso me conformar que a lua vem à terra e a terra vem à lua todo isso é conversa pra comer sem trabalhar o senhor, amigo meu, colega velho escute bem ao meu cantar quem é dono não ciuma e quem não é vai ciumar camaradinhoIeeeee I am sick I am sick of living here on Earth Tomorrow I'll go to the Moon I said to my wife And she responded Then we'll go, God willing We'll have a little ranch All made of straw Tomorrow morning at seven We'll have some coffee What I never believed Nor could I ever confirm The moon would come to Earth And the Earth to the Moon This is just talk to eat without working Sir, good friend, old colleague Listen well to my song He who is the master of his land doesn't envy And he who isn't certainly will Camaradinho
An interpretation of this song could be: Nothing comes easy without hard work. The person who sings the ladainha cries out "Ieeeeeeee" (pronounced YaaaaaaaaY) to call to order the attendees of the roda, that the roda is starting. The ladainha ends with "Camará", "Camaradinho" (fits better rhythmically), or conversely, "É hora, hora" (It's the hour). This tagline marks the end of the ladainha and the beginning of the chula, or more properly louvação (praise).
Louvação
The louvação begins the call and response section of the roda. The louvação invokes God, Mestres, capoeira, and gives thanks. This section are also called chulas (Italicized line is the response).
Portuguese English translationIê, Viva meu Deus Iê, Viva meu Deus, camará Iê, Viva meu Mestre Iê, Viva meu Mestre, camará Iê, quem me ensinou Iê, quem me ensinou, camará Iê, a capoeira Iê, a capoeira, camará É Água de beber Iê, Água de beber, camará É ferro de bater Iê, ferro de bater, camará É ngoma de ngoma Iê, ngoma de ngoma, camaráLong live my God Long live my God, comrade Long live my Teacher Long live my Teacher, comrade Who taught me Who taught me, comrade Capoeira Capoeira, comrade It is water for drinking It is water for drinking, comrade It is Iron for striking It is Iron for striking, comrade It is from the sacred drums It is from the sacred drums, comrade
The content of the louvação can be improvised as well, so having a good ear is critical to singing the chorus. The louvação, just as the ladainha, is strophic, but there is no variation in the melody from one louvação to another. However while it is most often sung in a major tonality, sometimes it can be heard in minor if the ladainha is also minor. The chorus is sung in unison, though an occasional harmonization, usually a third above, is sometimes used as a punctuation by one of the singers.
The two players/jogadores having sat at the pé-de-berimbau, or foot of the berimbau, during the ladainha, begin the game at the start of the corridos.
Corrido
The corridos are overlapping call and response typical of African singing, and influenced by, and borrowing from the Sambas de Roda of Bahia. Unlike the Mexican Corrido which is a form of folk ballad, the Bahian corrido is a short song with a usually static response. The chorus is often indicated by being used as the first line in the song:
Portuguese English translationAi, ai, Aidê oiá Joga bonito que eu quero ver Ai, ai, aidê oiá Joga bonito que eu quero aprender Ai, ai, aidê oiá nossa senhora quem vai me protejerAi, ai, Aidê (a girl's name) Play beautifully so I can see Ai, ai, Aidê Play beautifully so I can learn Ai, ai, Aidê Our Lady will protect me
The corrido communicates with the action in the roda (though without the level of interaction in a traditional samba de roda) to inspire the players, to comment directly on the action, invokes, praises, warns, tells stories, and teaches moral values. There is a corrido for welcoming the roda, for closing the roda, asking for the players to play less aggressively, more aggressively, to not grab the other person, and the list continues. Corridos can also be challenges (desafios). The lead will sing a corrido then after some time sing one very similar, requiring the chorus (everyone else save the two playing in the roda) to be paying close attention to sing the correct response or two singers can switch corridos on a certain subject. This use of the corrido in a roda is more rare, requiring a bit more expertise on the part of the singers than normal. The desafio/challenge can be used with ladainhas as well. The corridos have the broadest melodic variation from one to the next, though many corridos share the same melodies. Thus a vast repertoire of corridos can be learned and improvisation within corridos becomes a less daunting prospect. Like the louvação, the corrido response is sung in unison, and like the louvação an occasional harmonization, usually a third above, is used as a punction by one of the singers.
Quadra