4capoeirathoughts

Erica, João Grande, Fafá and Joãonete. By Fabrício Ferreira

Very often I am asked “- What is ‘Volta Por Cima’?”. Most people must be thinking I have started a new group or brand. That is not the case. Mestre Suassuna’s work inspired many of my endeavours in Capoeira, including the development of the social project Learning From Brazilian Culture. However, this project’s design reflects much of my personal grasp of Capoeira, and is based on other Mestres’ teachings, scholars and artists as well. Hence, I needed to start an independent institution, and that is how the ‘Volta Por Cima – Capoeira, Education, and Culture’ begun. I chose this name for two reasons. First, because it is a movement that embodies the principles of an elegant and skilful Capoeira so present in Mestre Suassuna’s teachings. Second, because in Brazilian Portuguese the expression ‘dando [doing] a Volta Por Cima’ also means recovering one’s life after being through a very troublesome period. A perfect name for a project designed to promote social inclusion. (more…)

João Grande doing a Volta Por Cima by André Santangelo

This letter was first written on the 17^th of September of 2007 in Brasília, a few months before my departure to New Zealand. Despite some achievements, I am still developing the project together with our school’s students. However, I believe it is time to share these thoughts with a larger number of students and friends. Hopefully this letter will inspire some of you to join the ongoing composition of our school’s political and pedagogic guidelines, or at least to share some thoughts with us. (more…)

“My name is Waldemar Rodrigues da Paixão, I was born in 1916, learnt Capoeira from Siri de Mangue, Canário Pardo, Calabi de Periperi… I took 4 years learning, in 40 I was teaching on the Pero Vaz [street from Salvador, Bahia]. Then I kept teaching, now I stopped, I only handicraft my berimbaus.”

(From Paixão, Waldemar da, & Silva, Washington Bruno da, Mestre Waldemar e Mestre Canjiquinha, disco; 1984.)

_________________________

Waldemar da Paixão was probably the last Capoeira Mestre teaching informaly. Meanwhile Mestres like Bimba and Pastinha were teaching in academies, he insisted in teaching his apprentices in his roda in the famous ‘Barracão de Waldemar’ (a hut covered with straw), using informal methods. (more…)

Mestre Acordeon, Mestre Cobrinha Mansa e Contra-Mestre Eurico (Sweden 06/2009)

Capoeira and Global Trends

There are some achievements of humanity that I would say have reached a point of no return. Globalization and diversity are two of them. Capoeira, as a driving force for an ever increasing number of multinational practitioners, deeply reflect both phenomenon’s encompassing their potentialities and pitfalls. This post embraces, amongst other things, the inversions caused by the neo-liberalist globalization in our institutions, altering the meaning and social role of our Capoeira groups. (more…)