Maculelê () is an

Afro-Brazilian Afro-Brazilians (; ), also known as Black Brazilians (), are Brazilians of total or predominantly Sub-Saharan African ancestry. Most multiracial Brazilians also have a range of degree of African ancestry. Brazilians whose African features are mo ...

stick-dance from

Bahia Bahia () is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Mina ...

. Maculele, a stick fighting dance from Santo Amaro, was introduced to a wider audience by ''Viva Bahia'', a capoeira theater group founded in 1963. Viva Bahia's founder, Emília Biancardi, had researched Bahian folklore for many years and integrated maculele into her group's performances. Major capoeira groups, such as those led by mestres Bimba,

Pastinha Vicente Ferreira Pastinha (April 5, 1889, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil – November 13, 1981), known as Mestre Pastinha, was a ''mestre'' of the Afro-Brazilian martial art capoeira and a codifier of the traditional capoeira Angola style. Mestre Past ...

, and Canjiquinha, soon adopted maculele as well.

Origins

The German painter Rugendas observed African slaves

stick fighting Stick-fighting, stickfighting, or stick fighting, is a variety of martial arts which use blunt, hand-held "sticks" for fighting, most typically a simple, non-lethal, wooden staff or baton. Schools of stick-fighting exist for a variety of weapon ...

during the 1820s in Brazil: That stick fighting and dancing have endured into the twentieth century through forms like maculêlê.

Form

In the roda, one or more

atabaque The atabaque ( , , ) is a tall, wooden, Afro-Brazilian hand drum, similar to conga. The shell is made traditionally of Jacaranda wood from Brazil. The head is traditionally made from calfskin. A system of ropes are intertwined around the body ...

s positioned at the entrance of the circle. Each person brandishes a pair of long sticks, traditionally made from

biriba Biriba (Greek: Μπιρίμπα) is a Greek variant of rummy card game based on the Italian Pinnacola. It is played by two to six players, with two decks and 4 Jokers comprising 108 cards. If 6 players play, one more deck and two jokers more ar ...

, canzi, or pitia wood from Brazil. The sticks, called grimas, traditionally measure long by thick. As the Maculelê rhythm plays on the atabaque, the people in the circle begin rhythmically striking the sticks together. The leader sings, and the people in the circle respond by singing the

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song), the part of a song that is repeated several times, usually after each verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in whic ...

of the songs. When the leader gives the signal to begin playing Maculelê, two people enter the circle, and to the rhythm of the atabaque, they begin striking their own and each other's sticks together. On the first three beats, they strike their own sticks together, making expressive and athletic dance movements, and on each fourth beat, they strike each other's respective right-hand stick together. This makes for a dance that looks like "mock stick combat". (Also, traditionally in Maculelê, the players wear dried grass skirts). Maculelê has steps similar to many other Brazilian dances such as "frevo" from Pernambuco, "Moçambique" from São Paulo, "Cana-verde" from Vassouras-RJ, "Bate-pau" from Mato Grosso, "Tudundun" from Pará among others.

Capoeira

In some

capoeira Capoeira () is an Afro-Brazilian martial art and game that includes elements of dance, acrobatics, capoeira music, music, and spirituality. It likely originated from enslaved Mbundu people, of the Kingdom of Ndongo, in present-day Angola. The ...

schools, students perform maculelê using a pair of

machete A machete (; ) is a broad blade used either as an agricultural implement similar to an axe, or in combat like a long-bladed knife. The blade is typically long and usually under thick. In the Spanish language, the word is possibly a dimin ...

s or facones (''facão'' in Portuguese; plural: ''facões''). These large knives are associated with the tools used by slaves in plantations. The knives spark as they strike in the air, and the sparks along with the sounds of the knives striking one another make this performance particularly impressive. Because a fast moving dance with large knives is dangerous, only very experienced capoeiristas will use knives.

In popular culture

Maculelê was performed as a group dance in the Canadian version of ''

So You Think You Can Dance ''So You Think You Can Dance'' is a franchise of reality television shows in which contestants compete in dance. The first series of the franchise, created by '' Idols'' producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, premiered in July 2005 and has ...

''.

References

Literature

External links

Maculele interview with mestre popoLyrics and videos of Maculele songs and music
* Article on Maculelê from Instituto Palmeira

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maculele (dance) Capoeira Brazilian dances Circle dances