CAPOEIRA ANGOLA
THE ORIGINAL AFRIKAN-BRAZILIAN MARTIAL ART OVER 450 YEARS OF TRADITION BAHIA, NEW YORK, AND NOW LOS ANGELES

Capoeira Angola (pronounced Capo-air-a Ang-o-la): One of the many cultural weapons Used to break the chains of enslavement in Brazil. Music was played during Capoeira sessions to teach the rhythmic heart of the art and to mask its power. In front of the oppressors it looked like playfulness, acrobatic dancing, and joking around. Eventually the oppressors realized it's power and outlawed Capoeira Angola. Death was the penalty if you were caught. For almost 400 years Capoeira Angola was taught and practiced in secret. Only in the 1930s did this Afrikan Martial Art become legal to teach and practice.


Grand Mestre Pastinha (1889 - 1982): Opened the first Capoeira Angola School, the Academia De Capoeira So Angola, in 1941 in the city of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. Mestre Pastinha dedicated his school to preserving and continuing the long tradition of this Afrikan Martial Art. He taught Capoeira Angola as a path of self-knowledge and mastery. Mestre Pastinha was the first Capoeira Mestre (Master) to write a book on Capoeira's history, philosophy and practice. "Capoeira Angola" (3rd edition 1988). He went to Afrika with his students to participate in FESTAC (Festival of African Arts and Culture) activities during the 1970s and has made musical albums promoting the music of this martial art.


Grand Mestre João Grande: One of two remaining Angoleiros who were taught by the legendary Grand Mestre Pastinha. For over 40 years Mestre João Grande has dedicated his life to Capoeira Angola in Brazil as well as traveling to Afrika, Europe, and North America to promote the art. Grand Mestre João Grande teaches Capoeira Angola the traditional way - as a way of life, just as his teacher before him did.


Capoeira Angola: Fluid, dance like movements done close to the ground. With shifting rhythmic movements, combined with the look of playfulness or venerability an adversary is brought to defeat. The basic technique through which Capoeira Angola players develop the game is the ginga, a shifting side-to-side movement. At the heart of the art is the music lead by the berimbau, a steel stringed bow instrument with a gourd resonator. When Capoeira Angola is played the berimbau signals the beginning and end of each game, and governs the style and speed of the play. The pandeiro (tambourine), the agogo (Afrikan bell) and the atabaque (a conga like drum) usually join the berimbau.


CAPOEIRA ANGOLA CENTER LOS ANGELES, CA PHONE: 323.291.8723 / EMAIL: angoleiro1@excite.com

MON & WED 7:30pm - 9:30pm SAT 10:00am - 12:00pm


Peace & Blessings Ade E. Neff