Author: jhnashtongmailcom

STAY SAFE MY FRIENDS.

STAY SAFE MY FRIENDS.

Hello everyone,

Watch. Just watch.

Thank You for bringing this to our attention, professor.

NOW ONCE AGAIN,

Hi everybody,

Short post here. I’m announcing a new blog series called “Stories from the African Diaspora”. Why?

When people talk about black people in the new world, they don’t think that you can find Afro-descended people all over north and south america.

Well, You’re gonna read about them on my website. I feel that their stories, OUR STORIES, are just as important as anything I have to type about Capoeira. Because ultimately, Capoeira is an integral part of OUR story in the americas.

Now as you can see on the title below, our first story comes from Colombia.

This particular video is close to my heart, because I practice a Martial that was developed by black people in colombia.

You can learn more about this martial art and many others by clicking HERE.

Well, Yesterday marked my 10 anniversary in this game and way of life named Capoeira Angola!

Wow, certainly this journey has had its ups and downs… from the first time I started this journey with my teacher…

To the journey of learning the ins and outs of playing the berimbau…

The endless classes…

To all the amazing people I met along the way.

Throughout my journey in Capoeira Angola so far, I’ve undergone a fundamental change in my appearance, what I eat, how I exercise, how I move, while learning a whole new way of looking at this world we live in.

And learning about a different culture as well.

Now this is just a small milestone; my journey in Capoeira Angola is FAR from over. I’ve barely even scratched the surface of what this wonderful artform has to offer.

However, whatever else I do with my life, I will continue learning Capoeira Angola, even after I die.

And now, I would like to take a moment to honor and remember those who sacrificed so much to pass this art to the present…

Join our Bantu and You sustainability campaign!

Here at Bantu, we serve and empower children and families in our island community through Capoeira, digital literacy, nutritious meals, and more. Our impact is real, but extreme poverty persists.

So I’m inviting you to join our Bantu and You sustainability campaign.

Today I’ll tell you about the easiest way you can help: Did you know that if you’re in a more resource-abundant region like the USA, Europe, or Australia, a small monthly donation will create a huge impact here in Brazil. A few dollars or euros, like the price of a coffee in your country, can help cover essentials like electricity and internet, provide bus tickets for our volunteers, or meals for hungry children.

Just like with Capoeira, we’re all in this together. When you donate, you join our Bantu family and help to change the world. Are you ready to make a difference? Tell us in the comments, sign up to donate, and help spread the word. And stay tuned for more ways to join us. Thank you!

To donate: pix: 07.794.079/0001-19 paypal:institutobantu@gmail.com To know more about us: www.institutobantu.org @bantu.brasil

Hi Everyone,

A few posts ago, I posted this flyer.

Now, I’m VERY EXCITED to show you my 1st guest blog, written by my friend, and fellow capoeirista LIZA BERNSTEIN. This is first of a 2-part series, where she writes about a couple of things we’re learning in Mestre Roxinho’s online class.

Getting to Know Mestre Bigodinho, Part 1

by Liza Bernstein

Since the workshops Mestre Roxinho led here in Los Angeles earlier this year, some of us have been meeting with him for online classes. Recently he gave us the assignment to learn, reflect on, and discuss one of Mestre Bigodinho’s ladainhas.

But wait, who is or was Mestre Bigodinho?

We’ve been getting to know Mestre Roxinho, and my take is that answering that question was likely one of his tricky reasons for giving us the assignment in the first place. 

Out here in LA, many in our Capoeira Angola community know the lineage that connects us to Mestre Pastinha, through Mestre João Grande (that’s my direct lineage, and John’s too). And many of us learned that Mestre João Grande and Mestre João Pequeno were the two students to whom Mestre Pastinha entrusted his legacy. But what about other leading Angoleiro Elders, whether peers or students of Mestre Pastinha or not? Some whose names and impact are familiar to most of us include Mestres Waldemar da Paixão, Canjiquinha, Curió, and Boca Rica.

Well, Mestre Bigodinho belongs on that list! To learn more about him, if you read Portuguese, check out this post which looks like it was translated into English here. And, watch Mestre Lua Rasta’s documentary, Tributo a Mestre Bigodinho which includes them in conversation, as well as scenes from the tribute to Mestre Bigodinho, plus footage and discussion of Capoeira Angola and related art forms of Samba de Roda, Maculelê, Burrinha, and Nego Fugido. 

Known for his musical talent, both in Capoeira and Samba de Roda, Mestre Bigodinho imparted his wisdom through the oral tradition, and in particular the ladainhas he composed. In Part 2 of this series, we’ll talk about the one we studied with Mestre Roxinho. 

Until then, enjoy Mestre Bigodinho singing while Mestre Boca Rica and a camarada play a magnificent example of what some might call the “Old Man’s Game” of Capoeira Angola.

Greetings,

In this post, I want to talk about the roots of capoeira. This is going to be the first in a blog series talking about this subject.

Check this out:

What you see above is a demonstration of engolo and kandeka, 2 martial arts from angola that Capoeira is derived from.

But are they the true roots of Capoeira?

Well, I say Yes… and No.

The reason I say so is that I believe that what it takes for a marital art to develop is the unique times, the terrain, and the unique cultures and worldview of the poeple who created it.

In the case of Capoeira, that is the Afro-Brazilian people.

Sure, engolo and other martial sciences from west africa have had their input in the creation of capoeira, but when enslaved africans were taken to other parts of the western hemisphere, different martial arts evolved which had similarities to capoeira, but were different due to the times, terrain, and the cultures and world views of those places.

In my opinion, there is only ONE place where capoeira as we know it, with it’s rituals, it’s fighting strategy, it’s music, etc. could have evolved, and that is Bahia, Brazil.

The afro brazilian people there developed a unique culture that birthed many cultural expressions that are loved and celebrated worldwide, like Samba, Maculele, Puxada de Rede, etc.

And Capoeira is one of those expressions.

In the future, I will post more about samba and the other cultural expressions of the Afro-Brazilian people, which I believe are the TRUE ROOTS of capoeira.

Now, I would like to introduce to to a very special city, One of the few places I want to go before I die…

SALVADOR DA BAHIA.