When You Can’t Play Capoeira Series (Part 1)

Let’s face it, we’ve all been there.  Apart for a select few, many capoeiristas are not able to play and train every day.  We try to make time on our calendars, try to make it to class but many times life, work or even health gets in the way.  There have been times in my short stint in Capoeira of two years where I’ve not been able to go to class for a whole month – I know, I know. Shame shame.

There is a Filipino saying “Kung gusto may paraan, kung ayaw maraming dahilan”  -- Roughly translated, if you want it there’s always a way, if you don’t there’s always an excuse. 

So in the spirit of always making a way, below are ways you can train in capoeira that I’ve found are helpful for me! 

Instruments and Singing

I love love the music part of Capoeira.  As early as I was able, I bought my first instrument, a pandiero (or tambourine/drum kind of instrument).  It’s pretty easy to learn and is what I think the entry level instrument for capoeira. 

Start by playing along with songs you typically sing in class.  After a few days of that, try to sing WHILE playing! Don’t stress out, for many folks, learning a capoeira song is tough because it’s a completely different language altogether! 

Don’t fret! A capoeira buddy of mine, Da Terra, has what she calls her “Song of the Month” and she picks a song from the extensive capoeira song list and she gives herself a month to learn them.  Now if you think a month is still too fast, a song of the quarter is fine too.  Capoeira is a long road, with many practitioners playing the game for decades and decades.  Just think, four songs a year in 5 years means you can learn 20 capoeira songs!!! 

Personally, since Portuguese has sounds similar to my native tongue I want to set a Song of the Month target as well.   

When you’re comfortable with  your pandiero, you can get your own berimbau!  I got mine at the middle of my 2^nd year in capoeira.  In our school, sometimes our seniors MAKE the berimbaus as they did in Brazil way back in the day.  They’d strip the arame (string) from steel belted tires and put together the berimbaus, this is very cool but also rare at least here in Singapore. You can ask your teacher where you can get your berimbau and for sure they can help you out.  Careful, once you buy a berimbau, you can get sucked into buying all the accessories that come with.  Believe me, I’m deep in the rabbit hole, there’s no more hope for me, save yourself.

When you have your berimbau, you not only have to learn how to play it, you gotta learn how to string it.   This is hard stuff.  Like with many things in capoeira, and  life, with hard work and determination, you can do it.  When I first tried stringing my berimbau, I could only do it half of the time (my darling musician boyfriend refused to help me because it was my instrument, I should know how to string it) and today, just a mere four months later, I can string it ALL THE TIME.  Seriously, 100% of the time.  I’m so proud of me.

After you get your instrument together, you have to practice practice practice.  Harder than the pandiero but you will get there. I still can’t sing while playing but I know eventually I will.

Like in learning songs, try to learn each toque (there are seven kinds, I believe) bit by bit.  Try for one per month, like in the songs.  Then try to sing – when you get there, let me know, I still haven’t.  But at least now I can play two toques , poorly, but I can play them.   

All the other instrument s  agogo and reco-reco, I think are fairly easy to learn and you can practice in class.  The atabaque is tougher but you can’t bring it home really so just practice that in class.

It’s pretty easy to find songs online and on youtube but to get you started, this shares a wonderful playlist created  by Urso Branco of the songs with lyrics we typically sing.  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLD6A65212F9B3F7DB

Think of the music as part of your training too.  You'll be so much happier when you join a roda and even if  you're intimidated to play, you get to contribute your axe by singing, clapping, and playing along!

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