Glossary of Afro-Brazilian Musical Culture

Afox
1. Afox is a contraction of two yoruba words, af + ax, and literally means washed or purified
creative energy.
2. Afox refers to secularized versions of Ijex rhythm and songs, and to the blocos that perform this
music.
3. Afox is also the name given to the bead-covered gourd also known as the cabaa, which plays a
signature downbeat part in the Afox rhythm.
Agog
Double (or triple) set of different sized bells, played with a wood or metal striker.
Angola
Nation in south west Africa. Considered by many Brazilians to be a symbolic (if not actual) homeland
for Brazilians of Bant descent.
Angoleiro
A practitioner of Capoeira Angola.
Atabaque
A set of three tall stave drums, played in religious contexts such as candombl, and secular contexts as
samba de roda and capoeira. The largest drum (which plays lead) is called rum; the middle drum is
called rum-pi; and the smallest drum is called le.
Ax
A Yoruba word which translates literally as The power to create. Popularly used as a salutation, to
wish somebody good energy.
Babalawo (also Babalo)
A Yoruba priest of If divination in Candombl. Babalawos are considered to be the highest level of
priesthood within Candombl. The word literally means Father of The Mystery.
Bahia
A state in north east Brazil. The most Afro state in Brazil because of its history as the point of entry
for most African slaves; and its large slave plantations (analogous to the black belt in the Southeast
of the United States). Bahia has ever since been the center of Afro-Brazilian culture.
Baio
A rhythm and dance from the Serto region of the Northeast, originally performed by a trio nordestino.
Bant
A large group of related cultures from west central Africa, which today includes the nations of
Congo (Kinshasa), Congo (Brazzaville) and as far south as northern Angola. In Brazil Bant refers to
these cultures; to people who are descendants of these cultures; and to people who have adopted this
culture as their symbolic heritage. Bant culture is also commonly referred to as Congo or Angola
culture. One of the most important cultural heritages in Brazil.

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Baqueta (alt. vaqueta)
A stick or mallet used for percussively striking a musical instrument.
Bate Pronto
An eighth-note pickup to the first downbeat of a new measure, usually played by a surdo or some
other bass voice in response to some sort of call (typically by the repinique). Typically used as part of
an intro or exit in samba.
Bateria
A battery of drums, such as an Escola de Samba or a Bloco Afro, or even a roda de capoeira.
Batucada
A drum jam, most commonly referring specifically to samba.
Beriba
The type of wood favored for the fabrication of the berimbau.
Besouro Mangang (Manoel Henrique Pereira, 1895 1924)
A capoeirista from Santo Amaro da Purificao who was legendary for using capoeira to confront and
resist routine police/military violence against Afro-Brazilians.
Berimbau de Barriga
A single stringed musical bow with a gourd resonator, used most typically in capoeira.
Bloco Afro
Large groups which parade in the carnival and other processions in Bahia. These groups focus on
African style music, costumes and themes. Popular blocos include Filhos de Gandhy, Il Aiy, Olodum,
Timbalada and Ara Ketu. Blocos are also sometimes called Afoxs, because of the prominence of that
music in their repertoire.
Bossa
Literally means riff. Refers to pre-arranged riffs and routines that the bateria plays.
Bossa Nova
(Literally: New riff.) A style of popular music that emerged in Rio de Janeiro in the late Fifties, and
was extremely popular with college students, intellectuals and the middle class. Bossa Nova derived
from the mellow samba cano, and absorbed elements from the cool jazz which was in vogue at the
time.
Brincadeira
A euphemism for playing capoeira (literally: childs play).
Cabaa
The gourd resonator on a berimbau.

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Caboclo/a
A person of mixed African and Indigenous heritage. Also refers to Indigenous deities which have
been assimilated into the Umbanda pantheon.
Cabula (aka Cabila, Kabila)
A rhythmic precursor to secular samba, which was (and continues to be) played on atabaques in the
Candombl de Angola.
Caixa (also see Tarol)
Literally means box. Commonly refers to the snare drum played in samba.
Candombl
The Afro-Brazilian religion of the Northeast. Candombl is fundamentally Yoruba in practice, with
some influences assimilated from Fon and Bant culture.
Cangaceiros
Bandits that roamed the Northeastern backlands during the post-abolition era in Brazil.
Cantos de Entrada
A sequence of songs used to start (or re-start) a Roda de Capoeira. This sequence includes a ladainha, the
louvao, and segues directly into a corrido (which is where the game begins).
Capoeira
Afro-Brazilian martial arts game based on traditional Bant ritual, music, play and fighting forms.
Capoeira Angola
The traditional form of capoeira which was preserved by Mestre Pastinha. Capoeira Angola is a slow
and deliberate game of cunning and trickery, in which formal ritual and traditional music play a
central role.
Capoeira Regional
A variation of capoeira developed by Mestre Bimba which is exemplified by a quickly paced game
employing high kicks and acrobatic techniques, with less emphasis on the cultural aspects of the
game.
Capoeirista
A practitioner of capoeira. (In an older usage, a practitioner of capoeira was called a capoeira; and the
practice of capoeira was called capoeiragem.)
Carnaval
Pre-lenten festival which lasts most of the week before Shrove Tuesday. In Brazil (as in the Mardi Gras
celebration by African-Americans in New Orleans) Carnaval has been transformed into an expression
of Afro culture.
Cavaquinho
A small, four stringed guitar of Portuguese origin which accompanies some types of samba. (The
same cavaquinho which the Portuguese brought to Hawaii was transformed there into the ukulele.)

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Caxixi
A woven shaker with a gourd bottom and filled with seeds; played along with berimbau.
Chamada
Literally, a call. In a musical context a chamada is used to call for a specific response.
Congo (also Kongo)
People or culture of Bant descent.
Coro
The chorus, and the part they sing, in African style call and response song forms.
Corridos
A running sequence of songs which are typical in Capoeira and Samba de Roda. Corridos are
characterized by the call- and-response style of singing which alternates a fixed refrain which is
sung by the chorus with spontaneous verses which are sung by the lead singer.
Cuica
A friction drum often played in samba, which makes squeaking and grunting sounds when the thin
stick which is attached to the drum head is rubbed with a wet cloth.
Dobro
A stone, coin, washer or other object used to work against the string of the berimbau to produce its
various tones.
Escola de Samba
Lit.:samba school. An organization that plans and puts on samba parades for carnival. It also
functions as a community organization as well, at times providing job training, work and childcare in
communities perpetually under-served by the government.
Espiritismo
European style spiritism that was founded by Allan Kardek. Although many elements of espiritismo
have been incorporated into umbanda, it is not to be confused with candombl.
Esquenta
Literally means warm-up. In samba it refers to the little musical conversations called by the
repanique and answered by the rest of the bateria (traditionally done to warm-up the bateria before it
enters the parade). Also known as Paradinhas.
Favela
The name for the ghetto neighborhoods many Brazilians live in.
Fazenda
A large plantation used for the cultivation of cash crops such as sugar or cacao.

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Forr
Music typical of the Serto region of the Northeast, most traditionally performed by a trio nordestino.
Forr can include baio, xaxado, xote and frevo, among other styles.
Frevo
From the verb ferver - to boil. A frenetic rhythm derived from Marcha, played throughout the
Northeast. The city of Recife is considered to be a center of frevo.
Ganz
A cylindrical metal shaker used for samba.
GCAP
Grupo de Capoeira Angola de Pelourinho. A capoeira academy in Salvador led by Mestre Moraes which
has played a central role in the relatively recent renaissance of Capoeira Angola. GCAP has produced
a CD (which is available in the U.S. on Smithsonian/Folkways records) which is a great example of
the music and songs of Capoeira Angola.
Grimas
The sticks which are used in Maculel.
Gunga
The lowest pitched berimbau in the trio of berimbaus played in Capoeira Angola. The gunga functions
as a bass instrument, and it defines the fundamental toque.
If
The Yoruba oracle which reveals peoples destinies through various sytems of divination.
Ijex
The Yoruba people and culture from around the city of Ilesha in Southwest Nigeria. Also a rhythm of
the same name which is played in the candombl, as a typical rhythm of the Ijex Nation.
Jogar
A verb which means To play. Commonly means to play the game of capoeira.
Jgo
A noun which means game, and which commonly refers to the game of capoeira.
Jorge Amado
Author from Bahia whose humorous, fantastic and cynical novels took place within the context of
Afro-Brazilian culture. Strongly recommended reading.

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Ladainha
Literally: litany. In a Roda de Capoeira Angola the ladainha is sung at the beginning of the cantos de
entrada. It is a solo song form which may narrate a story, a lesson, folk wisdom or some of the oral
history of capoeira. During the ladainha the only musical accompaniment is the berimbaus and the
pandeiro(s)--all of the other instruments of the bateria are mute until the coro enters in the Louvao
section.
Lampio (Virgulino Ferreira da Silva, 1897 1938)
A notorious Cangaceiro who roamed throughout the backlands of the Northeast of Brazil. Although
he was ruthless against his enemies (such as the police, the military, the large land barons and the
cacao colonels,), he was just as generous to any who helped him. Because he often (although by no
means exclusively) robbed from the rich, gave to the poor, and fought the powers of the time,
Lampio earned a legend similar to that of the british Robin Hood.
Louvaco
The second section in the Cantos de Entrada sequence in a Roda de Capoeira Angola, in which various
praises which are sung by the lead singer are repeated by the chorus.
Luiz Gonzaga
Popularly considered the King of Baio. Gonzaga was prolific composer of songs portraying the
hardscrabble existance of people who lived in the Serto, the arid backlands of the Northeast.
Gonzaga brought his regional Forr music to a much wider audience throughout Brasil, including Rio
de Janeiro in the South of the country.
Maculel
A stick fighting dance of Bant origin which was performed on the sugar plantations during the slave
era. With abolition and the mass exodus from the fazendas to the cities Maculel became somewhat of
a lost art. On February 2, 1943, as part of the celebration of the patron saints day in Santo Amaro da
Purificao, Maculel was resurrected by Mestre Pop (Paulino Aloisio de Andrade) and other elders
who remembered the art from their younger years. Maculel continued to be featured in the folkloric
groups of Mestre Pop and his adopted son Mestre Vav.
In the 1950s Mestre Bimba began to include Maculel along with Samba de Roda and Puxada de Rede
into the curriculum of his academy of Capoeira Regional, as a way to teach the relationship between
capoeira and other Afro-Bahian folkloric culture.
After the passing of Mestre Vav, leadership of that group passed on to his wife Nicinha, who
continued to perform Maculel until her recent passing. The sons of Vav and Nicinha continue to
feature Maculel in their group Nicinha Raizes de Santo Amaro.
Macumba
A slang term which refers to Afro-Brazilian religion, such as Umbanda or Candombl.
Me de Santo
Literally: Mother of the Saint. A priestess in Candombl.

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Malandragem
Troublemaking; often used as a euphemism for capoeira.
Malandro
A tough guy, street thug,a bad-ass. Capoeira was often the signature fighting style of the malandro. In
the romanticized mythology of capoeira the malandro is also a humorous trickster, a charmer of
women, and a defender of poor people against police repression.
Malcia
Malicious deception. Not necessarily a negative trait in capoeira or the oppressed culture from which
it comes.
Mandinga
Cunning and trickery which is used to ones advantage in the game of capoeira.
Maracat
A carnaval rhythm popular around the Northeast cities of Recife, Fortaleza and Olinda.
Marcao (aka surdo.)
A large bass drum played for samba.
Medio
The middle pitched berimbau of the trio of berimbaus used in Capoeira Angola. The role of the medio is to
play the same rhythm as the gunga, while inverting the gungas melody.
Mestre (de Bateria)
A senior musician who teaches and orchestrates the battery of drums in an Escola de Samba, Bloco Afro
or Afox. The Mestre de Bateria is responsible for teaching the correct techniques and rhythms for
each instrument of the bateria, and for rehearsing the bateria in preparation for Carnaval or any other
festivals within which they might perform.
Mestre (de Capoeira)
A senior teacher of capoeiras movement, music, ritual, history and wisdom; who dedicates his life to
being a living embodiment of that art.
Mestre Joo Grande (Joo Oliveira dos Santos, b. 1933)
The most senior alumno of Mestre Pastinha. Mestre Joo Grande is the grandmaster of Capoeira
Angola, and he has committed himself to propagating Mestre Pastinhas vision of Capoeira Angola.
Since he began teaching in New York in 1990 Mestre Joo Grande has played a central role in the
relatively recent renaissance of Capoeira Angola. (My longtime capoeira teacher in Brattleboro was a
talented disciple of Mestre Joo Grande. One of my teachers while studying at the academy of Joo
Pequeno in Bahia was Joo Grandes son, Jurandir dos Santos.)
Mestre Joo Pequeno (Joo Pereira dos Santos, 1917 2011)
One of two senior alumni of Mestre Pastinha (along with Mestre Joo Grande) who was charged by
Mestre Pasthina with the mission to continue his vision of the traditional game, ritual and music,
history and wisdom of capoeira.

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Mestre Pastinha (Vincente Ferreira Pastinha, 1889-1981)
Opened the first academy of Capoeira Angola in 1941. Mestre Pastinha dedicated his life to preserving
the traditional game, ritual and music, history and wisdom of capoeira.
Moeda
Literally: coin. A coin is often used as a dobro to work against the string of the berimbau to produce its
various tones.
Money Game
A type of capoeira game in which money is placed on the ground in the center of the roda. The players
compete to pick up the money in their mouth (usually from a hand-stand) without leaving
themselves open to an attack.
Morro
The hill-side communities where poor people are often relegated to live. Morro is often used as a
euphemism for Favela.
MPB
Musica Popular Brasiliera. A catch-all category for music that combines pop sensibilities with an
extremely rich variety of folkloric rhythms and regional styles.
Naco Congo
In Candombl, it refers to people and culture of Bant descent. from Central West-Africa.
Naco Geg
In Candombl, it refers to people and culture of Fon descent, from the area of Benin (formerly
Dahomey).
Naco Ketu
In Candombl, it refers to a branch of the Yoruba culture located in the former Kingdom of Dahomey
around the city of Ketu. Ketu is known as the former home of Orixa Oxossi.
Nag
Literally, it refers to the branch of the Yoruba people and culture from the area of Benin (formerly
Dahomey). In popular usage it often refers to anything Yoruba, or even anything African.
Orixa
A type of Yoruba deity.
Pai de Santo
Literally: Father of the Saint. A priest of Candombl.

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Pagode
1. Literally: A small party or gathering, often occuring in somebodys backyard or perhaps at the
beach
2. . In the 1970s Pagode came to refer to a type of small group samba which used the same stringed
instruments and small hand percussion that might be played at a typical backyard party.
3. More recently, Pagode has been used to refer to a slick, hyper-commercialized version of pop samba.
Pandeiro
Similar to the tambourine we have in North America, but with a single row of jingles, and a head
which is played much more like a drum.
Palmas
Hand clapping. Palmas is often used in Afro-Brazilian folkloric music.
Paradinhas
Literally: Little breaks. Refers to the little musical conversations called by the repinique and
answered by the bateria (used either before the samba begins, or as a break from the rhythm inside the
samba). When used before the bateria enters the samba, it is known as the Esquenta.
Pelourinho
Literally: Pillory, to which slaves were tied to receive punishment such as whipping. Pelourinho is also
the name of a very poor neighborhood in So Salvador da Bahia which retains a strong African cultural
identity. In the past few decades Pelourinho has become a destination for many people who wish to
encounter authentic Afro-Brazilian cultural expressions such as Capoeira Angola, Candombl and
Samba.
Puxada de Rede
A folkloric music and dance performance which references both the daily working life and also the
myths and ceremonies of the fishing communities along the coast of Northeastern Brazil.
Quadra
1. A song form in which a four line refrain sung by the chorus alternates with four line verses sung by
the lead singer.
2. A structure used for rehearsing the large Escolas de Samba in the South of Brazil.
Quilombo
Maroon communities formed by escaped African slaves in Brazil, where they had the freedom to
resurrect their native cultures. Some people believe that the quilombos were one of the incubators of
capoeira and samba.
Quilombo dos Palmares
The largest and most famous of the quilombos; it existed from 1605 -1695 in the interior of
Pernambuco and survived repeated attacks by the Portuguese and Dutch armies. Quilombo dos
Palmares continues to represent a potent image of the struggle of Afro-Brazilians.

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Rebolo
A medium sized, single headed hand drum that combines with the larger Tantan to create a
percussive bass line in Samba Pagode.
Recife
Capitol of the north east state of Pernambuco; and a center for frevo and maracat.
Recncavo
An area of extremely fertile coastal plain in Bahia where the large sugar cane plantations were located
during the colonial era. Because these plantations were the supplied by the slave labor of abducted
west africans the Recncavo was generally an incubator of Afro-Brazilian culture.
Reco-reco
1. A bamboo instrument with ridges which are scraped; used in samba and capoeira.
2. A metal instrument fabricated from the large springs used to hold up automobile hoods. This metal
version of the Reco-reco is scraped in the same manner as its more archaic bamboo ancestor.
Repinique
A metal side drum which calls the breaks and plays floreos in the bateria de samba.
Repique de Mo
A small, single headed hand drum that plays syncopated accents to in Samba Pagode.
Rio de Janeiro
The largest city in Brazil, located in the south east of the country.
Roda
Portuguese word for wheel. Many traditional African dances, games and ceremonies take place
within a circle formed by the participants.
Roda de Capoeira
A game of Capoeira, played inside a circle formed by the participants.
Rua
Street. Many aspects of Afro-Brazilian culture are rooted in street culture.
Samba
The most well known Afro-Brazilian rhythm; characterized by a two beat bass line, a sixteenth note
pulse and complex syncopated accents oriented around the clave. The national music of Brazil.
Samba Ax
A modern style from Bahia which combines African elements (often religious) with samba.
Samba Cabocla (aka Cabula, Cabila)
A version of samba de roda which is sometimes played in Candombl ceremonies.

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Samba da Rua
Street samba, marching samba.
Samba de Angola
A version of Samba de Roda which includes berimbaus.
Samba de Roda
1. An old, folkloric form of samba played on atabaques, agog, sometimes pandeiro; and danced by
women inside a circle.
2. In modern usage (especially in the South of Brazil), Samba de Roda refers to samba played usually
by groups of friends while sitting around a table in a bar or restaurant, playing stringed
instruments (including violo, violo de sete cordas, cavaquinho, bandolm), small percussion
instruments (including pandeiro, tamborm, agog, tan-tan, rebolo, repique de mo, cuica) and singing.
Samba Reggae
A modern style from Bahia which combines the up-beat skank accents of Jamaican reggae with
intricate, rolling surdo bass-lines that are unique to Bahia-style samba.
Sanfona
Accordion played in the trio nordestinos for forr music.
Santo Amaro da Purificao
A city in Bahia enriched both materially and culturally by its location at the edge of the Recncavo.
Santo Amaro is the birthplace of legendary capoeiristas such as Besouro Mangang (Manoel Henrique
Pereira), outlaws such as Lampio, and revolutionary musicians such as Caetano Veloso and his sister
Maria Bethnia.
So Paulo: A large financial center in southern Brazil.
So Salvador da Bahia
The former colonial capital of Brazil, and the point of entry into Brazil for the majority of enslaved
Africans. This city, which is rich in African culture has continually been the cradle in which many
important Afro-Brazilian cultural expressions (including capoeira) were nurtured. Salvador has
historically played a cultural role analagous to that of New Orleans here in the United States.
Serto
The arid backlands (interior) of the Northeast of Brazil; a center of forr music.
Surdo (aka marcao.)
A large bass drum played for samba.
Tamborm
A small frame drum stuck with a stick, which plays lines of syncopated accents in samba.

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Tantan (also Tan-Tan, Tan-tan, etc)
The largest of a trio of single headed hand drums used to accompany Samba Pagode. In Pagode the
Tantan and Rebolo parts combine to form a percussive bass line that is part of the musical foundation
of Pagode.
Tarol
A piccolo snare drum sometimes used in the escolas de samba.
Terreiro (de Candombl)
The grounds where various altars and ceremonial houses of Candombl are located.
Timbal
A modern drum shaped like a truncated cone, with a plastic head; popularized by the Bloco Afro
Timbalada from Bahia.
Toque
From the verb Tocar - to touch, to play (an instrument). A rhythm, such as a toque de berimbau or a
toque de candombl.
Trio Nordestino
The traditional ensemble for forr music; consisting of an accordion (sanfona), bass drum (zabumba)
and large metal triangle.
Tropiclia (aka Tropicalismo)
A musical movement from the 1960s begun by a bunch of young baianos (including Caetano Veloso,
Gilberto Gil and Gal Costa) who were heavily influenced by The Beatles and hippie culture.
Umbanda
An Afro-Brazilian religion which mixes Catholic imagery and heavy doses of European Spiritism
with elements of Yoruba, Fon, Bant and indigenous Brazilian culture.
Umbigada
A belly bump performed between dancers in certain styles of Samba de Roda. This overtly sexual
gesture exists in other dances of the Kongo/Bant diaspora, such as Rumba Guaguanc from Cuba.
Vadiao
A euphemism for playing capoeira (literally: vagrancy).
Viola (a.k.a. violinha)
The highest pitched berimbau in the trio of berimbaus played in Capoeira Angola. The viola plays
improvised figures which respond to the toques of the other instruments, the song, and/or the game.
Violo de Sete Cordas
A seven string guitar used in Brasil to add melodic bass lines to samba.

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Xaxado
A typical forr rhythm, similar to baio.
Xequer
A beaded gourd instrument typically used in Yoruba music.
Yoruba
A people and culture from what is now southwest Nigeria and Benin (formerly Dahomey). Their
complex religion and cosmology, and their advanced arttistic achievements made them one of the
single most important African cultures in the new world in general, and Brazil in particular.
Zabumba
A relatively shallow bass drum used in the trio nordestino for playing forr music.
Zumbi
The last leader of Quilombo dos Palmares. Zumbi continues to represent a legendary heroic figure in
the struggles of Afro-Brazilians.