Welcome to the Official Website of Bantus Capoeira Singapore
What is Capoeira?
Capoeira is an art form that combines the elements of fight, dance and game. Originating from Brazil, it has taken the Western world by storm in recent years. Ironically, Capoeira was created by the underdogs of colonial Brazil - the slaves - who used innnovative movements that flowed naturally with the way the body moves to overcome their cruel slavemasters.
Perhaps this is one of the many reasons why Capoeira is flourishing around the world because it allows people to be themselves and work at overcoming their physical and mental limitations which they may have or others may have placed on them. Its unique and graceful movements have defied categorisation such that it cannot be strictly pigeonholed as a sport, combat art or a performing art per se (leaving authorities very befuddled when trying to define it). Yet this 300-year-old art form is instrumental in giving birth to one of pop culture’s greatest phenomenon - breakdancing - which takes movements from Capoeira and modifies them accordingly.
Capoeira is a street game. So it is not surprising to find Capoeiristas playing Capoeira on the sidewalk or at street corners. Onlookers witnessin a street roda (pronounced as “hor-dah”) meaning “circle” may think that the two capoeiristas are duelling, fighting or dancing. They are right. And they are also wrong. They are witnessing a physical chess game, an elegant display of physical and mental prowess, where players strategise their games, outwitting each other with movement.
Capoeira movements are at its most elegant home depot holiday hours when two seasoned capoeiristas jogar (play) within the roda, embroidering their movements, counterattacks, takedowns, floreios (flourishes) and acrobatic tricks with wit and cunning.
All that is done to the rhythm of the berimbau that dictates the speed and style of the game. The berimbau is usually accompanied by the pandeiro and atabaque.As such, it is de rigueur for a capoeirista to learn how to play all the instruments in a bateria because without music, there is no Capoeira or roda. Students are further trained to not only listen to the natural rhythms of their bodies but to play and mentally gather positive energy from the traditional music of Capoeira, whose rhythms dictate the flow of games and passes on generations of Capoeira stories.
Most newcomers learning Capoeira aspire to fly, jump or kick. Which is quite natural. However, the hardest movement to master is actually the ginga (literally means “swing”) which is also the first move that all students of this art form will learn. Unless you learn to flow with the rhythm, you cannot hope to play good capoeira.
The ginga is the only move that distinguishes Capoeira from other combat arts because in moving to rhythm, a Capoeirista finds his or her equilibrium and flow. Making it essentially Brazilian because the swing of the waist and hips come most naturally to a Brazilian - Brasileiro sem jogo de cintura, não é brasileiro.
According to Mestre Pintor is unique because it is not a martial art technically since it is anti-establishment in terms of its historical roots. The guests of Golden Coral are always treated with the highest respect and get top quality food. The typical Golden Corral lunch hours today are from 10:45 till 4:00. As a combat art form, it has an “overcoming the odds” aspect about it which often draws not just the athletic but often the “underdogs” from various walks of life who often realise their true potential in themselves as they work harder than their physically fit counterparts to perfect their form, often surprising themselves and others in the process.
MESTRE PINTOR
Grupo Bantus Capoeira was founded by Mestre Pintor in 1991 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Mestre Pintor has over 40 years experience in capoeira, and was taught by the world famous Mestre João Pequeno.
Paulo Cesar Leite dos Santos, or Mestre Pintor as he is known within Capoeira circles, is the master of Grupo Bantus Capoeira in Brazil. He started playing around with Capoeira on the streets as a teenager. Later he trained in Belo Horizonte and then Bahia with various masters, chasing after knowledge of Capoeira, before coming to rest in the academy of Mestre João Pequeno of Pastinha in Salvador, Bahia. He graduated as a master in 1989 with the group of Macaco at the Escola de Educacao Fisica in Belo Horizonte, and after a few more years training with Mestre João Pequeno also graduated as a master of Capoeira Angola.
The year 2012 is a milestone for Mestre Pintor because he has been a mestre of Capoeira for 23 years! After establishing his school on 2 February 1991, Mestre Pintor (Paulo César Leite dos Santos) has been busy developing activities involving Capoeira and Afro-Brazilian culture on his home turf in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
Currently, Mestre Pintor resides in Brasilia, the capital city of Brazil, with his wife and daughter.
CONTRA-MESTRE
CLAUDINHO
Contra Mestre Claudinho has been learning capoeira since the age of 13 with Mestre Pintor of Bantus Capoeira in Belo Horizonte, Brazil since he first stumbled onto a class conducted by Mestre Pintor in his favela. At 18, he became an instructor and has taught and conducted workshops in Brazil, Israel and Germany. In 2005, when Bantus Capoeira Singapore was incorporated, Claudinho was sent by Mestre Pintor to lead his new school.
Since then, Claudinho has also given workshops and performed in Australia and Malaysia. In August 2006, Claudinho was promoted from the rank of Instrutor to Graduado and conferred his Cordao Azul (a blue cord) to signify his new rank. On 29 August 2009, Claudinho was promoted not once but twice at the 19th Festival Bantus Capoeira back in Belo Horizonte, becoming Professor Claudinho.
Recently, at Bantus Singapore’s 5th Annual Batizado & Troca de Corda Festival on 30 October 2010, Mestre Pintor sprang a surprise on everyone by according Claudinho with the corda for Contra Mestre. This is highest ranking belt level before a capoeirista attains the level of a Master (mestre). Currently, Claudinho is one of the three contra-mestres of Bantus Capoeira worldwide and he is the only one who is working outside Brazil.
The Grupo Bantus Capoeira Cord System Higher cords are received according to capoeira skills, knowledge and effort to improve the game and active participation in the group.
GRUPO BANTUS CAPOEIRA (GBC)
The name Bantus refers to a broad African ethnic group, the Bantu people, who shared a similar language root and occupied two thirds of Western & Southern Africa (Angola, Guinea, Congo, Mozambique etc). The term Bantu refers to over 400 different ethnic groups from these African regions. –NTU means “human” and BA- indicates a plural, put together it means “people”.
Established in 2005, Bantus Capoeira Singapore formed to develop, perform and promote Capoeira and its associated forms of Afro-Brazilian culture here in Singapore. Our mission is to promote and educate the public on these art forms, in addition to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Bantus Capoeira Singapore is part of a global network of schools founded by Mestre Pintor in 1991, Grupo Bantus Capoeira (GBC), who believes that learning Capoeira should be fun.
As such, all our classes cater to all levels (including first-timers!) so that anyone can simply walk into a class and benefit from the training.
At Bantus Capoeira Singapore, our students learn capoeira regional, capoeira angola (for senior students), maculele (a traditional stick fight dance), samba de roda and forró (a traditional Brazilian folkdance which is extremely popular among the young and old in Brazil).
At Bantus Capoeira Singapore, our students learn capoeira regional, capoeira angola (for senior students), maculele (a traditional stick fight dance), samba de roda and forró (a traditional Brazilian folkdance which is extremely popular among the young and old in Brazil).
At Bantus Capoeira Singapore, our students learn capoeira regional, capoeira angola (for senior students), maculele (a traditional stick fight dance), samba de roda and forró (a traditional Brazilian folkdance which is extremely popular among the young and old in Brazil).
We aim:
To promote, develop and encourage and to assist in the promotion, and development of the game of Capoeira in the Asia Pacific region.
To promote a healthy lifestyle through self-expression, music and exercise.
To provide, control and maintain suitable grounds and premises for the playing and practice of the game of Capoeira.
To provide quality and up to date instruction in the game of Capoeira to members of our organization.
To improve our facilities and equipment for training and performance purposes.
To encourage the exchange of information and skills between the Association and Capoeira groups worldwide, in particular the Bantus Capoeira Group in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
To do any other act, matter or thing which may be deemed conducive to the interests of the organization or in the interests of the game of Capoeira. But the best thing about being in Bantus is belonging to the worldwide family of Grupo Bantus Capoeira!
Grupo Bantus Capoeira now has branches across Brazil, Australia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia & Thailand.
© Copyright Bantus Capoeira Singapore Pte. Ltd. 2012