berimbau
The berimbau is a single-string percussion
instrument, a musical bow, from Brazil. The berimbau’s origins are not entirely clear, but there is not much doubt on its African origin, as no Indigenous Brazilian or European people use musical bows, and very similar instruments are played in the southern parts of Africa. The berimbau was eventually incorporated into the practice of the Afro-Brazilian martial art capoeira, where it commands how the capoeiristas move in the roda.
Parts and accessories of the berimbau:
- Verga: Wooden bow that makes up the main body of the Berimbau.
- Arame: Steel string.
- Cabaça: Opened, dried and hollowed out gourd secured to the lower portion of the berimbau, used to amplify and resonate the sound.
- Dobrão: Small stone or coin pressed against the arame to change the tone of the berimbau.
- Baqueta: Small stick struck against the arame to produce the sound.
- Caxixí: Small rattle that optionally accompanies the baqueta in the same hand.
Capoeiristas split berimbaus in three categories:
- Berra-boi and gunga: lowest tone.
- Médio: medium tone.
- Viola or violinha: highest tone
These categories relate to sound, not to size. The berimbau’s quality does not depend on the length of the verga or the size of the gourd, rather on the diameter and hardness of the verga’s wood and the quality of the gourd.
In capoeira, up to three Berimbaus may play together, each with a loosely defined role:
- The gunga plays the bass line, rarely improvising its rhythm (in capoeira, it takes much patience to play gunga). The person playing the gunga at the beginning of a roda is often the leader of the roda and the other instruments follow as well. The gunga player may also lead the singing, which is made easier by the simple rhythm and little variation that he plays. The gunga is used to call players to the pé-do-berimbau (foot of the berimbau, where players enter the game).
- The médio complements the gunga. For instance, while the gunga may play a simple, eight-unit pattern like (xxL.H.H.), the viola (or médio) can play a sixteen-unit variation, like (xxL.xLHL|.xL.H.H.). The dialog between gunga and viola (or médio) gives the toque its character. In the context of capoeira angola, the médio inverts the gunga’s melody (angola toque): (xxL.H…) by playing São Bento Pequeno: (xxH.L…) with moderate improvisation.
- The viola (or violinha) plays mostly variations and improvisations on the main rhythm defined by the two others. The viola player will often syncopate and break to accentuate the songs.
pandeiro
There are two important distinctions between a pandeiro and the common tambourine. The tension of the head on the pandeiro can be tuned, allowing the player a choice of high and low notes. Also, the metal jingles (called platinelas) are cupped, creating a crisper, drier and less sustained tone on the pandeiro than on the tambourine. This provides clarity when swift, complex rhythms are played.
It is held in one hand, and struck on the head by the other hand to produce the sound. Typical pandeiro patterns are played by alternating the thumb, fingertips, heel, and palm of the hand.
atabaque
The atabaque (Pronounced: ata’bak) is a tall, wooden, Afro-Brazilian
hand drum. The shell is made traditionally of Jacaranda wood from Brazil. The head is traditionally made from calfskin. A system of ropes are intertwined around the body, connecting a metal ring near the base to the head. Wooden wedges are jammed between this ring and the body and one uses a hammer to tighten or loosen the ropes, raising or lowering the pitch of the drum.
agogo
The agogô may be the oldest samba instrument and was based on West African Yoruba single or double bells. The agogô has the highest pitch of any of the bateria instruments.