Percussion in Capoeira

The pandeiro

Today the pandeiro is widely used in many styles of Brazilian music. It is a percussion instrument of Indian origin, made of a round wooden frame a few centimetres high, covered with a goatskin. Small cymbals are set into the circumference of the frame.

Nowadays the goatskin used for the pandeiro is sometimes replaced by a synthetic skin. It was brought to Brazil by the Portuguese, who used it to accompany their religious processions. The pandeiro’s role in the music is to accentuate the deep, low beat of the atabaque with its higher, sharper sound. The cymbals create a rich texture within the beat. It is one of the essential instruments in the roda.

The atabaque

The atabaque is thought to be of Arab origin, brought to Africa by merchants who entered the continent through the countries of the north. It seems that the atabaque was the first instrument used in capoeira, long before the berimbau.

It is generally made of wood such as jacaranda, cedar or mahogany, cut into wide staves held tightly together by iron hoops of different diameters which, from bottom to top, give the atabaque its conical-cylindrical shape.

Its base is narrower than the top, where iron hooks (which can be replaced by cords) stretch a piece of cowhide.

The atabaque keeps the rhythm of the game. The gunga dictates the speed and type of game, but the atabaque maintains that rhythm even when the gunga occasionally varies. There is only one atabaque in a capoeira roda, and it is usually placed to the left of the gunga. Although the atabaque can be a loud instrument, it should never drown out the berimbaus. It must accompany the berimbaus, not dominate them.

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TO EXPLORE

Manifesto
The berimbau
The agogô and the reco-reco
Our Capoeira classes