Berimbau Workshop 2006
with Mestranda Edna Lima and Abadá Capoeira New York
crafting traditional Capoeira berimbau:
verga, arame, and cabaça ...
The importance of the berimbau shows up in different aspects. Generally, the person playing the berimbau is in charge of the roda. During the jogo de capoeira, the berimbau is a symbol of authority ... this means that the roda has a commander with the authority to choose the partners, and begin and end games.
Capoeira by Bira Almeida
Explaining how a gourd becomes a soundbox
Explaing how to cut a cabaça
Students pick their own gourd to cut
Measuring their first cut
Arame cutting with a hacksaw
Aerobica shows her first cabaça
Complete Berimbau
verga • bow | arame • wire | cabaça • gourd
dobrão • stone | vaqueta • stick | caxixi • shaker
The Brazilian berimbau is a gourd-resonated, braced musical bow of African origin ... a 4-5' branch of biriba, bamboo, oak or other wood bent into an arc. The bow is strung with a single metal string, usually recycled from an industrial use.
Attached to the convex back of the bow with a small loop of string is a gourd resonator. The string is struck with a thin stick called a vaquita or vareta, which is held in the player's right hand along with a small basket rattle called caxixi.
A small coin (dobrão) or stone (pedra) held between the musician's left thumb and index finger is pressed to the string, resulting in a pitch change of about a minor or major second above the berimbau's fundamental tone.
Berimbau by Richard P. Graham and N. Scott Robinson
Explaining an arame's metalic composition
Explaining the arame is cut from a tire
Demonstrating how to open a tire
Tundaka cutting out his first arame
Explaining a verga is cut from biriba
Showing how to bend the verga
Forming and twisting a loop for a new arame
Bending and tying the berimbau
The berimbau is an instrument of the chordophone family known by the melodic hi-lo sounds from a steel string: lo sound from a fundamental, open string and hi sound from a coin pressing the string. It is possible to tune the hi-lo sounds to definite pitches.
The gourd is tied to the bow by a ring-like cord called a bridge. The fundamental pitch is changed by moving the bridge up and down. In capoeira the berimbau provides rhythmic feeling for the game and song patterns with two melodic sounds (hi-lo), a buzz sound or tremolo effect (repique), gourd effect (wah-wah), and caxixi solo.
There are three kinds of berimbau determined by their tonal range. Gunga is the low range and establishes a steady rhythmic pulse of the traditional themes. Centro is middle range and develops the rhythmic theme, bringing out patterns. Violinha is the high range and provides embellishment by playing classic variations.
The Berimbau by Luiz D'Anunciacao
Mestranda Lima matching and tuning a new berimbau