Capoeiragem in Rio de Janeiro

Sinhozinho e Rudolf Hermanny

First Essay

 

Contents

 

General Introduction

 

Two Words

Carlson Gracie

Paulo Amaral

 

Tribute & Alert

 

Prologue - Inspired by Master Cervantes

 

First Chapter
The Importance of Capoeira in Rio de Janeiro

 

Second Chapte and Third Chapter
Annibal Burlamaqui, Zuma - Inezil Penna Marinho

 

Fourth Chapter
Agenor Moreira Sampaio, Sinhozinho

 

Fifth Chapter
Sinhozinho’s Capoeira faces Regional Capoeira

 

Sixth Chapter
Rudolf Hermanny

 

Seventh Chapter
Cat’s Jump Theory - Theory and Practice
I - Warm up to the Cat’s Jump Theory
II - Summary of the Cat’s Jump Theory
III - "CD-ROM Project - A Critical Bibliography of Capoeira" (Capoeira’s Memory Project)
IV - Capoeira Martial Art Project (Sinhozinho Project)

 

General Introduction

Two Words: Professors Paulo Amaral and Carlson Gracie

Fragmented into seven chapters, the book opens with two remarkable contributions made not only by Capoeira fighters and experts in capoeira, but also by two experts in combat sports. After all, this is not a book about Capoeira’s fascinating game but as a fighting style.

Paulo Amaral is an amazing athlete, a bold and skillful fighter and an excellent Physical Education professional. Paulo Amaral was the referee (“conciliator”!) for some of the most emblematic confrontations between Capoeira and other martial art styles. Carlson Gracie does not need to be introduced at all; he is a legend who had already faced fighters from all modalities, even great Capoeira fighters.

Well, time has come to listen to such personalities. They provide us with precious statements so that this Capoeira-Fight might overcome the sameness it has been drowning at and then be able to actually develop again without extravagant dreaming, or simply, pseudo-folkloric texts.

Tribute & Alert

Libraries and historical archives are vital to the preservation of the Peoples’ and the World’s History. I myself have realized such importance mainly in Rio de Janeiro. Thence here is my tribute to the experts and assistants from such workplaces. Thence, also, my alert, since most reading and research centers I visited claim more attention from their respective authorities to maintain their collections of documents.

Prologue, inspired by Master Cervantes

Capoeiragem had been being transmitted from generation to generation through the Negro’s voice and body language. There was absolutely no quality loss though; on the contrary. Due to the fascination it caused, Capoeira invaded the middle class, the most elegant saloons and the universities. It was enough for the launching of uncountable complicated pretentious series of books full of citations and tortuous torturing explanations. The truth is that there are some good books and articles as well as some respectable doctoral essays – see at the end of the book: recommended Bibliography – but they are exceptions which confirm the general theory.

Pragmatically speaking, it would not be wise to ignore the pressure from those who demand citations, aphorisms and proverbs, if possible in Latin. The control is strict: if there are no citations, there cannot be a serious book!

Such theory explains the narrow success of great Capoeira books such as the one from the bold hard-working Master Paulo Gomes (“Capoeira, the Brazilian art” – “Capoeira, a arte Brasileira”) and from the polemic Lapa bohemian, “Caranguejo, A Capoeira from Virtudes’ Beach” – “Caranguejo da Praia das Virtudes” (Gomes, 1981; e
Santos, 1972).

As a fortunate coincidence, while I was rereading one of the greatest world literature classics, Dom Quixote de La Mancha (unquestionably, Quixote had the soul and the spirit of an authentic Capoeira fighter), I realized all I had to do was to follow the humored example of its Prologue. It is where Cervantes, after registering his anger against
some literary critics, offers the readers a varied dish of resistless citations. That is exactly what I did – based on brilliant Cervantes’ Prologue, I have humbly written mine.

First Chapter

The importance of Capoeiragem in Rio de Janeiro

Capoeira is fascinating but it is within the Society and not the other way round as some people, influenced by a comprehensible passion, come to believe. Full of pride, some Capoeira fighters from Bahia defend that, after being shown a wonderful and rehearsed Capoeira performance, Dictator Getúlio Vargas headed to his room and wrote a decree in which Capoeira would no longer be considered contravention. Such decree had never existed; the history was quite different and, as usual, everything began in Rio de Janeiro, the Brazilian Capital City at that time. (Esdras Magalhães dos Santos will soon publish a clarifying and surprising research work). This is what happens worldwide; the most advanced urban centers irradiate culture – lato senso – to other places throughout the
country.

The issue has fascinated social and political scientists, urban people, sociologists and public administrators. There is plenty of literature on this subject. But, in order to make it easy to understand the influences of Rio de Janeiro’s life style around the country, let’s mention the sport of soccer, where other states named their teams copying Rio’s own soccer environment, such as: Flamengo do Piauí, Botafogo da Paraíba, América de Natal, Fluminense de Feira de Santana, and so on.

In this chapter, however, I focus on this social phenomenon and offer some examples within Brazilian literature and press. I finish this first step transcribing some articles and headlines which emphasize, directly or indirectly, the Gracie importance to the spread of Capoeira around Rio de Janeiro and, consequently, all over Brazil.

Second and Third Chapters

Annibal Burlamaqui (Zuma) and Inezil Penna Marinho.

Although the book focuses on the extraordinary Sinhozinho and Rudolf Hermanny, I have judged it fair to add some information about the relevant contribution of two other characters: Annibal Burlamaqui and Inezil Penna Marinho.
Both have practiced Capoeira, Zuma more than Inezil; both have written books, Inezil more than Zuma.

It must be said that Inezil have got one more item to be contemplated, his interesting and warning Prayer of Capoeira – Oração da Capoeira.

Fourth Chapter

Agenor Moreira Sampaio, Sinhozinho

Not long ago I was in Salvador talking to Master Barba Branca and to the great Master João Pequeno when, after a while, Master Barba Branca stated:
- “I’m sorry, but I have never heard of Sinhozinho”.

By that time, such statement resulted in a small article of mine, published at Sports newspaper (Rio). It also helped me to start writing this chapter in which the reader will become aware of valuable statements and information about the paulista-carioca Agenor Moreira Sampaio. I have selected nine registers which will certainly help the reader to know Sinhozinho better: Agenor Sampaio by Inezil Penna Marinho, Ruy Castro, Mário
Peixoto, Eloy Dutra, Sergio Pettezzoni, Rudolf Hermanny, Rio Distrito Federal and Waldeloir Rego.

Within this chapter, I have selected three interesting articles:

First Article: “National Club of Gymnastic (Capoeira!): A big Promise” – “Club Nacional de Gymnastica (Capoeira!): Uma grande Promessa” – Diário de Notícias, Sports. Rio, 1931.

Second Article: “Capoeira’s Destiny” – “O Destino da Capoeira” – O Globo newspaper. Rio, 1951.

Third Article: “Works in Brazil for Capoeira’s survival” – “Trabalha-se no Brasil pela sobrevivência da Capoeira” – Correio da Manhã, newspaper. Rio, 1951. This specific chapter about Sinhozinho is closed with two articles:
- “Sinhozinho”. Jornal dos Sports. Rio, 1996.
- “Barba Branca and Sinhozinho” – “Barba Branca e Sinhozinho”. Jornal dos Sports. Rio, 1997.

Fifth Chapter

Sinhozinho’s Capoeira faces Regional Capoeira

A historic fight, between Sinhozinho’s and Master Bimba’s students, occurred in 1949 in Rio de Janeiro City. The chapter opens with the Master Bimba’s São Paulo phase – still counting on Master Bimba’s presence – it was tailed as the historical incursion of the Bahian’s people to the Wonder South (Sul Maravilha). Following the former chapters example, this fifth chapter is filled with transcriptions of journalistic articles. I have chosen a clear and simple transcription. In some cases, I have even scanned the texts and pasted them to the book in order to keep the veracity journalistic instance of each article.

So far, such event hasn’t been given its great importance yet. In spite of that, the revealing book by Esdras Magalhães dos Santos, Bimba’s student who participated in the incursion, can be taken as an exception. Moreover, Esdras’s version clearly contests some other Bahia researchers’ version. More than trying to clarify such contradictions, I believe time has come to pay tribute to the Capoeira fighters, both from Rio and Bahia States, who were brave enough to get in the ring. I am going even further – time has come to recover this experience, the only means of making Capoeira turns out again into its FIGHT style.The fifth chapter is structured as it follows:

I – Letter to Master Evaldo Bogado

II – Master Bimba and his students in São Paulo, 1949
1. According to some fielded books.
1.1 “Talking about Capoeira”
1.2 “Master Bimba – Capoeiragem Chronicle”
1.3 “Master Bimba, the Master’s Profile”
1.4 “A Critical Bibliography of Capoeira”
2. According to the video tape “Pastinha, a life for Capoeira”
3. According to newspapers from São Paulo

III – Master Bimba’s students in Rio, 1949
1. According to some fielded books
1.1 “Talking about Capoeira”
1.2 “Master Bimba – Capoeiragem Chronicle”
1.3 “Master Bimba, the Master’s Profile”
1.4 “A Critical Bibliography of Capoeira”
2. According to the video tape “Pastinha, a life for Capoeira”
3. According to newspapers from Rio
3.1 Before the fights
3.2 Fight: Luiz Aguiar “Cirandinha” versus Jurandir (Bimba)
3.3 Fight: Rudolf Hermanny versus Fernando Perez (Bimba)

Sixth Chapter

Rudolf de Otero Hermanny

This chapter is fragmented into four parts. The two first parts are divided similarly to Sinhozinho’s chapter: Initial Illustrations (comments) and statements about such extraordinary person as Rudolf Hermanny. Besides
Ruy Castro and Mário Peixoto, I have transcribed a passage from Hermanny’s own site (http://home.openlink.com.br/rohermanny (2001)).

The third part is dedicated to the historic event known as S.O.S to the Victims of the Drought Season in the Northeast Region of Brazil (“Pró-Flagelados”). It begins with the transcription of three very good articles followed by some of the author’s personal reflections:

First article: “Gracie’s students versus single fighters” (“Alunos dos Gracie versus lutadores avulsos”)

Second article: “The Only Rule: They just cannot kill Each Other” (“Eles apenas não podem matar”)

Third article: “Rudolf Hermanny and Carlson Gracie – impressing!” (“Rudolf Hermanny e Carlson Gracie – impressionantes!”)

The fourth and last part of this chapter sums up some records of another Capoeira confront which had been extremely important to the full understanding of the History of Capoeiragem in Brazil. It is the confrontation between Sinhozinho’s Utilitarian Capoeira (Rudolf Hermanny) and the great Bahia Capoeira fighter Artur Emídio de Oliveira. At first, through the partial transcription of an article and, as a matter of justice, I recorded and praised the extraordinary work that Master Artur had developed in Rio. For some decades his Capoeira school in Bonsucesso had become a sort of Capoeira’s headquarter (it was fought following the rhythm of the berimbau) in Rio and in Brazil as well.

I close this chapter transcribing three other respectable articles related to the combat above mentioned. Of course, some personal remarks are made.

First article: “Thrilling Capoeira –Hermanny won by Technical Knockout”
(“Capoeira Sensacional – venceu Hermanny por Nocaute Técnico”)

Second article: “Yesterday, at the Aluminum Palace – Hermanny’s splendid victory” (“Ontem, no Palácio de Alumínio – vitória espetacular de Hermanny”)

Third article: “Hermanny declares” (“Declara Hermanny”)

I - Warm up to the Cat’s Jump Theory
II - The Cat’s Jump Theory, general summary
III – CD-ROM Project - A Critical Bibliography of Capoeira (Capoeira’s Memory Project)
IV – Capoeira Martial Art Project (Sinhozinho Project)

This seventh and last chapter – The Cat’s Jump Theory – could be nothing but a balance of the book. Therefore, it is a balance of the importance of the contribution by those Masters and authors I have highlighted along the book. It is definitely true that such research can and must be deepened. Actually, I am sure that it will be. There is
highly important significant information which must not be put aside from the History of Capoeiragem and forgotten under any circumstances. From the pioneer work of ODC (1907) and Zuma (1928) to the champion Rudolf Hermanny, the book also remembers the awarded work of Inezil Penna Marinho and the extraordinary Master Sinhozinho and his legion of students-champions in several sports, especially in Capoeira! Capoeira greatness is right on the gathering of all those splendid people and their contributions to the development of this martial art. Such contributions had started in Africa, spread around Brazil and keep on rising – thanks God – throughout the world.

The reader will easily realize such truth, even those whose hearts prevent them from doing so due to any naive temporary localism; even those whose reason puzzles them through market and commercial purposes. It is fact that perception will favor – sorry about the insistence – a new series of researches, deepening the main theme of this book.

Moreover, a merited tribute will be paid to the main characters of my book by Capoeira Masters and the government, specially from Santos, São Paulo and Salvador; by the states of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Bahia; and, certainly, by the Federal Government. All the tributes will acknowledge the History of Capoeira, where, this martial art will become each time greater.

Although the main purpose of this book had been to report the importance of Sinhozinho’s Capoeira, I have judged it convenient to present, as an emerging project, two objective and concrete suggestions:

1. A project to spread even further the merited work developed by the National Art Foundation (Fundação Nacional de Arte), from the Ministry of Culture – “Capoeira: multimedia sources” (“Capoeira: fontes multimídia);

2. A project to recover the authentic Capoeira Fighting style! At last, in opposition to my criticism and doubts regarding bibliographic indications, I myself suggest some reading and mention some others.