Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Capoeira The Misunderstood Fighting Art

By Connor Smith


Capoeira is often a misunderstood martial art. Not too many people know about it and if they do, they often refer to it as the dancing martial arts. Brazil lays claim to this martial arts as it was created there around 400 years ago by the slaves that were brought there. It is quite a different martial arts, since it combines moves that seem like dance moves, is very fluid, requires some balance and some finesse to use it.

It can be practice by anyone and is not dependent on weight, age or size. It also has a lot of history and tradition in Brazil. It is quite a social event to watch to players play the sport. In fact you might be taken back at first.

The reason for this is because of the music that is playing during the match. The matches are called jogo and the lyrics and music are important in it. The speed of the matches is determined by the rhythm of the music. The typical jogo is held in a circle with the players in the middle. Then all around the base of the circle you will have the musicians.

To enter into the jogo, the player will enter with a very appealing movement. This is typically a cartwheel, spring or something along those lines. They then will compete with each other using different moves and aerial displays. This is where the rhythm of the music comes in. While it might look easy to participate in the jogo, it takes years of work to learn how to move just like they move. It is not something that you can do over night.

Capoeira is often showcased in movies. The reason for this is that it can be a very beautiful martial art to watch. It seems like it was made for the movies. It can also be an effective, from a self-defense point of view. Since its moves tend to appear random and dance like, it can be very hard to know where the next move is going to come from. This will often confuse the person that is fighting someone knows this martial art.




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