ABSTRACT
In 2012 I went to Brazil for five months to train with FICA Bahia as part of a piece of research I was conducting on capoeira. I went to training between three and five times a week for two hours at a time, and attended the weekly game, the roda, on a Saturday mornings. The roda lasted for around three hours, and players took turns to play instruments, engage in the physical game, and sit in the circle (also called the roda) supporting the players with singing. The roda has a ritual and spiritual element to it, although is not necessarily associated with religious practice:
KEY WORDS
• African religion
• identity
• memory
• migration
• spirituality
there are conventions relating to respecting the physical space (for example: entering and leaving the game from the “mouth,” where the musicians sit, not walking across the circle), and respecting the nature of the game (controlling aggression, and acknowledging hierarchy within the group). There are no rules in capoeira, so adherence to convention is what maintains coherence.
