contact bantusWhat does Bantus Mean?
The name Bantus refers to a broad African ethnic group, the Bantu people, who shared a similar language root and occupied two thirds of Western & Southern Africa (Angola, Guinea, Congo, Mozambique etc). The term Bantu refers to over 400 different ethnic groups from these African regions. –NTU means “human” and BA- indicates a plural, put together it means “people”.
Grupo Bantus Capoeira
Grupo Bantus Capoeira was founded by Mestre Pintor in 1991 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Mestre Pintor has over 40 years experience in capoeira, and was taught by the world famous Mestre João Pequeno. Bantus Capoeira now has branches across Brazil, Australia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia & Thailand.
At Bantus Capoeira we play the Angola, Regional, and Contemporânea styles of capoeira. We also practice Samba, Maculelê, Puxada de Rede, Dança Afro and Forró, all forms of Brazilian dance.
Who is Mestre Pintor?
Paulo Cesar Leite dos Santos, or Mestre Pintor as he is known within Capoeira circles, is the master of Grupo Bantus Capoeira in Brazil. He started playing around with Capoeira on the streets as a teenager. Later he trained in Belo Horizonte and then Bahia with various masters, chasing after knowledge of Capoeira, before coming to rest in the academy of Mestre João Pequeno of Pastinha in Salvador, Bahia. He graduated as a master in 1989 with the group of Macaco at the Escola de Educacao Fisica in Belo Horizonte, and after a few more years training with Mestre João Pequeno also graduated as a master of Capoeira Angola.
Who is Formado Grão?
Born Fabiano Franca in a growing favella in Belo Horizonte, Brazil in the 1980s, like most Brazilian children Grão experienced capoeira as part of his culture ... as common as soccer and samba in his neighbourhood streets. A local Professor showed him the true nature of capoeira - community and togetherness - giving hope and inspiration to the children of the favella, and fostering a respect for peers, elders and onself. As a teenager, Grão progressed through the ranks of his first school and trained with notable Mestres of Rio and Belo Horizonte, such as Mestre Peixe and Tony Vargas. Spending his weekends and weeknights scouring the city for rodas on the streets and parks of Belo Horizonte - Grão saw that the capoeira community gave his generation an exit from the favellas and it was at this time he met other capoeiristas who were teaching overseas who encouraged him to train hard and aim for something worthwhile.
He turned down an offer to perform with Cirque do Soleil as he did not want to give up on his capoeira career, the passion of his life.
Attaining his Professor cord at 18 years of age, Grão was leading classes and youth outreach programs for kids and teenagers all over Belo Horizonte - teaching self discipline, respect and determination through capoeira. Grão made the choice to join Grupo Bantus Capoeira in Belo Horizonte after friends encouraged him and it was here that he experienced the quality, wisdom and dedication of the group founder Mestre Pintor. It was here at Bantus Capoeira that Grão cultivated new moves and complexity in his game.
Grão impressed Mestre Pinotr so much that Pintor invited Grão to attend World Meet of Capoeiristas in Perth, Australia in September 2007. This was Grão's first trip outside of his home state. With a bag of clothes, a passport and three or four words of English, Grão crossed the Atlantic and Indian oceans to Australian soil.
Formado Grão has since become a firm and dazzling figure in the performing arts and youth outreach programs across Western Australia, recognized for his professionalism, enthusiasm and passion for helping others through capoeira. He has ensured that Bantus is and will remain the friendliest academy, promoting not only quality teaching of culture and capoeira, but a strong community and social bond within the group.
World Capoeira Festivals
Every year the group holds a “World Meet” - a capoeira cultural exchange with our fellow members at their academies. In 2006 we made the long trip to our headquarters in BH, Brazil for the 15th Anniversary of Bantus Capoeira. It was an unforgettable journey where we had the fortune to meet many famous masters including Mestre Pintor, Mestre Escamoso, Mestre Sena, Mestre Jaime do Mar Grande, Mestre Ciro, Mestre Tamandua, Mestre João, and the great Mestre João Pequeno, and instructors and students of capoeira from around the world. The week-long festival consisted of capoeira games, workshops, lectures, and presentations of all aspects of Afro-Brazilian culture and dance!
2011 celebrates 20 years of Grupo Bantus Capoeira - and we are celebrating every chance we get. Capoeiristas from Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brazil, Indonesia and Thailand make pilgramages to one or more of the many Festivals - learning, expanding upon and being enthralled by capoeira.
The Batizado
A batizado (pronounced “ba-chi-za-doh”) is an initiation and grading ceremony where capoeira students receive their first capoeira cord. The students wear their cord around their waist through the belt loops of their pants. The cords are hand made with wool of various colours. The first Bantus cord is made from the colours red, black, and white. The 2nd to 11th (final) cords are made from the colours of the Brazilian flag, blue, green, yellow, and white. As a capoeira student progresses and improves in the art of capoeira, they change their cords at the batizado ceremony in another capoeira tradition known as the troca de corda, or change of cords. To reach the master level (mestre de capoeira) the student needs to dedicate their life to capoeira and can take up to 30 years of training.
The batizado and troca de cordas must be supervised by the mestre of the group, in our case, Mestre Pintor, and the group’s highest ranking instructors and happens only once a year.
The Grupo Bantus Capoeira Cord System
Higher cords are received according to capoeira skills, knowledge and effort to improve the game and active participation in the group.
Beginner Cords
White/Black/Red (Coral)
Green
Green/Yellow
Intermediate Cords
Yellow
Yellow/Blue
Advanced Cords
Blue (Aluno Graduado)
Blue/White (Transition)
Blue/Green (Aluno Formado)
Blue/Green/Yellow (Professor)
Blue/Green/White (Contra Mestre)
Blue/Green/White/Yellow (Mestre)
Apelidos ... About Capoeira Nicknames
Before it was legalised, the punishment for practicing Capoeira was extreme, and the police were vicious in their attempt to stamp out the art. Capoeira continued to be practiced, but it moved further underground. Rodas were often held in areas with plenty of escape routes, and a special rhythm called cavalaria was added to the music to warn players that the police were coming.
To avoid being persecuted, Capoeiristas also gave themselves nicknames, often more than one. This made it much harder for the police to discover their true identities. This tradition continues to this day. When a person is baptized into Capoeira at the batizado ceremony, they are given a nickname.
Their nickname is usually based on a personal character trait or an event that person is famous for.
