Statesman

Issue date: 11/18/09 Section: Variety

Media Credit: Ken Olson Capoeira blends acrobatic moves into a harmonious and fluid rhythm.

Media Credit: Ken Olson

The world we live in today is unfortunately filled with greed, corruption and violence. Violence permeates into our daily lives through media, through circumstances, and even in video games. But, what if this horrible concept of violence could be modified, changed at its very roots? What if you could completely change the attitude of combat? This question begins to dive into the ideals of Capoeira.

Capoeira is a form of martial arts that originated in Brazil. While Capoeira is fundamentally different from the traditional view of martial arts, it is not in any way about harming the opponent. Capoeira, although combative in nature, is about mutually benefiting all players in the "roda," or the circle of participants.

Stephen Vosberg, the leader of Capoeira club at UMD said, "Capoeira is an African, Brazilian, dance, martial art, combined into a peaceful game." Capoeira incorporates kicks, dodges, and other moves, but these moves are never done with the intent of harming another individual. Each move is a new part of the dance, a new element of the game. Vosberg said that, "It is like in football, there is the game and there are a bunch of little victories. In Capoeira, there are those little moments, like when you learn a new cool move."

Vosberg is a purple-green cord in the art of Capoeira. Two other members of the group have gained this rank: Justin Brach and Matt Harris. The group at UMD is composed of a dedicated collection of male and female students, some highly experienced and some not. Capoeira is definitely a learning process, however, it is not something that an amateur cannot enjoy.

Anthony Brown, a newcomer to Capoeira said, "It's not one of those things where you have to do it for years and years before you get anything out of it. I have only been doing this for a couple weeks, and I really feel like I have gained a lot."

Capoeira involves multiple tasks including singing, dancing, clapping, dodging, kicking and a variety of other acrobatic moves. All of these actions are combined into a kind of harmony, a peaceful rhythm of fluid motions.

Lynn Gunter, another member of the club, said, "It's learning a lot of different things mixed into one. You learn gymnastic flips, a little bit of the Portuguese language, multi-tasking, clapping, singing and playing all at once. It's a great interaction with other people."

Capoeira has a rich background and history originating back to slave plantations in Brazil where African slaves were the originators of Capoeira. For a long time, it remained isolated in Brazil, but recently its popularity has grown greatly and it has gained prominence all over the world. People embrace Capoeira as a way to exercise, enjoy music, get in touch with another culture and get to know people, all at the same time.

Capoeira club can be intimidating to people, both in its uniqueness and its basement location. Yet once the nature of Capoeira is understood, intimidation is not a word that comes to mind.

Nicolas Deshaw, a dark green cord in Capoeira said, "Capoeira is for men, women and children. The only person it's not for is people who don't want to try." Capoeira is not exclusive; the club welcomes anyone and everyone with any desire to dabble in this art form. While the Capoeira club may not be able to completely overcome the problem of violence in this world, the idea of Capoeira is certainly a step in the right direction.

Capoeira Club at UMD meets Thursday at 8 p.m. in 33 Sports and Health Center.

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