Berimbau

African music · Brazil · capoeira · percussion

Ancient African bow. The berimbau comes from Angola in Africa and traveled to Brazil, where it became super important to Brazilian culture. It has just one string attached to a curved wooden stick.

Gourd makes the sound. A hollow gourd acts like a speaker for the berimbau, making the thin string's vibrations loud and resonant. Players tap the string with a stick and hit it with a coin or stone to create different pitches.

Heartbeat of capoeira. The berimbau is the backbone of capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian martial art that mixes dance, fighting, and acrobatics. The rhythm guides every movement the dancers make.

Spiritual traditions. The berimbau was used in candomblé, an African-Brazilian spiritual practice, and has always been connected to storytelling and celebrations. It helped keep African culture alive through music.

Now played worldwide. For a long time, mostly Black communities in Brazil played the berimbau, but after capoeira became famous around the world, the berimbau spread too. Today musicians use it in many different genres of music.