Cultural Summary: Character And Origin Of Samba

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Samba The word “samba” is believed to be derived from the word semba, a Kimbundu term, which translates to an “invitation to dance”. The word was also a shared title of dance parties held by slaves in rural areas of Rio. Starting around 1550, the Portugese began trading slaves from the West African and Central African regions of Ghana, Benin, Nigeria, Angola, Congo, and Mozambique (Lyons). According to Lyons, Brazil holds an estimated 90 million people of Black origin. The Africans’ cultural traditions eventually merged with Portuguese’s cultural traditions and formed a unique culture of its own. In the 16th century African slaves began to introduce cultural dances such as the Caterere, the Embolada, the Batuque, and the Lundu to name a few. …show more content…

In their article “Character and Origin of Samba”, Dwain and Judy Sechrist explain: Ballroom Samba is danced to music in 2/4 or 4/4 time. In 2/4 time, the basic movements are counted either 1, 2, consisting of two steps, each using 1 beat [SS]; or three steps counted 1a, 2, [SaS] with beat values of 3/4, 1/4, and 1. Additional rhythm structures may be used, such as 1, 1/2, 1/2 [SQQ]; 1/2, 1/2, 1/2, 1/2 [QQQQ]; and 3/4, 1/2, 3/4 [123]. Most Samba movements require two measures to complete a rhythmic structure in 2/4 time. For this reason, many movements lend themselves to descriptions as if using one measure in 4/4 time (Dixie Round Dance Council Newsletter). Starting in the 1920s and leading into the 1930s, sambas were not as fast-paced and more romantic in composition. This lead to the creation of a sub-genre known as samba-canção, which accentuated melody over rhythm. Samba-canção began to lose its popularity in the early 1950s; therefore, a more percussive and trendier sub-genre began to cultivate in the poor areas. At first called samba de morro because of its development in the morros (hills), the style came to be known as samba-de-batucada, and emphasized the polyrhythmic sounds of multiple percussion instruments (Sambassadors of …show more content…

“The Message of Brazilian Rituals: Popular Celebrations and Carnival.” Brazil: Body and Soul, The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York, 2001, pp. 46–51. “History of Samba.” Sambassadors, www.sambassadorsofgroove.org.uk/history-of-samba.html. Kellen, Ron, and Rebecca Kellen. “Samba History.” Dance Lovers, Dance Lovers, www.dancelovers.com/samba_history.html. Lyons, Lauri. “Afro-Brazilian History, Beats and Culture.” The Huffington Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 10 Feb. 2010, www.huffingtonpost.com/lauri-lyons/afro-brazilian-history-be_b_452877.html. Sechrist, Dwain, and Judy Sechrist. “Character and Origin of Samba.” Character and Origin of Samba, Dixie Round Dance Council (DRDC) Newsletter, Nov. 2009,

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