Samba - an exotic dance from a faraway southern country

Samba - an exotic dance from a faraway southern country

When the slave traders of the XIV-XVI centuries brought slaves from Africa on sailing ships, they only thought about how to make money on cheap labor. However, along with new people, elements of a foreign culture penetrated the American continent: dances, songs, rhythms. Originating in the dry hot climate of Africa, samba was formed and formed as a separate area in South America. From here it penetrated the European continent.

Story

Information about the origin of the dance is contradictory. Some sources indicate that it originated in the 17th century in the Pedra do Sal Rio de Janeiro area, where the large slave-owning market was located. In others, the state of Bahia in eastern Brazil is indicated as the birthplace. Over time, samba rooted in large cities, penetrated into remote areas, small villages and became the national Brazilian dance.

Where the word samba comes from is not known for certain. There are several versions:

1) from the Angolan "semba" (so called one of the main elements of the ritual of African dance);

2) from the word "saamba" from the language group of the Congo nationalities (by this term it was meant a certain ritual of "dedication" when a person received in a collective a new social status);

3) from the African "kumba" ("love", "beloved").

In addition to the utilitarian, there is a poetic interpretation of the word samba. Sometimes this term is translated as "sadness, homesickness."

For Brazilians, samba is the same as for Russians dancing and round dance. It reflects the spirit of Brazilians, their mood, philosophy of life, national character. Brazilians believe that a foreigner can not reliably convey all the movements of this truly folk dance, as a representative of the Brazilian people is unlikely to dance to Camarins. In this and in another case, we get a pathetic copy of the original.

Initially, African dance assumed a solo performance - paired elements appeared in it, thanks to the European cultural tradition.

The specifics of samba schools

Samba first appeared in the eastern (coastal) regions of Brazil. Gradually, the dance developed, penetrating into major cities and small villages. Like any folklore phenomenon, it became variable, acquiring specific local features. In this regard, samba can be compared with the development of the language: there is a literary version of speech, but there are local dialects that a resident of another region may not understand. The same metamorphosis occurred with the dance. The urban samba is not at all the same as in the village; the dance of one region of Brazil is significantly different from another. Therefore, the samba schools in the country - a great many. We know samba mainly by expressive ball version. However, there are many others:

1. Samba de kind - It is considered the most ancient kind of ritual collective dance. Lining up in a circle, only women dance; men accompany.
2. Samba well pe - It is this option that we most often see during carnival processions. The woman actually stands still, but at the same time she dances.
3. Samba de Gafeeira - pair dance with rock and roll elements.

Throughout history, samba has been complemented with elements of waltz and aerobics, hip-hop and rap, reggae and Brazilian rock. There is an expressive sports version of this dance, which is refined, "salon". There is a sad lyric samba and frank sabbath with erotic overtones. Initially, this dance is associated with ritual dances. It is not only the spirit of fun and celebration, but also religious overtones.

Samba and its differences from other dances

Of course, such an incendiary and free dance could take root only in a country with a warm climate, where the average annual air temperature does not fall below 20 ° C. Brazil turned out to be a blessed place, where samba not only “took firm roots”, but also enriched itself with the traditions of the European waltz, as well as rock and roll and disco.

If you remove from the dance complex ballroom elements, it will resemble the dancing of savages near a fire - with beads in loincloths. Samba does not need complicated music - the simplest accompaniment is good: a tambourine, maracas, drums, there and there. In the absence of musical instruments, you can hum a melody or just clap your hands ...

One should not think that if a samba does not need complicated music, then to dance it is simple. This is a difficult dance. Play all the elements without prior preparation is impossible. What seems to us to be free, rhythmic movements requires long training sessions and follows strict rules. Each movement is practiced for months in the dance hall.

Famous compositions

"Mas Que Nada" ("More than anything") - 1963 classic composition performed by Sergio Mendez (Sergio Mendez) and Brazil 66. An excellent track to learn the basics of Portuguese, because the lyrics are repeated many times! The main idea of ​​this composition is very simple: "When a samba sounds, everything else doesn't matter. All I want to do is dance."

"Mas Que Nada" (listen)

"Samba de janeiro" ("January Samba"). Simple, but very incendiary melody. There are practically no words in it. "Hands up, hands down - we dance samba!"

"Samda de Janeiro" (listen)

"Samba de Verao" ("Summer Samba") - a song by Brazilian composer Marcus Vale. Appearing in 1964, by the beginning of the 21st century she managed to become the most performed song in the world (ahead of such hits as "Yesterday", "Besame Mucho") and deservedly took the first place in the Guinness Book of Records. This composition is a visual confirmation of the principle “all ingenious is simple.” Love is like a hot summer, and the girl's eyes look like a bottomless sea. Here is a simple recipe for true happiness.

Carnival in Rio de Janeiro

Millions of people in the world do not know anything about Brazil. But almost everyone has heard about the Brazilian carnival - one of the main world shows of our planet. The street carnival of various samba schools became a prototype of carnival processions. In fact, the carnival remains a grand contest of such schools and to this day

Today the show is a grandiose spectacle of world scale. On the preparation of the program, the equipment of dancers and the design of moving platforms in individual schools of samba takes more than a million dollars. Dance on the platform is significantly different from those expressive compositions that we used to see at competitions of ballroom dancers. It is easy to explain. The girl on the platform has to dance all day. In addition, in the lush feather outfit it is difficult to move actively - its weight reaches 50-60 kg.

Interesting Facts

• In Russian, the word samba is feminine, in Portuguese - masculine.
• Samba is not only dance, but an organic combination of movements, music and singing. The performer of the song variant of samba is called "sambishta" (sambista).
• The earliest surviving musical record of samba was the record of 1917 with the carnival song "On the Phone".
• The version of dance that we know from demonstration performances at ball competitions is called international in Brazil. In the country itself, it is not very popular.
• There are several hundred samba schools in Brazil. There are rich and famous, there are simple, poor, unknown to anyone.
• Samba is a compulsory Latin American ballroom dancing program.
• The project of the so-called sambodrom (streets with stands, on which the final part of the carnival is held) was created by the famous Brazilian architect, one of the founders of modern architecture, Oscar Niemeyer.

The short word "samba" unites a whole range of different genres. This song, and dance, and lifestyle. Samba is many-sided. This may be a fiery passionate dance or a calm philosophical composition. We admire samba, we admire the beautiful bodies of the dancers, envying those who so carelessly and sincerely can dance the whole day.