Maculelê (Pronounced: mah-koo-leh-LEH) is a dance from Brazil where a number of people gather in a circle called a Roda with one or more Atabaque positioned at the entrance of the circle. Each person brandishes a pair of long sticks, traditionally made from biriba wood from Brazil. The sticks, called Grimas, traditionally measure 24 inches long by 1 and 1/8 inch thick. As the Maculelê rhythm plays on the Atabaque, the people in the circle begin rhythmically striking the sticks together. The leader sings, and the people in the circle respond by singing the chorus of the songs. When the leader gives the signal to begin playing Maculelê, two people enter the circle, and to the rhythm of the Atabaque, they begin striking their own and each other's sticks together. On the first three beats, they strike their own sticks together, making expressive and athletic dance movements, and on each fourth beat, they strike each other's respective right-hand stick together. This makes for a dance that looks like "mock stick combat". (Also, traditionally in Maculelê, the players wear dried grass skirts). A contemporary dancer rehearsing in a dance studio Dance (from Old French dance, further history unknown) generally refers to human movement either used as a form of expression (see also body language) or presented in a social, spiritual or performance setting. ... Pronounced ho-da, portueguese for circle ... The atabaque (Pronounced: Ah-tah-bah-keh) is a tall, wooden, Afro-Brazilian hand drum. ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Grimas are wooden sticks, made traditionally from biriba wood in Brazil, and used in Maculelê. They measure 24 inches long by 1 and 1/8 inch thick. ... Rhythm (Greek ρυθμός = tempo) is the variation of the duration of sounds or other events over time. ... The atabaque (Pronounced: Ah-tah-bah-keh) is a tall, wooden, Afro-Brazilian hand drum. ... In common usage, leadership generally refers to: the position or office of an authority figure, such as a President [1] a group of influential people, such as a union leadership [2] guidance or direction, as in the phrase the emperor is not providing much leadership capacity or ability to lead... In classical music a chorus is any substantial group of performers in a play, revue, musical or opera who act more or less as one. ... The atabaque (Pronounced: Ah-tah-bah-keh) is a tall, wooden, Afro-Brazilian hand drum. ... Beating is striking more than once, in violence, beating a drum, etc. ... In popular language grass means a short, green, ground covering or lawn, usually, but not necessarily comprised of a true grass or grasses, called turf. ... A skirt is a traditionally feminine tube- or cone-shaped garment which is worn from the waist and covers the legs. ...

Origins

The origins of Maculelê are shrouded in mystery, and there are many stories, theories and beliefs that claim "this is how Maculelê came to be". Here are two:

1. During the slave era in Brazil, the slaves in the sugarcane plantations would gather and play Maculelê as a game to vent their anger and frustration from being slaves. At this time, machetes were used instead of sticks. Sticks were later incorporated for safety reasons. However, some experts still use machetes.
2. There were two tribes in Brazil: a peaceful tribe, and a warlike one. The warlike tribe would repeatedly attack the peaceful tribe, who had no way of defending themselves. One day, during an attack, a young boy named "Maculelê" picked up a pair of sticks and fought off the other tribe. The other tribe never attacked again. The boy did manage to fight them off completely, but died trying. His home tribe then made a mock combat dance using sticks and named the dance "Maculelê" in his honor and memory.

Maculelê is sometimes practiced by itself, but is quite often practiced alongside Capoeira, and featured in many Capoeira performances. The word slaves has several meanings and usages: People who are owned by others, and live to serve them without pay. ... Species Saccharum arundinaceum Saccharum bengalense Saccharum edule Saccharum officinarum Saccharum procerum Saccharum ravennae Saccharum robustum Saccharum sinense Saccharum spontaneum Sugarcane or Sugar cane (Saccharum) is a genus of between 6-37 species (depending on taxonomic interpretation) of tall grasses (family Poaceae, tribe Andropogoneae), native to warm temperate to tropical regions... A sugarcane plantation at Ribeirão Preto, Brazil, 2005 A plantation is a large tract of monoculture, as a tree plantation, a cotton plantation, a tea plantation or a tobacco plantation. ... Categories: Weapon stubs | Swords | Mechanical hand tools ... Capoeira or the Dance of War by Johann Moritz Rugendas, 1835 Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian martial art developed in the 1500s by African slaves. ... Capoeira or the Dance of War by Johann Moritz Rugendas, 1835 Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian martial art developed in the 1500s by African slaves. ...