Samba and its movements
Anyone can dance Samba! Samba originated many years ago and continues to be a great influence to dancing today. Samba also came from the dance Lundu that was brought to Brazil by slaves. The word samba originated as the word “semba” which is defined as praying to their dieties. Samba is defined as a set of dances, instead of a single dance. Before 1914 it was known under a Brazilian name known as "Maxixe." According to Peter Fryer, in his book, Rhythms of Resistance, he states that Maxixe is a “second missing link in the prehistory of samba” (Fryer 155). This type of dancing came after the Lundu dance and before Samba had officially established in Brazil. Samba developed as a special kind of dance at the beginning of the 20th century in Rio de Janerio. “Samba de roda was a dance often performed in the morros de Rio de Janeiro, meaning in the slum cities or where poor people lived, surrounding Rio de Janeiro.” In the beginning when Samba arose, it was typically “danced in a ring of people singing, clapping their hands and playing drums and with light instruments.” Also in the middle of the circle two dancers would have a samba competition which could be seen as aggressive yet beautiful.
Anyone can dance Samba! Samba originated many years ago and continues to be a great influence to dancing today. Samba also came from the dance Lundu that was brought to Brazil by slaves. The word samba originated as the word “semba” which is defined as praying to their dieties. Samba is defined as a set of dances, instead of a single dance. Before 1914 it was known under a Brazilian name known as "Maxixe." According to Peter Fryer, in his book, Rhythms of Resistance, he states that Maxixe is a “second missing link in the prehistory of samba” (Fryer 155). This type of dancing came after the Lundu dance and before Samba had officially established in Brazil. Samba developed as a special kind of dance at the beginning of the 20th century in Rio de Janerio. “Samba de roda was a dance often performed in the morros de Rio de Janeiro, meaning in the slum cities or where poor people lived, surrounding Rio de Janeiro.” In the beginning when Samba arose, it was typically “danced in a ring of people singing, clapping their hands and playing drums and with light instruments.” Also in the middle of the circle two dancers would have a samba competition which could be seen as aggressive yet beautiful.
The picture above shows people practicing modern samba in a studio. In many places people take classes to lean the art form of Samba. It is interesting to see how a dance that came from slaves in Africa, have come to be such a popular form of movement.
The picture below shows the normal type of person dancing samba during the carnivals.
The picture below shows the normal type of person dancing samba during the carnivals.
There are basic dance moves that everyone can learn that require a lot of hip movements. Samba is usually done while walking to make it easier to walk in the parade and h
ave fun at the same time. In a parade, there is very limited space available to move about. Any available space is precious because the closer, the more the culture is observed. Samba uses walking steps and side steps as the basic beginning movements of the dance. “The major characteristic of the Samba dance is the vertical bounce action. Steps are taken using the ball of the foot.” People who have been doing this for years make it look easy and carefree. They use knee action, body swaying and "pendulum motion" to make their dancing look as fluid as possible. The Basic step in samba is called a Volta. This movement is done by a crossing action in front of the body, where you step across with the bounce. The bouncing action will come from the knees. Hip movement is very important and even has a name. It is the Samba roll. This is done through a rolling movement that goes from the waist up and the upper body making your hips move in a circular motion. Botafogo is the move in Samba which consists of a traveling walk with a change of direction from left to right or right to left. Those are the basic moves of samba that anyone can learn and master with a little bit of practice. The very end of a samba dance has a variety of extended arm movements, and finally there is a movement of throwing the head back and putting your arms up as to say “ta da! I finished.”
ave fun at the same time. In a parade, there is very limited space available to move about. Any available space is precious because the closer, the more the culture is observed. Samba uses walking steps and side steps as the basic beginning movements of the dance. “The major characteristic of the Samba dance is the vertical bounce action. Steps are taken using the ball of the foot.” People who have been doing this for years make it look easy and carefree. They use knee action, body swaying and "pendulum motion" to make their dancing look as fluid as possible. The Basic step in samba is called a Volta. This movement is done by a crossing action in front of the body, where you step across with the bounce. The bouncing action will come from the knees. Hip movement is very important and even has a name. It is the Samba roll. This is done through a rolling movement that goes from the waist up and the upper body making your hips move in a circular motion. Botafogo is the move in Samba which consists of a traveling walk with a change of direction from left to right or right to left. Those are the basic moves of samba that anyone can learn and master with a little bit of practice. The very end of a samba dance has a variety of extended arm movements, and finally there is a movement of throwing the head back and putting your arms up as to say “ta da! I finished.”In a parade the whistle becomes a very important instrument. Dancers and musicians wait for the blow 
of the whistle to start. For dancers, this means to start to marching forward. The parade consists of hundreds of people and it is interesting to see how a cultural knows what to do when a whistle is blown. Dancers with their decorated feathers and Tupi Indian attire, start dancing their national dance.
As seen in the picture, both the African and Native Indian influences are portray. The woman on top of the float is a Afro-Brazilian woman wearing a Tupi bikini.
Samba also consists of a variety of Orixa dance influences. Because samba a form of protest, a portion of the dance moves are to state a political issue. For example the Orixa Ogum, when the arm do a cutting action, which belong to him, it is to demonstrate that something is wished to be stopped. Vibrant bright colors and lots of feathered hats make up the basic costumes. These types of clothing allow the dancers to move about freely without much weight and a lot of swinging motions. It has been performed as a street dance at carnival for a long time and pictures like this help preserve the memories.
The picture above also displays a samba carnival at work. This picture also has bright colors to show the excitement in the atmosphere. There are always big floats with people dancing on them.
To sum up, Samba is a dance Brazil considers a nationality. Brazil receives many tourist and studies yearly. Curiosity makes people around the world come visit and see what Samba has to offer because of the exotic dance moves that trace back to Africa and Portugal. Samba has become a dance form full of numerous dance moves that come from different identities of the world.
of the whistle to start. For dancers, this means to start to marching forward. The parade consists of hundreds of people and it is interesting to see how a cultural knows what to do when a whistle is blown. Dancers with their decorated feathers and Tupi Indian attire, start dancing their national dance.As seen in the picture, both the African and Native Indian influences are portray. The woman on top of the float is a Afro-Brazilian woman wearing a Tupi bikini.
Samba also consists of a variety of Orixa dance influences. Because samba a form of protest, a portion of the dance moves are to state a political issue. For example the Orixa Ogum, when the arm do a cutting action, which belong to him, it is to demonstrate that something is wished to be stopped. Vibrant bright colors and lots of feathered hats make up the basic costumes. These types of clothing allow the dancers to move about freely without much weight and a lot of swinging motions. It has been performed as a street dance at carnival for a long time and pictures like this help preserve the memories.
The picture above also displays a samba carnival at work. This picture also has bright colors to show the excitement in the atmosphere. There are always big floats with people dancing on them.
To sum up, Samba is a dance Brazil considers a nationality. Brazil receives many tourist and studies yearly. Curiosity makes people around the world come visit and see what Samba has to offer because of the exotic dance moves that trace back to Africa and Portugal. Samba has become a dance form full of numerous dance moves that come from different identities of the world.
Diego, this was very exciting to read, but where are the citations and hot links? Bibliography? I know you cited Fryer, but it reads as if you did a good deal of research on the moves themselves. Watch your grammar, especially verb conjugation in the past and imperfect.
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sorry, i just realized that this was posted by DAISY, who neglected to use her real name! AHHH!
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