Abstract
Bateria (bah-teh-REE-ah) means drum set in Portuguese. In terms of Brazilian samba music, the bateria is the percussion ensemble driving the groove of the whole samba band. Organizing a batucada (bah-tooKAH-dah), a Brazilian percussion jam session, is possible in general music classes throughout elementary and secondary school. The necessary instruments are easily available through percussion and educator websites. In addition, quality online tutorials are easily accessible.
Bateria (bah-teh-ree-ah) means drum set in Portuguese. In terms of Brazilian samba music, the bateria is the percussion ensemble driving the groove of the whole samba band. Organizing a batucada (bah-too-kah-dah), a Brazilian percussion jam session, is possible in general music classes throughout elementary and secondary school. 1 The necessary instruments are easily available through percussion and educator websites. In addition, quality online tutorials are easily accessible. 2
A Brief History of Samba Music
Brazilian music has many cultural influences, including indigenous practices, Portuguese by way of colonization for three centuries, and a strong presence of West African sounds. The latter is due to the fact that more than four million West Africans of mostly Yoruba and Bantu-Ewe cultural groups were brought to Brazil as slaves, with a large number of people from Angola, also a Portuguese colony during slavery.
A living music tradition with its roots in West African music culture is samba. Samba music easily moves between folk and popular music in Brazil. Composers regularly incorporate older tunes into contemporary arrangements. This practice is prevalent enough that truly discerning a song’s origin is a complicated process. Contemporary samba is learned and performed in the escolas de samba (schools of samba), which are communities of dancers and musicians, with variations between regions both rural and urban. Their purpose is exclusively devoted to the development of Carnaval parades as part of the preparation for the season of Lent, typically found wherever the Catholic church was involved in colonization (Howard & Kelley, 2018).
The Bateria
The bateria is the percussion band of a samba school. Typically, the most powerful rhythmic energy in a Carnaval procession emanates from the bateria. Members may number as high as 400 from the larger escolas with full performance groups numbering into the thousands. Bateria rhythms move in duple meter and consist of only percussion instruments.
In the early 20th century, the first samba percussion instruments were made to imitate West African drums. In the 1930s, barrels came into use for the surdo (bass drum) and greatly improved the sound. Added over the following decades were the pandeiro (tambourine with head), agogo (double metal bell), caixa (snare), chocalho and ganza (shakers), and reco reco (loud metal scraper). Over the 1940s and 1950s, the tamborim (small high-pitched drum) was added and nylon heads replaced animal-skins (Howard & Kelley, 2018). General music teachers can be creative in substituting instruments at hand if they are unable to acquire or afford the instruments all at once:
A selection of Brazilian percussion instruments from Left to Right: tamborim, surdo, apito (whistle), pandeiro, cuica (friction drum), reco reco, agogo, repinique (high-pitched drum).
Batucada Rhythms
Included here are possible rhythms for several of the samba instruments. These are single examples, but there are countless more options for each instrument. These can be simplified for younger players, or even played one instrument at a time. The first set of rhythms is for the surdo, typically grouped in threes: Surdo de Primeira (first surdo) is the largest bass drum, responsible for the primary beat (the second, stronger beat); Surdo de segunda (second surdo) is the response to the primeira acting as a counterpoint, playing a higher pitch (if possible); and the Surdo de Terceira (third surdo) that plays in between the primeira and segunda rhythms. Each samba school has its own way of inserting the terceira.
When there is a rest in the surdo rhythms, the fingertips of the nonmallet hand make a muted tap that holds in place, no rebound, on the drum head. It makes a dampened sound, but soft and subtle.
The agogo bell is a multi-toned bell with its ancestry in the double iron bells common in many West African music traditions.
There are several shaker-type instruments that can play the following rhythm including the rocar, ganza, and chocalho.
The pandeiro is a framed hand-drum ringed with jingles. It is popular throughout Brazil and played in other styles in addition to samba. It can be played at a virtuosic level, and also taken down to a simplified version by taking a simpler rhythm and cutting the time in half. The thumb strikes across the drumhead in a downward motion, the fingertips tap toward the center, and then the heel of the palm hits the head. These strokes all happen with minimal moving of the hand for a light and delicate sound.
The tamborim is a small high-pitched drum played with a plastic beater, and it provides a punch in the top layer of sounds. The accented notes are played with the stick on the head. The unaccented notes are played in the same manner and with the fingertips of the hand holding the instrument touching the back of the drumhead to dampen it.
Samba rhythms have found their way to the popular cajon as seen in the following example.
For more rhythmic variety and possibility for extensions, discover the paradinha (pah-rah-dee-nya), meaning “little stop.” These are percussion breaks with exciting call and response playing between a soloist and the whole group. Here is an example of a basic set of call and response rhythms. I have used these with groups from as young as third grade through adults. For more experienced players, there are much longer paradinhas available in recordings and videos.
The “c” stands for “call” and these can be played on an instrument, or they can be clapped. The “r” is for “response.”
After learning each call and response thoroughly, practice going back and forth between call one and call two. Call three is meant to turn things around back to the basic groove engine. A break could follow an order such as 1-1-2-2-1-2-3.
Adding a Samba Song
Included here is a well-known folk tune, “Sambalele.” Children can learn the refrain of the tune. The verses can be split up among smaller groups to lessen the number of lyrics to learn, or they can be assigned as solos while older students can likely sing all of the lyrics. The tune could easily be transferred to recorder in elementary classes, or piano, guitar, and other melodic instruments as well. Create a simple arrangement following the bass line for xylophones (I, V).
Pick one, two, or more of the percussion rhythms to incorporate. Create a form that moves between the elements, for example:
Sambalelê tá doente Sahm-ba-leh-leh tah doh-ein-chee Tá com a cabeça quebrada Tah koh-mah kah-beh-sah kay-brah-dah Sambalelê precisava Sahm-ba-leh-leh pray-see-zah-vah É de umas boas lambadas Eh joh-mahs boh-ahd lahm-bah-das
Samba, samba, samba ô lelê . . . . . .leh-leh Samba, samba, samba ô lalá . . . . . .lah-lah Samba, samba, samba ô lelê Pisa na barra da saia Pee-zah nah bar-rah dah saee-yah
Ó, morena bonita Oh, moh-reh-nah boh-nee-tah Como é que se namora? Koh-moo eh kee see nah-moh-ra Põe e lencinho no bolso Poh-e len-seen-yoo no bohl-soo Deixa a pontinha de fora Day-sha pohnchee-na ja foh-rah
Ó, morena bonita Oh, moh-reh-nah boh-nee-tah Como é que se cozinha? Koh-moo-eh kee see koo-zee-nya Põe a panela no fogo Poh-eh pah-neh-lah noh foh-goo E vai conversar com a vizinha Ee vai kohn-vehr-sahr kwom-ah vee-zee-nya
Ó, morena bonita Oh, moh-reh-nah boh-nee-tah Onde é que você mora? Ohn-jay ah kee voh-seh moh-rah Moro na praia formosa Moh-roh na prai-ah fohr-moh-za Digo adeus, vou-me embora Jee-goh ah-deh-oos voh-mee ehm-boh-rah
*morena refers to brown hair, and darker skin. This is not considered offensive in this context.
+ In Brazilian Portuguese, the letter “r” is always flipped.
A special thank you to Juliana Canterelli Vita for her assistance with cultural understandings in the translation and with pronunciation.
Translation
Verse 1: Sambalele is sick with a headache. He is in need of a good night of lambada (a type of dance).
Refrain: Samba . . . step on the hem of your skirt (from dancing with abandon).
Verse 2: Oh, beautiful morena*, how does one get to date you? How do they date me? Put your handkerchief in your pocket with the tip sticking out.
Verse 3: Oh, beautiful morena, how do you cook? By putting the pot on the fire and talking with my neighbor.
Verse 4: Oh, beautiful morena, where do you live? I live on a beautiful beach. I am leaving. Goodbye!
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
