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Festivals for Iabás

Iyabá, meaning “Queen Mother” in Yoruba, is a term given to all feminine orixás in Candomblé, such as Iansã (Oyá), Oxúm, and Yemanjá. During the first and second week of December these deities, along with their Catholic counterparts are celebrated.

Every December 4, thousands of Bahians attend mass and make carurus (a typical Bahian dish, of African origin, made with okra, dried shrimp, and spices) in honor of Saint Barbara and Iansã, considered to be among the most highly revered divinities in Bahia. She is the protector of firemen and the patron saint of the markets. In Candomblé, Iansã is a warrior woman who brings sudden changes and transformation. She fights with Xangô (orixá of thunder), and represented in nature as lightning, wind, and storms. Nowadays, the celebrations last 3 days and begin with the mass in the Church Nossa Senhor do Rosário dos Pretos, in Pelourinho, where the image of St. Barbara is displayed. From there, a procession is led throughout the streets of the center, passing in front of the firemen headquarters. At the end of the religious festival, the traditional caruru is given out and the celebration continues to the rhythms of samba and capoeira.

On December 8, Nossa Senhora da Conceição da Praia (Our Lady of Conception) is the patron saint of Bahia and celebrated at the beach. Both Oxúm (the orixá of love, prosperity, sweetness, and represented by the river and waterfalls) and Yemanjá (the orixá of motherhood, rebirth, creation, and represented in nature by the beach and the sea) are associated with the celebrations. On November 30, devotees pray for nine consecutive evenings at the Cathedral of Nossa Senhora da Conceição and close  their prayers with a mass and procession. At the vicinity of the Mercado Modelo (Model Market) the party continues with typical Bahian food and music.

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Luislinda Valois

In 1984, Bahian-born Luislinda Valois was the first black woman to become a judge in Brazil, just one of many achievements. She earned her law degree at the age of 39 and lived in the city of Curitiba, in the south of Brazil, working as a municipal attorney, deputy chief and chief of the National Department of Roads and Railroads (DNER) for six years . Valois has won numerous awards and honors for her tireless dedication to the defense of black people and the oppressed. In 2009, she released her first book, O Negro no Século XXI (The Black in the 21st Century) detailing the current situation of black people in education, work, social justice, public policy and sports, and in 2010, she won the prestigious Claudia award, which honors women who dream, achieve and transform the lives of Brazilian people, in the category of Public Policy. Today, at 73, she continues to fight so that black women have more of a space in society.

 

Check out this article on Black Women of Brazil’s website to learn about other Afro-Baianas making a difference in Bahia.
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Tia Ciata

Tia Ciata (Hilaria Batista de Almeida, 1854-1924)
(Edited from her biography by Alvaro Neder)

Tia Ciata, aka Tia Assiata, was a woman from Bahia who had a fundamental role in the birth of Cariocan urban samba as a genre. She migrated to Rio from Bahia in 1875 and developed an informal cultural center at her home, where she would initiate the biggest composers and musicians of Rio de Janeiro of her time into the subtleties of samba from Bahia. As a result of this, in 1917, the first samba to be recorded, “Pelo Telefone,” was a collective composition done in her house, in which she herself participated, along with others.

During the day she would sell tidbits downtown, and at night she would reign in her home as an organizer of meetings for black townspeople. She was a leader in the Candomblé religion and would hold worship rituals for the orixas at her residence. It is important to note that, in that period, there were no public places for the poor or black inhabitants to socialize. So the meeting places of these segments of society were essentially family homes. Tia Ciata’s house became legendary because not only would she hold regular Candomblé sessions, but also because these sessions were followed by a samba, a kind of party where people could drink, eat, play, dance to music, meet and mingle, thus producing the birthplace of samba in Rio. In fact, as the sambas were persecuted by police, they were frequently disguised as religious activities. So, in these festive reunions, Tia Ciata’s house became widely known in Rio. Not only to black people, but also politicians, bohemians, musicians, and batuqueiros (percussionists) would gather there, attracted by her excellent culinary skills and the music. The parties could last for several days in a row, and people would spend the entire time there without returning to their homes until the feast was over.

The cultural exchange was the central focus in Tia Ciata’s house. Being a precursor of the migratory movements of blacks arriving from Bahia to Rio with the end of slavery (1888, five years after her arrival) and the massive demobilization, in 1897, of the troops of Baianos engaged in the fight against the fanatic religious leader Antônio Conselheiro, Tia Ciata was on the verge of a movement which would deeply influence the national culture via its ascendancy over the important capital, Rio de Janeiro. The most important composers and musicians of the time, like Caninha, Joao da Baiana, Donga, Pixinguinha, Sinhô, and Heitor dos Prazeres, along with less representative names like João da Mata, Mestre Germano, Minan, Didi da Gracinda, and João Câncio were regulars at her house. Disciples that continued her work were her son Eduardo da Tia Ciata, her granddaughters Lili da Tia Ciata and Tia Cincinha, her grandson Buci Moreira, Ministrinho da Cuíca, Dino, and Santa, among others. In that close interlacing of Baianos and Cariocas, Tia Ciata was one of the most influential tias (aunties) from Bahia, through her influential cultural center, that introduced the Cariocas to the culture from Bahia.

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Festa da Boa Morte

Festa de Nossa Senhora da Boa Morte (Assumption Day or the Festival of Our Lady of the Good Death) falls on the Friday closest to August 15 and lasts three days. It is a celebration of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary (mother of Jesus) that starts off with a solemn mass and then a procession in the streets of Cachoeira in Bahia. Organized by the Irmandade da Boa Morte (Sisterhood of the Good Death)—a secret religious society of elder Afro-Bahian women and the oldest of its kind in the New World—who praise the liberation of their enslaved ancestors with dance and prayer and a mix of themes from Candomblé and Catholicism. It is the second most important examples of religious syncretism in Bahia after Lavagem do Bonfim. For these women, their faith in the ascension of Mary into heaven never meant a denial of their faith in their Nagô ancestral traditions of the orixás and voduns. The orixá Nanã Buruku, a grandmotherly deity and orixá of wetlands, swamps, and marshes and mother to orixás Exu and Obaluaye, is honored and venerated. The festival is a mix of prayer, litanies, hymns, church masses, processions, capoeira and folk dances like maculelê and samba de roda, drumming, feasts, and sacred Candomblé obligation ceremonies until dawn.
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Batalá Washington celebrates Black History Month Batalá Washington celebrates Black History Month and joins in paying tribute to the generations of African Americans who struggled with adversity to achieve full citizenship in American society. We honor the roots of the music we play as well as our Black artists and musicians. Did you know that Samba-reggae arose in the context of the Black Pride Movement that occurred in the city of Salvador de Bahia, around the year 1969, and it still carries connotations of ethnic identity and pride for Afro-Brazilians today? #blackhistorymonth #blacklivesmatter #batalahey #sambareggaemusic #musicofresistance
Every year on February Second, some million or mor Every year on February Second, some million or more people in the Brazilian city of Salvador, Bahia, walk in procession through the streets of the Rio Vermelho district of that city, all dressed in white, making their way down to the seashore and the small house that's said to be the home of Yemanjá, a powerful goddess (Orixá) in the Afro-Brazilian religion Candomblé. Yemanjá is the essence of motherhood, the protector of children, fishermen and sailors, and most importantly, she is the sea itself. When the celebrants reach the shore Yemanjá's they pass their baskets laden with gifts for the goddess to fishermen to take out to sea and leave them on the waters as offerings to the Orixá. Gifts for Yemanjá often include images of the goddess, flowers and objects of female vanity (perfume, jewelry, combs, lipsticks, mirrors). Later in the day, the festival of Yemanjá becomes a massive street party which carries on into the night.

In the synchristic tradition that blends the Orixás who traveled to Brazil with African slaves with the saints and holy figures of Christianity who arrived with the Portuguese,  Yemanjá is identified with certain aspects of the Virgin Mary, and February Second in the Roman Catholic calendar is the day of Our Lady of Navigators (Nossa Senhora dos Navegantes). The celebrants at Salvador's festival honor one divinity in two personages, the African Yemanjá and the Christian Our Lady, without thoughts of separation or difference between the two.

Gifts for Yemanjá
As with all the gods and goddess of the Candomblé tradition, Yemanjá is associated with certain foods, and these foods are offered to her on her special day as well as eaten by her devotees at the street festival that follows the ceremonical activities of the day. Yemanjá's colors, like the Virgin Mary's, are white and blue - obvious choices for a Rainha do Mar (Queen of the Sea). An Orixá's favorite foods are often visually connected with his or her image and chosen colors, Yemanjá's special food are white, or very light in color (there are very few foods that are truly blue). Yemanjá prefers sweet foods, making such dishes as honeyed rice and sweet corn puddings.
We couldn’t help but to join in the Bernie fun! We couldn’t help but to join in the Bernie fun! Thanks to our drummer gal @jcon2313 for the photo edit! 😅🙌🏽🎉 #batalahey #berniesanders #berniesmittens
Wishing you all, our friends and family, a wonderf Wishing you all, our friends and family, a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year! We hope we get to perform for you in person in 2021! #batalahey #oneloveonedrum 🎉💪🏽🎶🥁
Memories of last year (2019) when we added music a Memories of last year (2019) when we added music and percussion background sounds to the “Un Violador En Tu Camino” manifestation supporting all the survivors of sexual assault, violence and harrassment. #elvioladorerestú #lastesis #saynotoviolenceagainstwomen
We SOO miss playing at this great yearly event! ❤️😩 But all the love to our friends at @krampusnachtdc for the awesome video 👌🏽🎉❤️ #batalahey #oneloveonedrum❤️🥁
Happy “I can’t, I have practice” day to all Happy “I can’t, I have practice” day to all our fellow musicians of the world! #internationalmusiciansday #batalahey #oneloveonedrum❤️🥁
#Repost @batala_atenas Our music has its roots in #Repost @batala_atenas
Our music has its roots in Salvador in Bahia, and is filled with a big dose of brazilian samba...last year some of us were lucky enough to visit our home of inspiration and play with @batala_brasilia, alongside our Batala friends from across the world. It was such an amazing experience...truly unforgettable! #OneLoveOneDrum ❤️🥁

#Athens #Greece #expression_greece #batala #batalamundo #batalaatenas #sambareggae #samba #brazilianmusic #brazil #brazilian #brazilianmusic #takemebacktobrazil #brazil🇧🇷
Felíz Dia de los Muertos DC! #diadelosmuertos #ba Felíz Dia de los Muertos DC! #diadelosmuertos #batalahey #batalamundo #washingtondclife #washingtondcmusicians #tamboreras #womendrummers
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