«A. B. C. OF BAHIA»
Magazine O Cruzeiro (Rio de Janeiro)
3rd May 1947
Text by Rodolfo Coelho Cavalcanti. Photographies by Pierre Verger.
On page 57 of the magazine only one photo [see the red square among the images below!] of capoeira is shown. This is a roda on the ramp of the Modelo Market in Salvador perhaps a little before the 3rd of May in 1947. It shows M Juvenal's students playing capoeira. M Juvenal himself was a student of by then already deceased M Samuel Querido de Deus.
P.S. Pierre Verger [1902-1996] arrived in Bahia in 1946.
The images
The location of the roda (1947)
The text
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page 1
-"A. B. C. OF BAHIA
Magazine O Cruzeiro
3/May/1947A
ACARAJÉ with pepper
Is quite appetizing
Made of "black-eyed pea"
Boy becomes greedy
Acarajé, you can believe it
It's enough to have dendê
To become delicious -
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page 2
B
BONFIM is the Church - catholic
That dominates this land
The guest room is
What really fascinates
Its temple is radiant
Attractive and dazzling
Built on a hillC
CAPOEIRA is not a sport
But it's always an amusement
Be it in the carnival:
In the fight: he enters into action
The rival gives a leg-sweep
The capoeira is there
And he becomes the championA. B. C. OF BAHIA
Text by RODOLFO COELHO CAVALCANTI
Photos by PIERRE VERGERRodolfo Cavalcanti, the folk-troubadour, one of the most loved by the people of Salvador, wrote for Cruzeiro, the ABC OF BAHIA, which we present today, illustrated with the photos by Pierre Verger. His verses, his stories, his abc-s are read by bahian people and regarding his personality this magazine already published, october last year, a complete report, showing his extraordinary popularity. And so, in ABC OF BAHIA, parade in the tastiest way of the north-east troubadours, the grandeurs of bahian land, praised by the people's poet, who sings and sells his verses on public squares, on fairs and markets, contributing in this way to keeping the old traditions from disappearing with progress and time.
D
DIQUE is a huge lake
A bit of a distante from the centre
On the Rio Vermelho "line"
It's quite interesting
It's water has a blue hue
It's the "enchanted lake"
From its shining appearanceE
ELEVATOR LACERDA is
The most talked of about Brazil
It's from a great movement
It transports any being
From Lower city to the Upper one
The best architecture
With concrete valueF
DAUGHTER-OF-SAINT is a young girl
With her rented overall
Baubles on her torso
She looks like a fairy
Being a dark-skinned girl she is great
She is the Bahian type
Who is seriously coveted -
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page 3
G
GRAÇA or "GRAÇA FIELD"
Is the sporty neighborhood
Sundays and holidays
All the football fans
Come from distant neighborhoods
Pretty merrily
To see if their team winsH
"MIRACLE-HERBS"
Cure the contagious evil
"Maria-Prêta" "Alumã"
"Jerebão" "Espinho-Cheiroso"
For an "important" case
Fôlha de Fôgo or "Levante"
"Sabugueiro" and "Fedegoso"I
ITAPOAN: what a suburb
Of qualities without a match!
With a marvellous climate!
When it's the moonlit night...
Oh! my God what poetry
The prettiest melody
By the sea waves themselves!J
JANAINA is the mermaid
"Queen of Baité"
"Princess of Iemanjá"
The Candoblé Goddess
Every "father" and "mother of saint"
In the dogma of its enchantment
They devote to her in hot beliefK
KIOSK has the format
Of a chalet: miniature
One of them sells
All kinds of greens
Other fruits and vegetables
And others sell perfumes
Of sublime makingsL
CATHEDRAL SQUARE is a square
Of proud movement
It's the assembly square
Almost "connected" to the Terreiro
Attached to the Cathedral
Makes the capital more beautiful
In a real wayM
MODÊLO MARKET stays
In front of the elevator
It's the oldest of all
From old São Salvador
For this it's the most respected
It's the "enchanted paradise"
An important rampart!N
SAILING OF BAHIA
In the mast of it's sailing boat
Singing he corrects the cloth
He makes a fast job
Left the port in the evening
And only returns in the morning
It comes heavy: leaves easy!O
OXOSSE, Ogum Orixá
Omolu is an infinity
These are the favourite "saints"
Of candoblé, in all honesty
It has its ritualism
Of: catholic-spiritual
Amusement and sainthoodP
PELOURINHO or the "Pelourinho
hillside" in common speach
Tens of skyscrapers
There in the high dawn
The lecturing voices are heard
Of the passionate singers
On the door of docile and lovedQ
OKRA, says bahiana:
Is the main thing
With it you make food!
There is nothing similar
To celebrate "Omolu"
Or São Cosme, caruru:
Okra never failed! -
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page 4
R
CHILE STREET is the business
Most posh of the City
Every beautiful baiana
So that even the old has a wish
Go back to the time of childhood
Chile street is a giant
In the real expressionS
SAMBISTA in batucada
Is a folk "hero"
Knows how to play "capoeira"!
Knows how to swing "frevo"!
Knows how to compose a serenade!
Knows how to conquer a mualata
To hear him sing! -
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page 5
T
THE BAHIANA TRAY
Has potato and abará
Brazil plum, a bundle of sugar case
Sweet rice, vatapá
It has roasted almond
Peppered scarajé
Bôlo-frito and munguzáU
BRAZIL PLUM is a green fruit
But has a great taste
Is rare a bahiana
Who doesn't sell, my reader
The Brazil plum on the tray
You get fifteen for a cruzeiro
Because it comes from inlandV
Parrot SELLER
Stays in the garden, reader
Sometimes on: Cairu square
Or then next to Elevator
And yells: come customer!
The parrot speaks sometimes
The old man says: it's a chatterbox!X
XARÉU is a tasty fish
That is being caught in Itapoan
You buy it in the Modêlo
Market in the morning
It's a wished dish
It's great when it's stewed
With pepper and "mint"Y
YAYÁ is an old negro woman
A child of Bahia
She knows all the "mysteries"
Of macumba one day
Sings "samba de Terreiro"
There's batuque the whole day
It's great for who likes it. -
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page 6
Z
ZÉ POVO likes God
He has all the reverence
There are millions of devoted
In any procession
All contrite, readers
They praise Maria
Happy at heart!