Mestre Mintirinha

Luiz Américo da Silva, known as Mestre Mintirinha, was born on August 28, 1950, at Bonsucesso Hospital in Rio de Janeiro. In 1956, at age six, he was walking with his mother through Bonsucesso when he heard an unfamiliar sound. Following it, he discovered capoeira for the first time—the rhythms of the berimbau and people training a fight following the instrument's cadence. Mesmerized, he asked his mother to enroll him in Grupo de Capoeira São Bento Pequeno, led by Oswaldo Lisboa dos Santos (Mestre Paraná), who taught for free in his backyard.

One day, young Luiz told a fanciful story to Mestre Paraná, who replied, "now tell another little lie" (mentirinha in Portuguese). From that moment, he became known as Mintirinha—the spelling with "i" instead of "e" was permanently established when his aunt Maura, who was illiterate, wrote his name on a document.

By sixteen, in 1965, Mintirinha had already begun teaching capoeira. That same year, on January 20, 1965, he co-founded the Associação de Capoeira Kapoarte Filhos de Obaluaê with his younger brother Paulão, Piriquito, Khorvo, and Silas. Training began at the Milton Ribeiro academy on Rua Etelvina in Olaria. He later removed the religious reference from the name, explaining: "It was the first group I created... Why did I take away the Obaluaê? Because capoeira is not religion. Capoeira is capoeira."

Mintirinha circulated in the "rodas de bamba" of 1960s Rio and was profoundly impressed by Mestre Artur Emídio's fast, explosive game. Inspired by Emídio, he developed his own "super-rápido" style of play and corresponding toque, which he named Barravento. His style was characterized by exceptional physical form and extraordinary speed—rapid, virile movements with minimal swaying. The quick interchange of strikes matched the fast berimbau and atabaque rhythms, creating an impressive display of power and artistry. His kicks reportedly generated a whistling sound.

Breaking barriers, Mintirinha was the first to introduce the atabaque drum into Rio de Janeiro capoeira rodas, challenging the racial and religious prejudices that had kept this African percussion instrument marginalized. He was also among the rare Rio capoeiristas of the 1960s who knew how to play berimbau, sing, and perform acrobatics with mastery—skills he inherited from Mestre Paraná.

In 1966, Maestro Mário Santos invited Mintirinha to teach at his gymnasium in Jacarezinho, where he also taught at Instituto Padre Severino. During the 1970s, he dominated competitive capoeira, becoming the first Brazilian capoeira champion and winning four Interstate championships organized by the Confederação Brasileira de Pugilismo (CBP). In 1973, he received a championship diploma from CBP for team victory in the Interstate Capoeira Tournament. He was the first capoeirista to break tables, tiles, and other objects as demonstrations of striking power, and trained with 120kg heavy bags.

Mintirinha founded multiple groups during his career: Kapoarte de Obaluaê (1965), Grupo Muzenza (helped establish), Esporte Nacional (later renamed Cruzeiro do Sul), and finally Grupo Terra de Capoeira. He established Grupo Terra in Olaria, Rio de Janeiro, which he directed until his death. The association was officially registered on November 23, 1998, in Olaria.

His younger brother Paulo Sérgio da Silva (Mestre Paulão of Muzenza) was his primary student. Paulão considers Mintirinha his "first and only master." Through Paulão, Mintirinha's lineage extends to Grupo Muzenza de Capoeira, one of the largest capoeira organizations in the world. He also trained numerous other practitioners who became prominent mestres, including Silas, Periquito, Grande, and Corvo. Mestre Alexandre Batata, who later invited Mintirinha to Portugal, was among his students. In 1973, Mintirinha received his white-yellow cordel alongside Mestre Wilmar.

In 2003, Mintirinha traveled to Portugal with Grão-Mestre Artur Emídio de Oliveira, visiting student Mestre Alexandre Batata. Throughout his career, he traveled extensively with accomplished capoeiristas Mestres Zé Maria and Jorge Crioulo. He visited 18 countries during his lifetime.

Mintirinha's musical influence extended beyond capoeira. He had the opportunity to record with American musician Paul Simon, and met Maria Bethânia as a young man. He composed numerous capoeira songs that remain performed in rodas worldwide, and was recognized as one of the most complete musicians, composers, and percussionists in capoeira history. He was the first capoeirista to apply principles of physics to movement analysis, utilizing concepts of velocity, gravity, and Newton's laws.

In recognition of his immense contributions, Mintirinha received the Comenda Tiradentes at the Legislative Assembly of the State of Rio de Janeiro—the highest civic honor bestowed on citizens of Rio de Janeiro state. He earned a law degree and worked as an attorney alongside his capoeira career.

Mestre Mintirinha died on August 7, 2022, and was buried the following day at Cemitério do Inhaúma in Rio de Janeiro. His brother Paulão wrote the primary obituary tribute, referring to him as a "blood brother" and "true master of masters." Mintirinha's signature phrase, "The world is a ginga, take it from there to here," encapsulated his philosophy of life and capoeira.

After Mintirinha's death, Mestra Cleide took over teaching at Grupo Terra Capoeira in Olaria. The group maintains a mural honoring Mestre Paraná at its headquarters—a testament to Mintirinha's lifelong devotion to his own master. As he often said: "I am merely a grain of sand in an ocean called Capoeira. The master's name is God."