Mestre Camisa Roxa

Edvaldo Carneiro e Silva, known as Grão-Mestre Camisa Roxa, was born on January 7, 1944, at Fazenda Estiva, a farm in the interior of Jacobina, Bahia. He was the eldest of ten children, and he was greatly respected by his younger siblings, a number of whom followed in his footsteps in life and in capoeira.

At the age of ten in 1954, Camisa Roxa began to play capoeira. At the time, it was only one of the many games he played to entertain himself and pass the long hours of childhood on the farm. He had no idea that nineteen years later he would be a professional capoeirista and the first to carry his art outside of Brazil, first to Europe and then around the world.

In the 1960s, Camisa Roxa left his family ranch for the capital city of Salvador in order to complete his high school education. In 1962 or 1963, he entered Mestre Bimba's academy. He was an apt and hard-working pupil, and eventually gained recognition as Bimba's best student. His distinctive purple shirt, which he regularly wore to capoeira rodas in Bahia, earned him the nickname "Camisa Roxa" (Purple Shirt).

Beyond his training with Mestre Bimba, Camisa Roxa sought out other capoeiristas. He enjoyed playing in the traditional rodas at Mestre Pastinha's academy and in the rodas of Mestres Waldemar and Traíra on Rua Pero Vaz in Liberdade. His ability to bridge Regional and Angola styles earned him great respect throughout the Salvador capoeira community. He thought of capoeira as a whole, bringing together both traditions.

When he was 21, Camisa Roxa's father died, and he became the patriarch of his family. He took on the responsibility of educating his brothers and sisters and providing for their general welfare. He became their second father and was greatly admired by all. In fact, three of his brothers—Ermival, Pedrinho, and José Tadeu (later known as Mestre Camisa)—followed in his footsteps, training capoeira with Mestre Bimba at his academy in Salvador. Like their brother, all three became alunos formados—graduated students—of the Academia de Mestre Bimba.

Inspired by the idea of spreading capoeira, Camisa Roxa helped form the folkloric dance company Olodum Maré in 1972, a traveling performance group that promoted traditional arts, including capoeira, throughout Brazil. After completing a yearlong tour of the country, the group planned a tour of Europe under the name "Brasil Tropical".

In 1973, Camisa Roxa founded Brasil Tropical and made his first trip to Europe, introducing capoeira and Brazilian culture to European audiences. Few people believed that his voyage would meet with success. Yet, trusting in his vision, his talent, and in the power of capoeira, Camisa Roxa made the journey and was very well received. According to Matthias Röhrig Assunção, "Important for the diffusion of capoeira in Europe during the 1970s was Brazil Tropical, a company headed by the dancer and choreographer Domingos Campos and M. Camisa Roxa. Camisa Roxa, a student of M. Bimba, was at the time considered to be one of the best Regional players of Brazil".

In 1974, the Brasil Tropical show was transmitted worldwide during the opening of the World Cup. From 1975 onwards, Camisa Roxa gave capoeira demonstrations in martial arts academies in Paris, Cannes, Brussels, Munich, and other cities across Europe. In 1979, he established a headquarters in Munich, Germany, and later in Salzburg, Austria (1985-86), consolidating capoeira in various European countries.

In 1989, Camisa Roxa received the title of Grão-Mestre (Grand Master) of Abadá-Capoeira, the highest rank in the organization—a lifetime title chosen by a council of masters of notable knowledge. His function became that of guide and counselor for the international organization. While his younger brother Mestre Camisa founded Abadá-Capoeira in 1988 and built its organizational structure, Camisa Roxa became the spiritual elder and European coordinator.

In 1992, Camisa Roxa organized the first Spring Encounter in Salzburg, Austria, with Mestre Camisa, Mestre Moraes, and Mestre Santana—an event that would become a tradition in the European capoeira calendar. He coordinated Abadá-Capoeira activities throughout Europe, regularly organizing workshops for instructors and professors. He was also the organizer of the Spring Capoeira Encounter in Europe and of the Abadá-Capoeira European Games, events aimed at integrating and updating capoeiristas.

In 2010, Camisa Roxa organized the first Festa da Capoeira (Capoeira Festival) in Salvador, celebrating the art he had dedicated his life to spreading. Over his career, he is estimated to have performed in more than 10,000 presentations involving approximately one million spectators worldwide.

Grão-Mestre Camisa Roxa spent his last years in Austria, where he continued to coordinate Abadá-Capoeira centers across Europe and organize the European Games. On April 18, 2013, he died in Salvador, Bahia. Though the art of capoeira remains firmly rooted in Brazil, it has been planted in more than 50 countries around the world—largely as a result of the travels and work of Grão-Mestre Camisa Roxa.