Mestre Curió

Jaime Martins dos Santos, known as Mestre Curió, was born on January 23, 1937, in Candeias, Bahia, into a family steeped in capoeira tradition. His father José Martins dos Santos—called Malvadeza or Martim da Pemba—was a capoeirista, as was his mother Maria Bispo (known as Pequena). His grandfather Pedro Virício, also a capoeirista, bore the same apelido "Curió" that his grandson would inherit. Raised in Santo Amaro, young Jaime was immersed in capoeira from age six, learning from his father and grandfather beginning in 1943.

At age seven, in 1944, Curió ran away from home—a brief chapter of his rebellious youth. By 1951, at only fourteen years old, he had already begun teaching capoeira himself, demonstrating remarkable early mastery of the art his family had transmitted to him.

In 1954, a young Curió appears in photographs at Mestre Waldemar's legendary barracão in Liberdade, captured by French photographer Marcel Gautherot. These images place him among the vibrant roda scene of 1950s Salvador, alongside established figures of that golden era.

The decisive turning point came on April 10, 1968, when Curió formally joined Mestre Pastinha's CECA (Centro Esportivo de Capoeira Angola) in Pelourinho. Under Pastinha—the father of Capoeira Angola—Curió absorbed not only technique but the philosophical foundations that would shape his entire approach to the art. He became one of Pastinha's faithful disciples, alongside João Grande, João Pequeno, Boca Rica, Bola Sete, Gildo Alfinete, and Albertino.

When the Salvador city government forced Pastinha from the CECA building in 1971 during Pelourinho's gentrification, Curió witnessed firsthand the displacement of his mestre. According to Curió, "with much resistance they were given a space for the academy on Ladeira do Ferrão, known as Ladeira do Mijo"—a painful chapter in the history of Capoeira Angola's institutional struggle.

In June 1980, Curió participated in researcher Frede Abreu's landmark "First Regional Capoeira Seminar and Festival of Capoeira Rhythms", held June 4-8 in Barris, Salvador. This event, attended by some 1,500 people, reunited the old guard of Capoeira Angola—Mestre Cobrinha Verde (who was "rediscovered" at this event), Mestre João Grande, Mestre Gigante, and others. It was a pivotal moment for the revival of traditional capoeira.

On January 7, 1982, Curió founded the Escola de Capoeira Angola Irmãos Gêmeos (ECAIG)—the "Twin Brothers School of Capoeira Angola". The school had earlier roots in 1960 in Alagoinhas (interior Bahia), but the 1982 founding marked its legal registration and its selection by Salvador's Secretariat of Education and Culture to occupy a space in Pelourinho, returning capoeira angola to its historic heart.

ECAIG operates today from two locations in Salvador: the Pelourinho headquarters (second floor), and the Centro da Cultura Forte de Santo Antônio in Santo Antônio Além do Carmo. The school is designated a "Ponto de Cultura" (Point of Culture) by Brazil's Ministry of Culture—an afro-Brazilian cultural nucleus combining education and heritage preservation.

In 1988, Curió participated in "Velha Guarda" events that brought the old masters together: in Fortaleza with Mestres Waldemar and Boca Rica, and in Florianópolis with Mestres Bobó, João Pequeno, Nó, and Boa Gente. These gatherings preserved and transmitted the living memory of Capoeira Angola during a critical period.

In 1997, Curió traveled to Mexico to record his CD "A Voz Viva da Capoeira Angola" (The Living Voice of Capoeira Angola)—a musical testament to the oral and rhythmic traditions he carries.

From 2000 to 2002, Curió served as a director of ABCA (Associação Brasileira de Capoeira Angola), the organization founded in 1987 that unites the old mestres of Capoeira Angola. This placed him at the center of institutional efforts to preserve and promote the tradition.

Mestre Curió made history by becoming the first mestre to confer the title of Mestra upon a woman in Capoeira Angola. In January 2001, he elevated Valdelice Santos de Jesus—Mestra Jararaca—to the rank of mestra in a grand roda, as demanded by Angola tradition. According to Curió, one simply needs to see her playing to understand why she is called Jararaca (a venomous snake): "While training, the young lady who moved like a cobra showed true distinction". This act opened doors for generations of women in Capoeira Angola.

On December 13, 2016, at age 79, Curió received the Medalha Zumbi dos Palmares from Salvador's Câmara Municipal—an honor recognizing individuals active in the fight against racism, discrimination, and intolerance. At the ceremony, Curió reflected on his teaching philosophy: he has formed only three mestres in his career, including one woman, explaining that he is "not in a hurry to form masters but rather to form citizens with knowledge and development".

In 2023, ECAIG hosted its 32nd Encontro Internacional de Capoeira Angola—an annual gathering that has drawn practitioners from Mexico, France, Switzerland, and across Brazil. The 2023 theme, "Do atabaque ao berimbau. Viva a tradição ancestral", honored the ancestral tradition Curió has dedicated his life to preserving.

At 88 years old, Mestre Curió continues to teach at his schools in Salvador, traveling internationally to spread capoeira angola to Mexico, Ecuador, Japan, Switzerland, Belgium, Argentina, Iraq, Germany, and the United States. He has been recognized as an ambassador of Brazilian culture.

As Curió himself has said: "Capoeira is art, dance, cunning, philosophy, roguishness, theater, music, choreography and non-violence. It only becomes dangerous in times of pain".