Mestre Gato II

Sinésio Souza Góes, known as Gato II or Mestre Góes, was born on September 7, 1950, in Salvador, Bahia. He is the eldest son of Mestre Gato Preto, "O Berimbau de Ouro da Bahia," and the elder brother of Mestre Zeca (Gatinho/Gato III). His apelido "Gato II" marks him as the second generation of the Gato capoeira dynasty, a lineage his father traced back through his own father Eutíquio and grandfather, the African Oleriano de Góes.

Gato Preto began teaching his son capoeira in 1958 when Sinésio was eight years old, passing on the "legitimate Angola" that he himself had learned from the masters of Salvador - Cobrinha Verde, Pastinha, and Waldemar da Paixão. As his father declared to the press: "Gato II, my son and successor, will see to it that capoeira never leaves from the family."

On March 26, 1969, at age eighteen, Gato II performed at Teatro Martins Penna in Brasília alongside his father and younger brother Gatinho (Zeca). The family ensemble, consisting of seven members including Almir Barros ("Tião do Pandeiro"), presented a program of samba de roda, pandeiro demonstration, maculelê, and capoeira. This marked the final performance of their Brasília visit, after which the University of Brasília proposed contracting Mestre Gato Preto to teach.

During the 1970s, Gato II toured extensively with the Brasil Tropical dance company across Europe. Founded in 1973 by Camisa Roxa and Domingos Campos, Brasil Tropical was one of the first groups to bring capoeira and Afro-Brazilian culture to the European continent, performing thousands of shows for audiences across the old world.

Returning to Brazil, Gato II devoted himself to preserving and transmitting Bahian cultural traditions. He became the administrative coordinator of ASSEBA - the Associação de Sambadores e Sambadeiras do Estado da Bahia (Association of Samba Practitioners of Bahia State) - working to preserve samba de roda and related traditions.

In 2011, he was recognized nationally when he received the Prêmio Viva Meu Mestre (awarded by IPHAN as part of the Pró-Capoeira program), which honors mestres age 55 and over who have made fundamental contributions to the transmission and continuity of capoeira in Brazil. The prize listed him as "Sinésio Souza Góes (Mestre Gato Góes)" among the 78 mestres recognized that year.

Today, Gato II teaches at the Núcleo de Artes Afro-Brasileiras da USP (University of São Paulo), leading courses on "Musicalização da Capoeira" - the musicalization of capoeira covering rhythms, chants, fundamentals, and percussion. His curriculum encompasses berimbau techniques and construction (using materials he sources from the Recôncavo Baiano), pandeiro and agogô instruction, and the singing traditions essential to the roda. He carries forward his father's multi-dimensional mastery - as capoeirista, musician, dancer, and composer - ensuring that the cultural heritage of his family continues into future generations.