Mestre Bom Cabrito

Mário Rodrigues Ferreira do Rosário, known as Mestre Mário Bom Cabrito, was born on March 13, 1944, in Salvador, Bahia. He began his capoeira training in the 1950s under two of the most respected Angola mestres of his era: Mestre Cobrinha Verde and Mestre Gato Preto.

By 1963, at around age nineteen, Bom Cabrito was already an active participant in Salvador's capoeira scene. On December 31, 1963, at the Festa da Boa Viagem at the Mirante do Calabar (today Jardim Apipema), he played berimbau at Dona Pompilha's small school while Gato Góes and Mestre Gato Preto performed. Finnish anthropologist Helinä Rautavaara photographed this event, capturing Bom Cabrito seated with Osmar, Cosme, and Raimundo Natividade at the berimbau. These photographs now represent important documentation of mid-century Bahian capoeira.

In 1968, Bom Cabrito expanded his martial arts training, practicing karate, hapkido, and vale-tudo at the academy of Waldemar Santana (the famous fighter, not to be confused with Mestre Waldemar da Paixão).

In 1969, Bom Cabrito participated in the historic Seminário de Capoeira em Campos dos Afonsos, Rio de Janeiro. This gathering brought together the old guard—Mestres Bimba, Canjiquinha, Caiçaras, Artur Emídio, Gato Preto, and Leopoldina—with the younger generation including Acordeon, Airton, Suassuna, Joel, Itapoan, Paulo Gomes, and Bom Cabrito himself.

By 1970, Mestre Gato Preto referred to Bom Cabrito as one of the "future masters", noting that he "already teaches capoeira there in Faísca". This indicates Bom Cabrito had established himself as a teacher at a relatively young age.

In November-December 1984, Bom Cabrito was one of the seven traditional Old Masters from Bahia who traveled to Rio de Janeiro for the I Encontro Nacional de Arte Capoeira at the Circo Voador. Under the theme "Pé Quente - Cabeça Fria" (Hot Feet - Cold Head), he played berimbau alongside Mestres Gato Preto and Waldemar, while younger capoeiristas like Moraes and Camisa performed. The event drew 70 capoeiristas from seven states and included iconic masters Canjiquinha, João Pequeno, and Atenilo.

In 1987, the Associação Brasileira de Capoeira Angola (ABCA) held its first democratic election. The "Evolução" slate won, with João Pequeno as President, Paulo dos Anjos as Vice-President, and Mário Bom Cabrito as Treasurer. Mestre Nô served as Technical Director and Renê as Social Director.

On July 18, 1993, Bom Cabrito formally affiliated with ABCA, registering his Centro Cultural de Capoeira Angola Arte e Manha, based in the Alto da Pombas neighborhood of Salvador's Federação district. In 1998, he participated in an ABCA event at the Museu da Abolição in Olinda, Pernambuco.

Throughout the 1990s, Bom Cabrito continued to be photographed with the elite of Bahian angoleiros: Gildo Alfinete, Moa do Katendê, Boca Rica, Curió, Pelé da Bomba, Ananias, João Pequeno, and others. In 1996, he was documented at Farol da Barra, Salvador, playing with Gildo Alfinete. In 1997, he was photographed in São Paulo with Mestre Mão Branca.

As a teacher, Bom Cabrito trained several notable capoeiristas. Mestre Pintor (Paulo César Leite dos Santos), founder of Grupo Bantus Capoeira, lists Bom Cabrito among the mestres under whom he trained during his formative trips to Bahia in the 1970s-1980s.

Mestre Mário Bom Cabrito died on May 22, 2000, in Salvador, Bahia. He is remembered as one of the significant Angola mestres of his generation, a bridge between the old guard and the contemporary movement, and a dedicated guardian of the tradition.