Experts say that the drums are the heart of the samba school. Through it, the cadence and rhythm of the samba are marked, to infect the dancers, revelers and members, so that they make a beautiful presentation.
When they enter the avenue: the pulsation of the percussion apparatus, of the first-rate deaf – responsible for the main marking; the second deaf and the third deaf; tambourine, cymbal, chime, rattle, war chest, cuíca, agogô, reco-reco, tambourine and triangle, they thrill everyone who watches the show, bringing excitement, so that no one can stay stopped.
During the parade, the drums must be in tune, pulling and cheering the members of the school, making the group show a good evolution, following its rhythm, which must be intense.
The drum rhythm is set by an instrumentalist.
According to the judge's manual, in the criteria for judging the item drums, the following are considered: “regular maintenance and sustaining the cadence of the drums in line with the samba plot; the perfect combination of sounds emitted by the various instruments; the creativity and versatility of the drums” attribute that grades from seven to ten are awarded.
However, according to the same manual, some aspects are not considered, in order not to harm the resourcefulness of the musicality, such as: “the quantity of components of each Battery, with regard to the minimum limit of members established by the regulation; the use of wind instruments or any other device that emits similar sounds; the fact that any battery does not stop in front of the Judging Booths and/or does not park in the second retreat (between sectors 09 and 11), given that that stop and/or this parking; the eventual breakdown of the sound car and/or the sound system of the catwalk”.
Thus, it is clear that the central axis of the assessment is the cadence of sound and rhythm exposed by the group, in addition to the harmony between singing and drumming.
To innovate the art of commanding a samba school drum set, Mestre André, director of the Mocidade Independente de Padre Miguel, created the famous “paradinha” at a certain point in the performance. This effect was considered beautiful by critics and judges, giving more emotion when the drums return, which, if it is not accurate, it can cross the samba plot, causing mistakes for the school and, consequently, loss of punctuation.
By Jussara de Barros
Graduated in Pedagogy
Brazil School Team
Carnival - Brazil School