A Method to Madness
A vital aspect of this project is the understanding of the influence of language and music on the Capoeira Club here at Purdue, as well as a general understanding of its contribution to Capoeira in its entirety. To gain such information, three types of research was necessary: observations of the Club itself, as well as individual members and the communication between them; interviews with members with different levels of experience; and a broad reaching survey to gain a general sampling of information about Capoeira as a hobby and a lifestyle.
ObservationsObservation took place during a variety of times, in a variety of places and on a wide range of subjects. To start, I observed a Capoeira Club practice on a Tuesday at 9:30, however only a few group members showed up to this practice. The purpose of this observation being a performance in the roda, it soon became an observation on the colloquialisms used with the different moves (some of them listed on the home page). No instruments were played during this session, however they were present.
Another series of observation were performed on the groups Facebook page, whereby the use of language within the community is heavily identifiable. Much of the communication through group members happens through the group Facebook and the group email, used to spread news about upcoming events. *The observations can be viewed by clicking this link.
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InterviewsTo begin, I desired to interview two members of Purdue Capoeira: one of the members, who has been attending capoeira for over a year and a half now; and the instructor of the club, who has been practicing capoeira for nearly ten years. I contacted both the club member and the instructor, and received swift responses concerning a prospective interview. I conducted the interview with the instructor on a Tuesday night outside of the PMU tower, right before the Tuesday practice at 9:00. I recorded this interview with a recording application on my cellphone, which I then transcribed in Microsoft Word.
For the second interview with the club member, which was conducted on a Wednesday afternoon, I was not able to record voice or audio, so I had to take diligent notes with pen and paper. This ended up being quite a nuisance, however I was able to receive the data I needed. *The interview questions can be found by clicking this link.
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SurveyThe intended survey was posted on the Capoeira Purdue Facebook group on Tuesday, a few days after receiving the project and learning of a necessary survey. At the time of posting this website, only two people have responded to the survey; however, a useful counter at the bottom notes that 13 people have seen the survey, and have not had time to post their intellectually stimulating answers. Nevertheless, the answers I received from the two survey responses were chocked full of useful information.
The survey questions were generally more along the lines of Capoeira as a community, and less about the influence of language and music on the culture of Capoeira. This shift in topic may be deemed less than useful; however, to me it provided a healthy insight into the motivations for continuing the practice of capoeira, and the sense of camaraderie felt by members of the club. *The survey questions can be found by clicking this link.
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