Vicente Ferreira Pastinha

Vicente Ferreira Pastinha (1889 to 1981), known as Mestre Pastinha, was a Brazilian mestre of capoeira and the man who codified the traditional capoeira Angola style. Born in Salvador, Bahia, he learned capoeira as a ten-year-old from an elderly neighbour, Benedito, a native of Angola, after being bullied by an older boy. He then trained at the Navy School in Salvador, where he also received instruction in fencing and Swedish gymnastics. Known as the philosopher of capoeira for his many aphorisms, he chose not to add new kicks, wanting students to refine the principal techniques, and he worked to separate capoeira Angola from violence. Two of his principal disciples went on to become mestres themselves.