HOW FORCES CROSS

DRUMS AND CIRCULATION OF FORCES IN AFRO-BRAZILIAN RELIGIONS IN RIO GRANDE DO SUL

Abstract

This article aims to analyze some aspects of the performance of the drums in the context of Afro-Brazilian religions in Rio Grande do Sul. I argue that drums help us to understand the ways in which the encounter between Umbanda, Kimbanda and Batuque has been happening in Rio Grande do Sul. In this way, I will pay more attention to the drums played in exu rituals, considering that the ways of dealing with these instruments also reveal the ways of dealing with the dynamics of crossroads and encruzilhadas and with the forces that flow through it. I base my arguments on two cases: first, the spatial distribution of a terreiro and the different groups of drums used during different rituals; second, I seek to show how the kimbanda sounds are the protagonists of crossings. In short, I intend to show how the kimbanda universe is fluid, capable of opening passages between different ritual modalities. It is at the limit of what is crossed that exu actualizes its inventive potentials.