ABOUT US
Martial art, dance, music, and a community in Chișinău since 2003.
Alemar Capoeira Chișinău opened in 2003. It was the first capoeira school in Moldova and it is still the oldest one running. Over the years a close group formed around it, held together by mutual respect and the fun of the game.
WHO IS IT FOR?
KIDS
Children can start at age 5. Training builds coordination, flexibility, and balance, and it shapes character: kids learn to work together and to do moves they did not think they could. The room is safe and the mood is playful, with music the whole time. Nobody competes and nobody loses, because capoeira is played together.
ADULTS
Your age, your fitness, and what you have done before do not matter. Adults who train here get stronger and more flexible, and they get a real break from the working day. You also join a group: three sessions a week, events, batizados, and friendships that carry on outside the gym.
WHY CAPOEIRA?
- A full-body workout: strength, flexibility, coordination, and balance
- Open to any age, any gender, and any level of fitness
- Live music at every session, played on berimbau, atabaque, and pandeiro
- Martial art, dance, and acrobatics in the same sport
- A community with regular events and batizados
- First class is free
CAPOEIRA VS OTHER MARTIAL ARTS
Capoeira puts combat, music, dance, and acrobatics in the same practice.
vs
Karate
A striking art from Japan, built on precision, kata, and formal sparring. It is powerful and disciplined, and it is practiced in silence, with no music or dance.
Capoeira adds:
Live percussion sets the pace of every exchange. The ginga keeps you moving instead of holding a stance, and the moves come from Afro-Brazilian tradition.
vs
Judo
An Olympic grappling art: throws, sweeps, and ground control, done with precision. Judo has no strikes, acrobatics, or musical rhythm.
Capoeira adds:
Kicks, feints, and escapes, many of them acrobatic. The whole session runs to live music.
vs
Taekwondo
An Olympic art known for high, fast kicks. It is athletic, and training is built around formal competition and winning the match.
Capoeira adds:
The ginga, the constant sway of capoeira, makes kicks an exchange between two partners. The roda keeps no score and has no winners.
vs
MMA
Mixed martial arts combines striking and grappling to get the most effective result. It is practical and covers a lot of technique. The focus is on fighting alone, with no cultural side and no room for self-expression.
Capoeira adds:
A culture behind the sport. In the roda, every game is a form of self-expression that the whole group takes part in.
COMMUNITY
You cannot practice capoeira on your own. The game happens in the roda, a circle that only works if everyone in it takes part. At Alemar Chișinău the students know each other and progress together, whatever their age, gender, or nationality.
THE INSTRUCTOR
Sergiu Melnic
Sergiu Melnic has trained in capoeira for more than twenty years and has led the Alemar Chișinău group since 2003.
Calea Ieșilor 10, 5th floor, Chișinău
Come to a class