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. What holds the group together is respect for each other, the fun of the game, and the people you train with.
WHO IS IT FOR?
KIDS
Children can start at age 5. Training builds coordination, flexibility, and balance, and it builds character too. Kids learn to talk to each other, work together, and get past what they thought they could do. The room is safe, the mood is playful, and the music runs 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 is the only martial art that puts combat, music, dance, and acrobatics in the same practice.
vs
Karate
A striking art from Japan, built on precision, katas, and formal sparring. It is powerful and disciplined, and it is also silent. Technique carries the whole practice, without 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 Afro-Brazilian roots show in the movement itself.
vs
Judo
An Olympic grappling art. Throws, sweeps, and ground control, done with a lot of precision. Judo is built to work rather than to look good, so it has no strikes, no acrobatics, and no rhythm to follow.
Capoeira adds:
Kicks, feints in the air, and escapes that turn defense into something worth watching. Live music runs under the whole session.
vs
Taekwondo
An Olympic art known for high, fast kicks and formal competition. It is athletic and quick. It is also built around winning a match rather than playing a game.
Capoeira adds:
The ginga, a steady sway that never stops, turns kicks into a conversation. The roda takes the place of the scoreboard, so you get partners instead of winners.
vs
MMA
Mixed martial arts puts striking and grappling together to get the most effective result. It is practical and it covers a lot of ground. It is also only about fighting, with no cultural side and no room for expression.
Capoeira adds:
Room to express yourself, a culture behind the sport, and the roda. In the circle every game is a performance the whole group takes part in.
COMMUNITY
You cannot practice capoeira on your own. The game happens in the roda, the circle, and the circle only works if everyone in it takes part. At Alemar Chișinău the students know each other and grow together, whatever their age, gender, or background.
THE INSTRUCTOR
Sergiu Melnic
Sergiu Melnic has trained in capoeira for more than twenty years and has led the Alemar Chișinău group since 2003. Hundreds of students have come through his classes: children and adults, first-timers and advanced.
Calea Ieșilor 10, 5th floor, Chișinău
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