FEMINIST PRACTICE WITHIN LIMINAL SPACES: A case study of Baque de Mina
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71199/bpaegc57Keywords:
Liminal spaces, festivals, feminist practice, música, Maracatu de baque viradoAbstract
This article presents a case study of Baque de Mina, a feminist maracatu drumming collective based in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, during the 2023 Virada Cultural festival. Drawing on theories of liminal spaces, I examine how Baque de Mina inhabits transitional zones—physical (tunnels, streets, squares), social (between hierarchy and collectivity), and temporal (festivals and life transitions)—to transform ambiguity into a practice of feminist resistance. Within this group of women, rehearsals and performances function simultaneously as spaces of musical training, mutual care, and political solidarity, while also revealing tensions around leadership, inclusivity, and structural inequality. Situating Baque de Mina within Brazil’s broader gendered and racialized hierarchies and the historically male-dominated sphere of maracatu de baque virado, I highlight how their practice exemplifies how women mobilize Afro-Brazilian cultural traditions to contest patriarchal violence and renegotiate identity. Ultimately, the case study rethinks liminality as a feminist method grounded in embodied musical practice, which enables women to carve out temporary but transformative spaces where new collective identities can emerge.
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