Maracatu Caxinguelê was founded in Vienna/Austria in 2015. The name Caxinguelê means squirrel, which is widely spread in Austria. This active and agile animal resembles the nature and spirit of the music. The group colours are red and black, the colours of the Brazilian Orixa named Exú, the God of Movement. Maracatu Caxinguelê is a Viennese percussion group whose players are dedicated to the sound landscapes of the northeast-Brazilian Maracatu. We play traditional songs and arrangements from Recife but also newly arranged ones and other styles based on different north-eastern Brazilian rhythms, such as Ciranda, Ijexá or songs by Chico Science & Nação Zumbi. The group consists of around 20 players – a colourful mixture of Brazilians and Europeans, professional as well as hobby musicians. Our director Timon Thalwitzer, a musicologist and percussionist, studies Maracatu academcially. He and other group members have originally learned Maracatu in Brazil.