When you watch the video (which has accumulated millions of views), the first thing that strikes you is the visual geometry. The performers sit or stand in a semi-circle. In the center, or leading the charge, is often a powerful female vocalist embodying the "Baiana" spirit, surrounded by the collective muscle of the group.
When Barbatuques strips the song down to acapella body percussion, they are returning the song to its anthropological roots. Before the Portuguese brought metal instruments, before the drum factories of Rio de Janeiro, there was the body. baiana barbatuques acapella