Samba music is very heterogeneous and it's intricate to define. It is the outcome of a long simmering mix of separate tradition from the Portuguese songs, African rhythms, and the fast paced Indian ceremony approaching worldwide influences. In the start it was played only with drums and other bass beat instruments, but later the acoustic guitar and the small Brazilian guitar cavaquinho was added.

Samba is one of the most famous of the various forms of music arising from African roots in Brazil. The name samba most probably comes from the Angolan semba (mesemba), a religious rhythm.