Mestre Nô was born Norival Moreira de Oliveira on the 22nd June 1945 n Coroa, Itaparica, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
Mestre Nô was introduced to capoeira at the age of 4, when he was 7 Mestre Nô and his family moved to Massaranduba, a poor neighborhood not far from the church of Bomfim. Mestre Nilton and Mestre Cutica, brothers and highly respected capoeiristas who lived down the block, took the young Mestre Nô to meet the elder masters Pirró and Zeca. Pirró, Zeca and Nilton organised and commanded many capoeira Angola rodas in the streets.
Norival began playing in the mestre's rodas and in 1965 he started teaching in his own academy. Mestre Nô founded Capoeira Academies Retintos, Orixás da Bahia and Capoeira Angola Palmares. He has taught to thousands of capoeristas. He is founder, president, and grand master of Associacao Brasileira Cultural de Capoeira Palmares (ABCCP) an organisation dedicated to teaching, promoting and maintaining the traditions of Capoeira Angola. He is also the actual president of A.B.C.A. ( Associação Brasileira de Capoeira Angola ), the most respected association created by the eldest masters to maintain and preserve capoeira Angola as it is. Mestre Nô is known throughout the world to be the "mestre dos mestres", the "master of masters", for having graduated over 75 students to the level of Master, which is unique for anyone teacher to accomplish in their lifetime.
Today, Mestre Nô lives with his family on Itaparica Island. He travels throughout Brazil, the US, Europe, and other parts of the world helping Capoeiristas reach their goals. He conducts an annual "International Capoeira Angola Palmares Seminar" in Coroa Vera Cruz, Itaparica Island where he conducts classes and imparts the philosophy of traditional Capoeira Angola.