Any tips for insecure feelings

[michi]

So I stay straight and pray that at some point they will notice that they are half a measure ahead of me and come back onto the rhythm.

Get a bigger dundun stick!

One approach I use when someone drifts off too far, especially in drum circles, is to give them a friendly smile and play their part for a few cycles, nodding encouragement. Usually, the person is glad for the help, smiles back, and plays on the pulse again (at least for a while...)

Cheers,

Michi.

[rachelnguyen]

LOL, that sounds like a great approach, except we are already playing the same part! I could definitely try the smiling thing, though.

And I have to remember all the times I wandered around when I first started.... even with the dun duns.

[michi]

LOL, that sounds like a great approach, except we are already playing the same part!

Ah, I see your problem now

I could definitely try the smiling thing, though.

Yes, smiling is good, definitely Indicate to them with a (friendly) shake of your head that they are off, and indicate that they should look at your hands. A lot of people find it helpful if they know that someone else is playing the same part, so they know they can check their timing visually (well, coarse timing at least) by looking whether their own hands are in sync with someone else's.

And I have to remember all the times I wandered around when I first started.... even with the dun duns.

Right. I have yet to see a djembefola/dundunfola that gets born with their skills. Although, some kids, such as Jeremy's sons, come pretty close!

Cheers,

Michi.

[bubudi]

rachel, doni doni kono nita niama

translation: little by little the bird builds its nest

[bubudi]

That reminds me of some of the stories that are circulating about Epizo (even a good ten years later...) Apparently, during his first camp, some people walked out of the camp in tears because he was pushing people so hard and had a truly abrasive teaching style.

i was at the first camp and his vibe was really good. he definitely worked us hard and he let us know if something wasn't right, but nothing that hard. if he had been so abrasive in his camps, they wouldn't still be going 15 years later.

he definitely lost a lot of students during his classes though, by being bluntly critical. i don't condone this method, but it does indicate he really cared about his students 'getting it'.

[Djembe-nerd]

It mainly depends on the teacher, but some of it I guess is a cultural issue too.

In India too I experienced that teaching means something close to army dicipline. Also you got to take the art and teacher seriously. Some places it doesn;t come as a hobby, its a living and a career. And when those teachers get students who are just trying it out I guess they don;t understand the concept.

just my 2 cents.

[michi]

i was at the first camp and his vibe was really good.

You are definitely a veteran then! Fifteen years...

he definitely worked us hard and he let us know if something wasn't right, but nothing that hard. if he had been so abrasive in his camps, they wouldn't still be going 15 years later.

True. People tell me that he has softened up a lot since then

he definitely lost a lot of students during his classes though, by being bluntly critical. i don't condone this method, but it does indicate he really cared about his students 'getting it'.

He definitely cares, and he works very hard during the camp, really putting all of himself into it. No criticism on that score! And, as I said elsewhere, in my opinion, Bundagen is the best camp in Australia each year (and the longest, running for a full seven days).

Cheers,

Michi.

[michi]

In India too I experienced that teaching means something close to army dicipline. Also you got to take the art and teacher seriously. Some places it doesn;t come as a hobby, its a living and a career. And when those teachers get students who are just trying it out I guess they don;t understand the concept.

Epizo is one of the djembefolas who grew up in the early ballet days. The musicians were not treated well there. You get hints of that when you watch Djembefola when Mamady meets up with Balanka Sidiki. I've also had personal conversations that indicated the very harsh treatment the musicians received. If you have grown up in this culture where strict personal discipline was the order of the day, and where the only way to get somewhere was to be completely and utterly dedicated to the music, I'm sure it can be difficult to understand the western mindset of "oh well, I like playing djembe once in a while, when I'm in the mood."

The only way to get truly good on this (or any other) instrument is to spend a huge amount of time on it and with single-minded focus. That is far more than what most westerners are prepared to give. So, when a traditional teacher meets up with a western student, it is easy to see how this gap opens, where the teacher can't understand why the student is so casual, and the student can't understand why the teacher is so fanatic.

Most teachers quickly learn that their students tend to take things far less seriously than they do. I've watched Sibo over the past six years. He used to run warm-ups in his classes that had his students dripping with sweat and aching after 25 minutes. When they basically were just about to collapse, Sibo's quite honest reaction was "what's the matter, we've only just started, and I'm doing what's good for you." He's right--it is good to work on this kind of stamina exercise. But it's not what most students are looking for. These days, Sibo is a lot less demanding and has eased up a lot (although he still runs wicked warm-ups ).

Cheers,

Michi.

[Waraba]

One of my teachers told me that when you make a mistake, smile.

Another one told me, when you mess up, visibly laugh at yourself: "People will say, 'Oh, who mess up? Is him? Oh, he already know is him--look, he is laughing!"

The smiling and laughing helps you relax, but is also code for the leader to get you back in. And, the audience thinks nothing is wrong.

I find I have to smile and laugh a lot.

[Paul]

I've watched Sibo over the past six years. He used to run warm-ups in his classes that had his students dripping with sweat and aching after 25 minutes. When they basically were just about to collapse, Sibo's quite honest reaction was "what's the matter, we've only just started, and I'm doing what's good for you." He's right--it is good to work on this kind of stamina exercise. But it's not what most students are looking for.

If where you live is anything like here, you can find hippy classes any day of the week.. Fair play to Sibo its his culture... Why give in to the rhythm collectors...

Hope he has a big stick, I can post him a shelaylee

Had Babara Bangoura over this weekend he left us in a heap on the floor..

[Michel]

We had Babara a weekend before on our workshop. Did he use his Iphone stopwatch with the warming up? Killing!!

[Garvin]

One of my teachers told me that when you make a mistake, smile.

Another one told me, when you mess up, visibly laugh at yourself: "People will say, 'Oh, who mess up? Is him? Oh, he already know is him--look, he is laughing!"

The smiling and laughing helps you relax, but is also code for the leader to get you back in. And, the audience thinks nothing is wrong.

I find I have to smile and laugh a lot.

Cool... No one ever told me that, but I definitely do the same thing. I think it kind of helps everyone to realize that you are playing music, not performing surgery. You can mess up, or forget things. Not to say it isn't hard, or doesn't deserve focus and determination as well.

I have heard stories of some of the older folas being blatantly abused by their teachers and while I respect and understand that that was the old way, I just feel it doesn't translate to Westerners. We are wired to say "screw you, I'm outta here" when things get too hard. I think that is why the West African drum scene's tend to feel like little families of weirdos. We are addicts, and obsessed enough to look past the insecure feelings in order to keep playing. People that are too sensitive or need too much praise tend not to come back in my experience. I try to encourage everyone who expresses interest in this music and tell them that it takes years to develop a sound and vocabulary. But again, most Westerners don't want to spend years developing, only minutes. I include myself in all of the criticism here. I'm impatient and sensitive, but completely addicted.

[Paul]

We had Babara a weekend before on our workshop. Did he use his Iphone stopwatch with the warming up? Killing!!

No he just kept laughing at us though..

[Dugafola]

We had Babara a weekend before on our workshop. Did he use his Iphone stopwatch with the warming up? Killing!!

No he just kept laughing at us though..

what did his warmup consist of? and for how long?

[Michel]

His warmup on our weekend was playing tititatatatadudutatatatatititatatatadudutatatata for about 20 mins, at about 140 bpm, in the meantime he took his Iphone to let us play rolls as fast as we could (with 20 so-called advanced players in a big barn, can you imagine the 'beauty' of he noise.....) for to minutes. He did that three times in those 20 minutes. Do try this at home!