djembefolettes

[rachelnguyen]

Wow, the djembe soloist has some gorgeous arms, LOL.

Do you have an videos of them? I'd love to hear them play.

R

[bops]

Additional clips from the unreleased documentary on Les Amazones. Some nice footage but with some weird audio issues.

[michi]

"unreleased documentary on Les Amazones"... Bops, do have more info? Does that mean it will be released at some point? Or that they made a documentary and decided to never release it?

Cheers,

Michi.

[bops]

On the video's description - here - the filmmaker says it was made in 2006 but never released due to "some issues". Could be referring to technical issues.

[michi]

On the video's description - here - the filmmaker says it was made in 2006 but never released due to "some issues". Could be referring to technical issues.

What a shame. I'm sure that would have made for interesting viewing...

Cheers,

Michi.

[bubudi]

there were technical problems with djembe genies by percussions de guinee, which were produced by the same guys. i believe they no longer sell that, and are looking at relaunching some of the les ballets africains productions on dvd to give a higher quality recording (obviously with a different crew).

[e2c]

just as an fyi, here's Mamady explaining how most traditional rhythms were created by the women:

djembefola-com-videos-f42/mamady-keita-talks-djembe-t1618.html

I do like the way he tells the story, although parts of it sound more like folklore/legend than hard fact. (The part about the women telling the men to play the drums especially.) By that, i mean that all cultures have stories that explain the reasons for many things - they're usually wonderful stories, but they aren't quite the same as historical fact.

Nevertheless, i *love* how he credits the women with developing so much! (Songs, rhythms, dances etc.)

[Djembe-nerd]

I too read sometime back, that women were the ones that started it all, and sang with clapping hands (Thats where clappingfola comes from ) and later men started accompaning them with Djembe and other instruments.

[michi]

do like the way he tells the story, although parts of it sound more like folklore/legend than hard fact. (The part about the women telling the men to play the drums especially.)

I think that part was more of a joke. But I have no doubt that, in essence, the story is true. It's the women who invent the songs and the groove, and the men come along later and add drum parts.

Cheers,

Michi.

[e2c]

I agree that it was meant in a joking way, but it might very well be part of the story, too. (As Mamady tells it, at least. )

Being a clappingfola is fun, too, and harder than it looks!



This is *hard* to do well at typical performance tempos, especially for people like me who didn't grow up with these kinds of patterns. The accents are in very "odd" places,for one.

These guys lose if for a few seconds, but overall, they're really good.

[bubudi]

nimbaya (formerly les amazones de guinee) live at festiva etnica, gandia, spain in 2007.

[bubudi]

some recent footage of monette marino keita on djembe

check out her solo here at 8:43



here's another short solo



and performing alongside mamady

[archetypo]

As for what you're saying about the physical side, I think that's much more about stamina than it is about upper body strength.

I would agree with that - also about being relaxed. I'll be 50 this year - didn't start playing djembe until I was 37, so definitely a late starter, and for may years I suffered from severe asthma and other health issues, but I'm gradually building my stamina for performing and the speed is coming bit by bit. Hey, if you look at the way some of those old masters can still play at their age, I don't see any reason why I can't still improve

This is my group, Moussou Folila - the name was given to us by Amara Kante & Amadou Kienou - meaning, 'women who play'.


(I know, I have a LOT of improving to do still, and this is definitely not our best by any means - will post more video if we get it, hopefully not filmed while we're playing in full sun after a long set!)

[michi]

I remember an interview with Mamadou Conde about the idea to form Les Amazones. He spoke about how preposterous the idea seemed at the time, and how much resistance he had to overcome to find support for it. As best as I can remember, that interview was captured on video, but I cannot remember where I saw it. It might have been on YouTube, or in some of the extras on a djembe DVD.

I found text that used to be on the Les Amazones website (now called Nimbaya!), but is no longer there. However, that text was archived in a newsletter, and its content is along the same lines as the video interview I remember.

My question: can anyone help me find that video interview?

Thanks,

Michi.