What djembe Rhythm have you played more than any other?

[jeffduyndam]

Kakilambe, Soli (domba), Nyaka (Akonkon)

[Michel]

Komodou, Dansa, N'gri, Follij. Lovely rhythms

[bubudi]

Komodou, Dansa, N'gri, Follij. Lovely rhythms

komodenou (aka koreduga), or komo don (komo foli)?
i have learned a rhythm called foli, it's a modern one from conakry, and it's on one of bangourake's instructional dvds. is that the one you play?

[Michel]

My teacher Moussé Dramé seems to teach us rhythms which seem to be rare/not very known. I am aware of that since some time. Sometimes it's hard to discover the real story of them. He learned them in his family of Bamana in Dakar, and this is what he tells about them:
komodou: A komodou is a fetish, like you see sometimes donso or fetisheurs with a camel's tail in their hands.
Follij: (probably fula foly), Moussé told this was the one people use to play when the peul/fula and bamana got together. In the region of Kayes, Mali, where his family is from, very likely. He himself is half bamana/fula.

Since Moussé tells me he plays the rhythms like they are tought to him by his father and uncles, I have to believe him, but untill now I never met others who know the same things. He himself never went to Mali, but we are working on a project to go there. Untill now no student of him was asking about these things, and since I visited Mali a few times, also to study, he is getting curious as well about the backgrounds of his rhythms. So I don't have all the answers, and his father and uncle passed away allready, we have to go to his roots to find out. I am sure Kissima Diabaté, his brother, must know more also.

He recorded a cd with some Wolof djembé players, on which he plays these rhythms. It was recorded in the Netherlands, it's called 'Joko', by the band Rimbaax. Very Senegalese. I could upload them somewhere if you can tell me how!

Michiel

[bubudi]

the situation in dakar is unique. there are bamana there who were living in tambacounda for many years. then there is a relatively new djembe scene there which has been very much influenced by guinea, as well as retaining the senegalese flavour. as a result you will see quite a range of rhythms being played on djembe, from malian to guinean as well as some sabar rhythms.

it would be great to hear the tracks from rimbaax's cd, we could hear some of these rhythms you play as well as get an appreciation for moussa's playing. you could attach some mp3 files to your messages (do not use the 'quick reply' box for this), or if you prefer you could send them to me and i will convert them to mp3 and upload them here.

[Michel]

Exactly what I think. Since Moussé's family came there from Kayes in Mali in the 60's they have been recreating and reinterpretating rhythms they knew from their tradition. His brother Kissima (soloist of the National Ballet of Senegal before Modou Xoule) and his sister Tacko Cissokho (lead choreographer and married to a 'Ndiaye Rose) must have been inventing new things out of their own roots, combined with sabar, seourouba and Boogaraboo rhythms for the Ballet. As a student of Moussé it is great. I am very interested in the pure Malian tradition. Last workshop when I saw him play with Ibrahima Sarr you really could tell they knew each other, musicwise. I am asking Moussé all the time to get back to the basics of the rhythm, before teaching their creations. It makes the connections to and roots of rhythms more clear.
As attachment I will post Komodou and Follij. Please let me hear what you think of it. For me it doesn't sound very Bamana.....

[bubudi]

thanks for the recordings, they're very nice. i haven't heard those rhythms before.

[nkolisnyk]

Lekule seems to be a universal favorite in Winnipeg, Canada. An instructor here learned it from Mamady and brought it back. It spread like wildfire. Likely, because it has a groove that any beginner can play to, but also because 4/5 drummers in the city know the solo rhythms!

[rachelnguyen]

Dansa, Dansa and more Dansa. My teacher cycles back to it fairly regularly for his beginner students. This time around I decided to just stick to the Jeli dun dun part and it has been much more fun for me.

[Carl]

Hmmm this is a tough one.

I purposely try to mix things up in my class, and in the band. I don't "get out enough" to be that influence by repetitive study in a class (getting out to 1 or 2 of the big tours is the best I can manage)

I'd have to say that in my class Soli Rapide gets the most air-time

In the band, Kotedjuga, Liberte (6/8) and mendiani are the big 3 (though we took Koedjuga and Liberte out of the mix last winter....)

my 2 cents.
C

[Afoba]

Kuku, Makru, Yankadi, Dansa...???
traditional maninka style isn't that popular yet I guess, especially in dance classes.
In Germany it's about the same, if we look at dance classes. The most played rythm might be Balakulandyan/Soliba, but maybe I'm already looking at the "inner circle" saying this. But we have a lot of dance teachers teaching Soli (what Mamady calls Soli rapide), too.
In Strasbourg (France) it was Dansa for sure (dance classes and other occasions) ironical thanx to the drummers from Burkina (Dansa fits to most of he balaphone rythms they got at home and most of them doesn't know more than 5 djembé rythms when they arrive - their strenth is speed!).
Next one might be an unlogical mix of different influences (including Bamako, Hamana and Mamady) and misunderstandings that french and burkinabé people call "mendiani" d;-)

The rythm I probably played most is Dundungbè, then there are Balakulandyan, Soli, Gbada, Sörö, Konden, Dya....

Greets, Daniel