Popularity of African Drumming (influence, culture, features, people)
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In Toronto, Ontario, Canada we have a Muhtadi International Drumming Festival. It features drumming from all over the world, but African drumming is always a major chunk of it also considering African drumming as influenced drumming/musical in general all over the Americas.
There are also lots of places that teach drumming and public schools that teach African Drumming. I have a few Djembe drum at home. They are pretty easy to frind in Toronto.
African rhythms are the basis of most modern music. What is interesting is how people who don't come from African influenced cultures are "forced" to respond to it when they hear it.
There is some connect between these beats and the human mind and it will be interesting to see what research on this digs up.
There are African Drumming groups on several University campuses that I know of, they put on a concert once a year.
In my neighborhood there used to be a dance studio and they would offer dance and drumming classes from time to time.
I signed up for one weekend class, the guy who gave it was from the National Dance Troupe of Guinea, he taught us different
techniques then we had to show what we learned.
I didn't realize how LOUD those drums could be without a microphone, you could literally feel the vibrations. The man worked us to exhaustion!!! We had learned about 9 dances from different ethnic groups and countries this guy been to. Each person
had to show their moves and I was thrown front and center and there was some improvisation on my part. It was about
25 of us total in that class. The drummers were all from Guinea about 7 of them.
African rhythms are the basis of most modern music. What is interesting is how people who don't come from African influenced cultures are "forced" to respond to it when they hear it.
There is some connect between these beats and the human mind and it will be interesting to see what research on this digs up.
In terms of modern music, for example the Motown Sound of the mid-sixties it was stated that the bass drum and the bass synchronized off of each other as were the other instruments. It was said this effect made the
human mind react LOGICALLY to where it THINKS the beat is and the body reacted PHYSICALLY to where the beat ACTUALLY was. This FORCED the person to move to the beat.
They called it playing in the groove...I think African rhythms basically exploit the natural body rhythms, these
Motown guys were originally jazz players, so I think the key to a lot of this is based on unconscious human
body rhythm and intuition.
As an AA, when I hear poly-rhythmic funk or Caribbean music, African music, I usually can pick out a
consistent underlying beat to be able to dance to it and work from that.
As an AA, when I hear poly-rhythmic funk or Caribbean music, African music, I usually can pick out a
consistent underlying beat to be able to dance to it and work from that.
Yes most blacks "read the rhythm" before they fully begin to embrace it. This will determine their moves.
This is the difference from those whites who haven't had heavy exposure to this culture, this being why often blacks look at whites and claim that they cannot dance.
Of course one can no longer categorically say this as many younger whites also now "read the rhythm" and move accordingly.
But yes picking out the pattern of the underlying beat is key. The snappy funk beat is different from the rolling rhythms of most Caribbean and African popular music. Dance hall being the connector. House music was interesting with its rolling rhythm, even though it was AA music. I think it actually allowed AAs to appreciate soca, zouk, and other flavors.
The snappy funk beat is different from the rolling rhythms of most Caribbean and African popular music. Dance hall being the connector. House music was interesting with its rolling rhythm, even though it was AA music. I think it actually allowed AAs to appreciate soca, zouk, and other flavors.
Yeah I get that about most Funk. Though I've found funk songs from different eras can cause you to dance differently. To use some old school dance examples. Funk songs from the early 80's with that "snappy" beat like you'd find with most Zapp songs will make you Pop more with your movements. Funk songs from the early to mid 70's like BT Express music will make you want to Lock more. At least that's how they appeal to me.
Funny thing about house music was that it took me some time to get into it because when I first heard it I couldn't figure out how exactly you were supposed to dance to it. It does have some similarities to Soca.
I love House music, what I noticed about Caribbean music is that lots of it seemed to be very fast, except maybe for Reggae,
I was invited to a Jamaican wedding and during the reception they played AA music and Jamaican music, they were doing a
"walking dance" to the Reggae beat, would like to know the history of that.
When I went to the Bahamas, their music was very fast, I liked their styles, brought some music back. There was a video of a
Haitian Flag Day festival I enjoyed the music, it was very fast with the horns and they were doing like a fast shuffle with short
steps, I got into that.
As far as African music, first Africans I became friends with got me into Fela with his song "Lady" "If you call am woman African woman no go gree e go say I be lady-O!" I can pick-up on his Pidgin fairly quickly on his records. Sir Victor Uwaifo was good too.
So in contrast, rock music and John Tesh the enjoyment is in the melody and sound techniques? I have been invited to several white frat parties in my time and all they did was stand around and eat popcorn and drink beer from the keg with
music in the background and talk. I guess the fun is in drinking and talking? Just trying to understand.
I think that its foundations is in the syncopation in jazz.
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