L1 - The Djembe
Lesson Objectives:
To know how to correctly hold the Djembe
To play three different tones (bass, tone and slap)
To learn the signal and response
To improvise 1 bar patterns.
Mohamed Gueye
Mohamed was born into a large family of drummers in Senegal. He learnt the Djembe from his grandfather and father from the age of 5. He started playing professionally at 15. Mohamed now lives in London and as well as performing around the world, he works with young people in schools, passing on his deep understanding of Senegalese rhythms to the next generation.
Djembe Strokes
Bass (lower tone):
Hold you hand flat with your fingers together. Hit the centre of the Djembe with the palm of your hand. As soon as your hand hits the Djembe, let it bounce back. This lets the Djembe skin vibrate and the sound come out. Use your whole arm, not just your hand.
Tone (medium pitch):
Strike near the rim of the Djembe with slightly cupped fingers kept together. Each finger should hit the Djembe at the same time with the centre joints meeting the edge of the drum. Remember to 'bounce' the hand away so you produce a crisp sound to the note.
Slap (higher pitch):
Cup your hand with the fingers slightly apart. Hit the Djembe somewhere between the centre and the rim. It should be a single, quick movement. It takes some practice!
Extension - Advanced techniques:
Ping: Place the hand so the first joint of your fingers is on the rim - that might mean not all your fingers hit the djembe
Muffled Tone: The muffled tone is played exactly the same way as the tone with one key difference. This time, don't pull your hand away after hitting the Djembe - keep it there. This produces a muffled sound, which creates a unique effect.
Group Performance
In your groups you should:
Pick a master drummer – this can change during your rehearsal
The master drummer should count in 4 setting the tempo
The master drummer plays the signal ‘I can play the drum’ and the rest of the group respond ‘yes we can’. Repeat 4 times
Go round the circle taking it in turns to improvise a bars call answered by the group response ‘Now we play the response phrase’
5. Practice moving straight from the signal to the first solo call and group unison response