Tag: Approach & Perspective
-
What Style Do You Play?
Some people say that a true Djembe Master is required to play all styles and rhythms. Don’t be fooled by this statement. There may be some truth to it, but it’s misleading. If you misunderstand it, you’ll tend to want to skip directly from point A to point Z. People who have bought into this idea like to study a vast […]
-
Is It My Turn to Solo Yet?
Originally published August 2004 by Jeremy Chevrier on his Djembe Essays Blog. My teacher always emphasizes the value of good accompaniment. Accompaniment is number one. If a djembe player cannot play really good accompaniment solo is not possible. All good soloists have exceptionally good sounding accompaniments. Theoretically one should be able to recognize a Master djembe […]
-
Problems With The Phrases-Based Approach to Djembe
I recommend you adopt a themes-based approach to djembe rather than a phrases-based approach. If your teacher or someone else seems infinitely better than you at djembe, a theme-based approach may be one of the reasons why. A Modern Analogy. Imagine This: Problems With a Phrases-Based Approach A phrase-based approach is a differences-focused view. It can be […]
-
Don’t Force Your Entire Repertoire
One of the main things you can do to improve the quality of your solo is to decrease the quantity of different solo phrases. Forcing Your Repertoire Many people try to sound better by running through a large repertoire of phrases when they solo. In just a few minutes, they play everything they’ve learned for the rhythm, and […]
-
A Theme-Based Approach to Soloing
The difference between a phrase-based and theme-based approach to djembe is profound. It may be one of the biggest reasons why many students will never sound like their African teachers – no matter how long or hard they’ve been studying, or how hard they’ve been practicing. If we want to advance leaps and bounds in our djembe playing, […]
-
How To Play More Fluidly
Here’s an idea: To play more fluidly, try thinking of your role in the music as that of a conduit – not a container. Then work on yourself to become the most conductive conduit you can be. In other words, instead of spending effort trying to regurgitate all the phrases we’ve learned, we should train ourselves to […]
-
Quickly Improve Your Solo
Broadly speaking, there are two areas of djembe playing that we can always improve on, so that the music just keeps getting better and better all the time: Accompaniment Solo. We discuss accompaniment in another post. Right now, let’s talk about solo. There is a simple mental adjustment you can make to immediately improve your […]
-
Learning Mode vs. Playing Mode
At times, we’re too heady while playing, affecting timing, flow, spontaneity, and the general feeling of the music. What Happens? Deep thought and analysis help us gain a better understanding of djembe music. (When we’re not playing it.) Thinking takes time, so it can become a problem when playing music. Thinking while I play doesn’t help me play any better […]
-
The Endangered Three – Oldstyle Djembe
Think of “Roots” djembe music like Roots Reggae, Classic Rock, or Oldies. It’s old-style music from a few generations back. Djembe music is changing. Today, younger people usually play modernized djembe music with a whole different set of tastes and motivations. The classic style is dying along with the old masters who grew up playing […]
-
Two Extremes To Think About
Here’s a djembe-related false dichotomy: I make the music happen vs. IT just streams through me. The “I make the music happen” Extreme Now all too common, unfortunately. A modern and juvenile approach to playing djembe music. Many students and even many native djembe musicians are imposing as much of themselves into the music as utterly possible! Leaning this […]
-
Playing Just Accompaniment For Years
You might have heard stories of djembe players in africa playing accompaniment djembe for years before being allowed by their master to solo. You may have thought to yourself “Man, why are they so mean to their students over there? I’m lucky I live in a democracy!”, or something like that. There’s actually a reason […]
-
There is Only One Mande
Originally published August 2004 by Jeremy Chevrier on his Djembe Essays Blog. Many people in the djembe community are talking about “Guinea Style”, “Mali Style”, “Senegalese Style”, etc. It seems that separation has arisen in our community through an overemphasis on regional differences. We need to remember that this music is “Mande Style” in the end. […]
-
Slowly, Slowly The Bird Builds Its Nest…
Originally published August 2005 by Jeremy Chevrier on his Djembe Essays Blog. You cannot learn the djembe overnight. This is impossible. Djembe is a lifetime learning experience. You can never stop learning with this drum.
-
You Can’t Force The Djembe…
Originally published May 2005 by Jeremy Chevrier on his Djembe Essays Blog. My teacher Abdoulaye Diakite has told me many times that, “If you try to force the djembe, the djembe will force you.”. His teacher Suncaro Jara gave him the same saying. You cannot force a rhythm to happen. The spirit with either accept and […]
-
GOOD NEWS! You’ll Never Know the Djembe!
Originally published August 2004 by Jeremy Chevrier on his Djembe Essays Blog. Absolutely. It is nice to know that our studies of this drum and African culture have no end. This means that if you are having fun now in your studies, the fun will just increase forever as you get better and better, little by […]
-
Don’t Tell the Master to Wipe Your Ass
Originally published August 2004 by Jeremy Chevrier on his Djembe Essays Blog. Never judge a person before you know them. I have heard so many incredible stories from Abdoulaye regarding embarrassing incidents where people have misjudged a person before knowing them. I have seen for myself students within the djembe community disregarding and disrespecting other students […]
-
The Djembe is My Religion
Originally published August 2004 by Jeremy Chevrier on his Djembe Essays Blog. Why not? Everything that I have learned from the Religions of the world I have found within the djembe. Treat people kindly – the djembe taught me this. Respect others as you would yourself – the djembe taught me this. Though shall not kill […]
-
The “Ripping” and “Shredding” of Traditional Djembe
Originally published August 2004 by Jeremy Chevrier on his Djembe Essays Blog. People play djembe for a variety of reasons. Some play for fun. Some play because they want to show off. Some play to attract a mate. Some play because they just love the sound. The fact is, the djembe is a very powerful drum […]
-
Humility : #1 Criterion for Djembe Master
Originally published August 2004 by Jeremy Chevrier on his Djembe Essays Blog. A true djembe master is humble. I have never met a master drummer who was not humble. I have met good drummers who were arrogant but never a master. To get to the level of being a djembe master you have to be humble, […]
-
How Much Money Does Wisdom Cost?
Originally published August 2004 by Jeremy Chevrier on his Djembe Essays Blog. How much money do you have to pay a master to teach djembe? If you paid the master $100 for an hour-long private class should you get more than if you paid him $30? Can knowledge of the djembe be bought? Djembe knowledge can […]
-
Series: Jeremy Chevrier’s Djembe Essays
We’re happy to republish a handful of articles originally written a decade ago by Jeremy Chevrier, founder of Rootsy Records as well as The Djembe Hotel in Bamako, Mali. Jeremy, and the recordings he released on his Rootsy Records label have been an inspiration to many students of old-style djembe music over the years. These […]