Tag: Fluidity
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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 […]
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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 […]
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Intro to Hand-Over-Hand
Keep Your Hands Moving Hand-Over-Hand is a technique where you keep your hands moving while you play. Your hands move up and down constantly, alternating back and forth, sometimes even pitter-pattering on the notes you don’t play (ghost notes). Think of it as moving your hands as if you’re playing the goloba (echauffment) – even when […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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The Soloist’s Progression: Theme-Based Soloing
The soloists progression is a basic formula for a good solo. It’s not to be followed rigidly. In fact, the whole point is to increase fluidity and let your solo progress organically. The concept of the soloists progression should be understood, and then used as a guide. Don’t underestimate it’s power. Using the soloists progression will, in […]
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Solo Meditations
A solo meditation is a practice exercise in which you focus on one single solo theme, represented by a root solo phrase. Meditations help to develop an intimate relationship with the rhythm. Here’s a great example of one possible Solo Meditation for Madan. They are an incredibly helpful exercise that’s actually very fun to do. Its especially fun if […]