Pillar #1: Honor Tradition
Honoring the tradition of djembe music is the first of “The Endangered Three” – a group of three qualities that, when combined, embody Roots Djembe. And unfortunately, it’s becoming rare to find them all together in modern djembe music.
Even though we often play djembe music outside of its classic context, there are things we can do if we like Roots Djembe style, even as American or European students.
We can choose to play classic music on classic instruments.
Choosing to use this age-old phrasing with deep feeling before choosing busy, heady, or “interesting” sounding phrases helps create each rhythm’s unique melodic flavor.
Closed slaps, deep basses, and fat tones all add to the melody and musicality of Roots Djembe music for a difference you can actually feel.
