2921 La Cienega Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232 Fax: (310) 815-0515 | Local: (310) 838-5008
Toll-Free: (888) 419-0515. Join our MySpace.com community: myspace.com/motherlanddrums
Rhythm |  | Begins  HERE |
2921 La Cienega Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232 Fax: (310) 815-0515 | Local: (310) 838-5008 Toll-Free: (888) 419-0515. Join our MySpace.com community: myspace.com/motherlanddrums |
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            Place an Order: Click here for our Toll-Free Telephone, Fax Number, Email, Map and Mailing Addresses |
Click here to view or print the entire current Weekly Classes Schedule (using your web browser) Updated 3-17-09
Hey student: Bring your audio/video recorder/camera to immortalize your class experience for home practice!*
Motherland Music has the very easy-to-use, great-sounding Samson Zoom H2 in stock for only $199.00.
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| Mondays | (Tuesdays) | Wednesdays | Thursdays |
| Cast a vote for your favorite MM Adult Djembe Instructor here. | |||
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| Fridays | Saturdays | Sundays | 2nd/4th Sat's |
Motherland Music's Weekly Classes & Community Drum Circles
If you are a drummer or would like to learn how to express yourself through the drum, visit Motherland Music in Culver City.
All skill levels are welcome.
Below is a list of ongoing classes and circles/workshops facilitated by professional drummer/percussionist instructors here.
Copyright notice:
*Paid participants may record classes/workshops using portable devices for personal use. All other use is strictly probibited.
No other recording is permitted during classes/workshops without prior permission of the instructor and Motherland Music.
Motherland Music is open to the public for business, but our performance space is wholly owned and is NOT a public place.
For more details, please ask the instructor in charge of the class/workshop, or contact the store staff in person.
All classes and circles/workshops meet here:
Motherland Music, 2921 La Cienega Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232 (310) 838-5008
Drums are available for rent ($5 per class) and for sale at very reasonable prices!
| Videos below directed & edited by Mark Crutch | ||||||||||||||
All Levels Welcome! With Wolof Griot Pape Diouf* from Senegal Pape (pron. "Pop") has been drumming his whole life. He is a skilled drum maker, teacher, and performer. Pape Diouf is a very patient teacher who helps his students to learn quickly and efficiently. Pape is from Dakar, Senegal and has been in the U.S. for the past 5 years and is in the process of becoming a U.S. citizen. He is most fluent in the Wolof language and is currently learning U.S. Business English. Pape is from an important family line of griots, the oral tradition teachers in Africa. Family and spiritual life are very important to Pape, and he brings such perspectives to his classes as well. An experienced drum repair technician, Pape also works in the Motherland Music workshop and drums at top dance studios and at clinics & special performances. If you've studied classical or other drumming styles, Pape's Sabar and Mbalax class can give you a very unique musical edge! *Pape's classes are currently on hiatus until mid-June and/or may be taught by his son(s), also very well-versed in Sabar drumming. Please call us for details. |
Monday Afternoons
All Levels Welcome! With Wolof Griot Pape Diouf* from Senegal Please see the section at left for a brief Pape Diouf bio. Pape's Monday Afternoon Beginning Djembe and Dundun class is for those with no experience playing hand drums (djembes) or African bass drums (dunduns). Learn basic playing techniques on djembe and dundun (kenkeni, sangban, and dundun) and some simple rhythms. Practice mastering the all-important skill of steady rhythm with a master drummer. Some of Pape's students have moved effortlessly into more advanced classes and playing situations. Here's a great place to start learning African drumming! Just ask Pape: he knows! Pape is also much in demand for private lessons and educational live performances. Pape (like his friend Malik Sow) is a leader and source of civic pride for Los Angeles's Senegalese immigrant community. *Pape's classes are currently on hiatus until mid-June and/or may be taught by his son(s), also very well-versed in djembe drumming. Please call us for details. |
Monday Evenings
Afro-Cuban Drumimg with Artist Luca Brandoli / José Vergara. 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. - $20
All Levels Welcome! Learn rhythms and songs like Rumba, Arará, Bembé, Comparsa, Conga Orientál, and many others. Classes offered by Luca Brandoli. Italy native Luca has been studying and playing 'roots' Cuban music for the past 20 years. He is a renowned singer, drummer, and respected author featured on many autentico (authentic) recordings. In-demand session artist, too.Recently returned from another trip to Cuba researching and preparing Vol's 2 and 3 of his impressive 3-volume magnum opus (featuring all Orishas in English & Spanish), Luca's sub when he's out of town is sardonic Spaniard conga maestro de novatos alto, the charming José "Conguito" Vergara who specializes in beginning conga. Expect a fun and interesting, informative class from either instructor! Vol. 1 of Cantos Afrocubanos in stock! We'll soon offer all 3 volumes of Luca's book/CD! |
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We currently have no regular scheduled weekly classes on Tuesday evenings.
Please check here periodically for further updates, or contact us for more info.
Wednesday Evenings
Senegalese Djembe and Djun-Djun Drumming with Master Drummer Malik Sow.
7:00 - 8:30 p.m. $15
| Sign Up Today! Class #: MMC004 |
Class is taught by multilingual master drummer, composer, and choreographer Malik Sow (pron. "So") from Dakar, Senegal. As a young boy in Senegal, Malik studied with master drummer Doussou Koulibaly and dancer Karounga Sakho. In 1970 Sow was lead drummer in the Ballet d'Afrique Noire, three years later he became the Musical Director for the Ballet National du Senegal, a position he held for ten years. Malik has traveled worldwide several times sharing his knowledge of West African culture and his musical abilities, and we are delighted to host his Wednesday and Saturday weekly classes @ Motherland Music, which Malik calls his "home away from home." Be prepared to join Maestro Malik's regulars and sweat. Word to the linguistically inclined: ten languages (including music) spoken here! Malik asks, "What can you make the drum say?" Have you been drumming Malinke style for a while and feel that you've reached a plateau? Want to take your African drum-speaking abilities to the next level? This is the place and time! Malik also drums at top dance studios and in special appearances and has been a featured and beloved educator in both Los Angeles and Orange County school arts programs for many years. He has acted in [and coached other actors] and consulted and composed music for films (notably Stephen Spielberg's Amistad [and Richard Jenkins's The Visitor]). Malik's affable manner is guaranteed to make you smile and feel better about yourself, and he can definitely help you to improve your drumming, whatever your level of ability.
This Special Master Class/Workshop 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. $20 / 6/$100
now Extended & Ongoing
with the inspiring drummer and Remo Signature artist Leon Mobley / Jah Amen Mobley.
Don't miss Leon if you can be here when he is; however when Leon's out on tour, his
sub is the very-respected artist who also happens to be his brother Jah Amen Mobley!
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| Sign Up Today! Class #: Leon Mobley |
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The Los Angeles-based drummer and director/founder of the groups Da Lion (with Jah Amen Mobley, Jai Jae Johnson, Michael Spears and percussionist Marcus Miller) and Djimbe West African Drummers and Dancers has traveled, performed, and recorded with a veritable who's-who of African and other talents including Dave Matthews, Jack Johnson, Peter Wolf, Mick Jagger, Quincy Jones, Carlos Santana, Michael Jackson, Macy Gray, Trevor Hall, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Blind Boys of Alabama, Damian Marley, Jason Mraz, Madonna, The Fugees, Stevie Wonder, Gov't Mule, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine, Pierce Fucinni, Airto and Flora Purim, et al.
In 1967 Mobley began djembe study in Boston with the pioneering Babatunde Olatunji of Nigeria and continued with the renowned Ibrahim Camara of Senegal and others. Currently performing and recording with singer/songwriter Ben Harper, critics note Leon's phenomenal stage presence and smooth technique. In this special class he (or Jah Amen) will share secrets of success. Another phenomenal world music professional ready to teach you right here @ Motherland Music!
Friday Mornings 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. - still only $15
Get acquainted with the instrument called "bala" in African languages. The bala aka "balafon" (U.S.) is a series of pitch-tuned wood bars strung over a set of gourd resonators. The African bala has thin membrane 'buzzers' for a very distinctive timbre; if you are familiar with the marimba (the central American instrument), this has a similar characteristic buzzing timbre. "Solo" (as he is affectionately called around Motherland Music) can teach you bala basics and some nice embellishments that his people taught to him from a very young age as well as some of his own compositions. Learn some of the rhythms and melodies used in traditional Manding (Fr.) music. Soro Solo literally grew up playing bala in his native Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) as part of a traditional Senufo community. He also teaches private lessons on bala and djembe... and is a veteran of network broadcast television performances. Thinking of buying your own bala? Ask Solo for guidance! You may also catch him playing in one of our own Malik Sow's groups or classes and in other local and touring ensembles. When he's out of town this class is on hiatus as we have no substitute bala teacher. This brilliant young artist/teacher is from a family of balafon musicians. If your first language is French, don't worry, it's one of Solo's main languages. Si votre première langue en français, ne vous inquiétez pas, c'est l'une des principales langues de Solo. He speaks 5 languages and also does special music classes for children that help to improve their self-esteem (please contact Dan for more information about booking Solo and/or his ensemble for a very special presentation/class at your school, corporate culture program, or youth organization). A truly versatile music teacher, Solo also plays ngoni and kora. Also expect to learn some of the interplay between both djembe and bala, as Solo is a master of both and can teach you such interplay and how each instrument fits into the traditional milieu of Malinke/Mandingue dance music. This is our newest class at Motherland Music and we want to see it full of students; please invite friends and loved ones for an interesting and very unique music experience! Please contact us on or before the preceding Thursday in order to make enough reservation(s) for this Friday. |
Friday Evenings (new flex time ~ 70 min.) 8:30 - 9:30 p.m. - $20
All Levels with Pape Diouf from Senegal. Pape holds sway with regulars and newcomers alike in this get-down and get-funky sabar, tama (talking drum), and world percussion jam. Note: this is not a free-for-all; it is a class, however this is one of the more loosely-structured classes, because you never know who might show up to rock the house. Expect to be transported to the African continent by strong rhythms that propel spirits heavenward to transcend this mortal coil. What a way to end the workweek! Bring a date along for a rare experience if you dare. Pape (pron. "Pop"), has been drumming his whole life. He is a skilled drum maker, teacher, and performer. Pape is a very patient teacher who helps his students learn quickly and efficiently. A Wolof griot from a long traditional lineage, Pape hails from Dakar, Senegal and has been in the U.S. for the past 5 years. Memorable experiences are created right here at Motherland when the students of this class meet up with Pape. Catch the spirit and live! Motherland Music is the west coast's premier importer of all things West African, and this is the place where touring professionals like Dramane Kone, Aboubacar Kouyate, Magatte Sow and others get their gear right. On any given weekend, you may be fortunate enough to run into any of such MM VIPs visiting us for repairs or to find new drums and to socialize with us and you. That certainly includes occasions when any of the above drop into Pape's Friday night gathering, which can simmer in a soulful sabar groove featuring Pape on tama/n'der and vocals, and the rhythmic stylings of any of the above. This can happen without advance notice, giving Pape's Friday congregation an impromtu feeling unlike any other class or workshop, featuring the African format for improvisation: the rhythmic groove/foundation is laid and who knows what amazing solos will occur... Come join the fun, bringing your musical gifts and help us to make Friday nights even more special. It only happens here at Motherland Music for only $20 per student, so why not bring a friend for a memorable experience? This is a very effective way to dispense with the mundane cares of the work week! Drumming! *Pape's classes are currently on hiatus until mid-June and/or may be taught by his son(s), also very well-versed in Sabar drumming. Please call us for details. |
Saturday Afternoons To visit Malik's cool (caution: addictive!) 1:30 - 3:00 p.m. - $15
Experience the power of djembe and djun-djun drums with Malik Sow from Senegal. All levels are welcome, beginner to advanced! Malik teaches technique, musical phrasing and breathing, and encourages you to express yourself. He teaches the traditional African way, making the novice to master comfortable. A truly remarkable experience! This class would be inexpensive at thrice the price. Malik can take anyone deeper into drumming. Having been thoroughly trained at an early age in dance movements and the historical contexts and meanings of various traditional dances of the Mali Empire, he's also very adept at choreography and dance. Malik brings a unique and special approach to performance that's simply amazing. Malik is also much in demand for clinics, scheduled school assembly performances, TV/film (AFTRA/SAG) and private lessons. He recently performed on the Academy Awards and guested on ABC's Oprah! show. |
Saturday Evenings Ayo Drum site, click here. (note: new flex time ~ 90 min.) 4:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. - $20
Smile and learn the Language of the Drum with master priest (Ifa tradition) Ayo Adeyemi from Nigeria. Learn Ayo's 9 Basic Rhythms, plus Rumba, Eja Osan, Yankee, Odun De, Fanga & Yembela, Weré-Weré, Shango, etc., respecting Ibo, Ifa, Yoruba and other traditions. Learn chants from this accomplished master right here at Motherland Music. Musicianship is more than technique, and Ayo can help you to understand the meaning behind the songs and rhythms, and to expand your cultural worldview and musical horizons. If you could use some guidance as to how you can share your own unique musical/spiritual purpose, Ayo's class may be just what you need. Adeyemi played with the great Babatunde Olatunji for many years and now teaches traditional songs and drum rhythms that will bring joy to the world right here in our space. A very spiritual hands-on experience! Baba Ayo not only teaches music, he teaches life. We at Motherland view Ayo's presence here as heaven-sent; join him and others for the fun! |
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Sunday Mornings Teacher: Eric Robnett
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Sunday Afternoons Learn Afro-Cuban technique and articulation with artist Gary Craigwell. Teacher: Gary Craigwell
New York native Gary Craigwell is an in-demand congero who can teach you to play congas from the get-go. While his classes are characterized by deep and penetrating long excursions into the foundation rhythms of Latin dance styles like Bembé and Rumba, and Gary can be said to be a very serious teacher as well as a working pro with a long list of credits, he also has a wild sense of humor and an open mind; however one thing he's not open to is unsteady rhythm, and this is your opportunity to lock into the groove with Gary and others in his weekly get-together. He is one of our most in-demand instructors for private lessons, too. Want to learn how to develop your own solid tumbao? Gary's your guy. When he's not here teaching (and the sun is probably down), you can often catch Gary performing live on stage in clubs with his dance band. With which band(s) is he currently appearing/recording? Ask Gary for details to plan your upcoming salsa/Latin Jazz dancing and CD-listening calendar! To the conga amateur/skeptics: do you think you're ready for the big leagues but haven't ever seriously studied conga rhythms & playing techniques? If you want to have a real chance, get serious (with a pro like Gary). |
Sunday Afternoons Traditional Malinke Rhythms from Guinea, West Africa Djembe, Dundun, Sangban & Kenkeni Technique with Fred Jones. Teacher: Fred Jones
Fred Jones has two weekly classes at Motherland Music. This Sunday afternoon class is for players with no drumming experience. Also known as "Djangewali," J. Fredrick Jones hails from St. Louis, Mo., where he began his studies in West African music in 1975. He later moved to Chicago and became music director and a dancer with Muntu Dance Theatre, an internationally-acclaimed company. Fred moved to Los Angeles in 1990, and now is the artistic director of Abalaye African Dance Ensemble. He has studied and/or worked with Mamady Keïta from Guinea, Mor Thiam of Senegal, and artists Stevie Wonder, Stanley Clarke, and Bill Summers, among others. His teaching credits include 8 years at UCLA and numerous residencies. Fred is very skillful at breaking down each rhythm into simple but challenging djembe, dunun and bell parts, and often sprinkles his dry sense of humor into the otherwise challenging process to lighten the mood. Expect rapid progress under this master drummer's tutelage! |
Sunday Evenings Traditional Malinke Rhythms on Djembe and Dundun with Kahlil Cummins. Teacher: Kahlil Cummins
Learn phrasing, pyramid building and traditional solos. Build endurance and dexterity. Students need some basic hand drumming skills to start in Kahlil's class. Kahlil is a stickler for precision and students will learn how to tighten up their timing and technique. Because this young master drummer just returned from Guinea (west Africa) where he completed further advanced studies in Malinke music with Mamady Keïta, his class resumes Sunday 3/22! Also highly recommended: any production of Kahlil and his wife Kara's super-hot KaraKahlil Productions (e.g. they co-sponsored Motherland Music's Feb. 2009 Moussa Traoré dates). |
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Are you a traditional (or modern) African dancer, choreographer or director needing to connect with the
AFRICAN DRUMMING Community in Los Angeles to hire the best L.A.-based talent for your audiences and/or students?
Please email Dan with your requirements (how many drummers, etc., incl. class/rehearsal/performance dates and times).
Dan can help you plan your classes/events featuring some of the very best African performing artists & educators on this planet!
All classes and drum circles/workshops listed above meet at:
Motherland Music
2921 La Cienega Blvd.
near Washington & La Cienega Blvds.
Culver City, CA 90232
Local: (310) 838-5008 |
Toll-Free: (888) 419-0515
Community Drum Circles and Workshops
Recurring:
Anaheim:
Baldwin Hills: See Leimert Park.
Chinatown:
Crenshaw: See Ecklectik Beauty's Friday night gathering listed below.
Culver City:
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Second and Fourth Saturdays - Evenings
(Courtesy of FreeToBeMeDrumCircle.com) All-Women's Drum Circle/Workshop Please note the new day (same time) and join us for the fun! 2nd and 4th Saturday every month - 7 - 9:00 p.m. $10 Donation requested "Reservations are not required - just show up ready to enjoy and join us!" Meeting twice monthly on the second and fourth Saturday of each month (for a calendar showing all 2009 dates in GREEN click here), this gathering of women is designed to free your mind from the grind and connect your soul to the healing role of the mother beat/heartbeat. Join Teacher and Circle/Workshop Facilitator Sabina Sandoval and others and let the groove dissipate worldly cares. Bring your own percussion gear or rent from Motherland Music for $5 per circle/workshop. Accompanying, soloing, vocalizing and improvising will be covered in an informal, open, non-threatening environment. Participants become one through the power of the music. Each month a special ceremony occurs where a deserving young student is presented a new hand-carved African drum. Please contact Sabina via email with any questions or comments or to volunteer to help unload/load, set up/tear down. Sabina and MM thank you for your support! Sabina Sandoval is a gifted California native peaceworker and drumming instructor with a passion for the healing power of the drum and drumming, and a keen sense of the spiritual power of the universe and how to invoke the spiritual side of feminine nature and make fun music. Sabina applies her inclusive philosophy to the busy day-to-day lives and stresses of those who attend her events, with a view to reducing their stress levels, helping people to share music and the cameraderie associated with drumming, drum workshops, and drum circles. Her work has been documented through primarily Internet and other new media sources. Sandoval can be found scouring the coastline of southern California for people in need of a communal music experiences in conjunction with her Free To Be Me Drum Circle and Kool Kid Drummers organizations; she selflessly provides total strangers with opportunties to play a drum or other instrument or clap or sing along with her and others in a spirit of festivity. She also sponsors urban youth in her Get a Kid a Drum organization so students who participate consistently and with purpose can be provided a drum to continue their pursuit of drumming for their life-enrichment/career path. One of Sabina's goals is to ensure that women are not discriminated against as drummers in a historically very-male occupation; she is an inspiring drumming teacher with several years of experience and can help you progress as a drummer. Read more about Sabina's work here. |
Dockweiler Beach: {no drum circles reported yet}
Downtown L.A.: {no drum circles reported yet}
East Los Angeles: {no drum circles reported yet}
El Segundo: {no drum circles reported yet}
Huntington Beach: {no drum circles reported yet}
Leimert Park: Depending on weather and who shows up, this is often regarded as the very best mostly-impromptu circle in southern California. 43rd St. @ Degnan Blvd., Leimert Park (Los Angeles). Sunday afternoons approx. 2 p.m. until dusk. Friendly African-themed shops and dining nearby. No reservations required.
Long Beach: {no drum circles reported yet}
Malibu: {no drum circles reported yet}
Pasadena: {no drum circles reported yet}
Remo Recreational Music Center (online calendar & info.) Motherland Music can re-skin djembes with Remo NuSkyn heads. No animals were harvested to produce this message.
Rumors abound about drum circles in Malibu, Venice Beach, Dockweiler Beach, Huntington Beach, and elsewhere. Please send details to Frank about ongoing circles in southern California and we'll post info. about them here for the greater community.
San Diego area: {no drum circles reported yet}
Santa Monica Beach: {no drum circles reported yet} Metered beach parking is available here.
Venice Beach: Depending on the weather and who shows up to jam, this is often among the better mostly-impromptu circles in southern California. Usually circles form Saturdays and Sundays in the p.m. until dusk (on a sandy area near Muscle Beach). Parking is $3-10 in the county-operated structure; more info. here and here.
Watts: Don't miss the 27th Annual Watts Towers Day of the Drum Festival Saturday, September 27th: 1727 East 107th Street, Watts (Los Angeles). Many exciting Jazz performances (The theme this year is [L.A Jazz great] Charles Mingus - A Tribute) and local vendor booths with African food, gifts, etc. An all-day celebration the last Saturday in September, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Admission is free; tasty fresh-prepared food is for sale. An African-American Taste of L.A.! For directions, you can visit the Try Watts site or Google Maps. There are usually several impromptu high-energy drum circles formed in and near this event that really rock out! Due to the extended/competitive nature of these drum circles, drum slings (in lieu of seating) and cloth medical tape (for hand protection) are suggested.
Motherland Music is here "for all lovers of the art." Thanks!
Events in Local Business Establishments
Drummers Jamm Time (8 p.m. Fridays @ Ecklectik Beauty 4299 Crenshaw Blvd., L.A. 90008 with Deborah Lake and others). Informal, casual coffee-house jam atmosphere; styles vary with participants and how they feel. $3 donation requested ($2 requested if you arrive with a drum).
Your drum circle or drumming event could be posted here free—just write to us!
Hey "Sam Ash-sponsored drumming contest videographer" (who recorded here @ MM on La Cienega Blvd.): Where's the video copy you promised us?—Ed.
2009 Special Events/Workshops
Our Full 2009 Event Dates Calendar is posted here.
One Day Only: Saturday, January 31, 2009. Youth Class Premiere Performance. Click here for details.
(please scroll down & check back for more info. on upcoming events)
Special Drumming and Dance Workshop:
Two Days Only: Thursday (Beginning) and Friday (Intermediate/Advanced), February 26 and 27, 2009
Malian Master Drummer Moussa Traoré teaching djembe for dance @ Motherland Music in Culver City.
Malian Master Dancer/Choreographer Djeneba Sako teaching dance @ All People's Center near Downtown L.A.
Brief Description:
Mali Master Drummer Moussa Traoré returns to Motherland Music for two days only (from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m.) to teach djembe for dance! This workshop is in connection with Master Dancer Djeneba Sako also from Mali, and is a presentation by Ximena Dussan and KaraKahlil Productions. Admission is $25 for either Thursday or Friday (or $40 for both) for the djembe classes, or $20 for either Thursday or Friday (or $30 for both) for the dance classes. Click here for full details.
Moussa Traoré was well-received by the southern California djembe community on his last visit to Motherland Music. His style may be called "roots Mali" in that his rhythms do not depart from the ancient calls and accompaniments that have survived literally centuries intact and have been passed down through many generations. Discussions with those fortunate enough to have taken classes with him centered around his "solid time" and "tasteful soloing." We are delighted to welcome Moussa Traoré back to Motherland Music. Don't miss him!
Djeneba Sako's classes will take place at All People's Center near Downtown Los Angeles on the same dates, February 26 & 27 as Moussa Traoré's drumming classes, shortly thereafter (from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m.—I-10 Freeway East traffic is usually light then, too). Please see the official flyer here for full details. For a printable Google Maps Driving Directions page showing the route between Motherland Music and All People's Center, click here.
Djeneba Sako is from the Maraka culture in her native Mali in west Africa, where she entered the field of traditional dance at an early age and eventually became known as one of Mali's most talented and respected master dancer-choreographers. Sako's dance roots began with a number of lesser-known companies in Mali until she joined master djembefola Moussa Traoré's company Kome-Jose in 1994. Then in 2001, she relocated to Boulder, Colorado where she currently resides and teaches dance classes. Djeneba's dance movements usually tell some sort of allegorical or interpretive scene in daily life within a traditional African culture.
A very in-demand dancer, choreographer and dance clinician, Djeneba Sako travels throughout the U.S. teaching and performing at west African dance conferences like KanKouran African Dance Conference in Washington, D.C., Camp Fareta (with Youssouf Koumbassa of Guinea) near Fresno California, and Bantu Camp near Albequerque, New Mexico. In Djeneba's classes you'll have an opportunity to learn authentic traditional African dance moves, techniques and styles from an acknowledged master.
ONE DAY in MAY (only–and it's actually at night),
Sunday May 17, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. / $35 per person (light seafood stew & rice meal included):
Motherland Music's First Annual African Strings Event: A Trio of Griots. Get familiar with the entire range of African string instruments in this remarkable Two-Hour Special Event featuring a trio of Motherland Griots/VIPs: Dramane Koné, Soro Solo, and Aboubacar Kouyaté. The Trio of Griots will demonstrate African string instruments [and possibly one or more of their descendent Europeanized or Americanized instruments]. We have a fairly complete inventory of African Strings and we may even persuade Maestro Malik Sow to play some Xalam, and Baba Ayo Adeyemi some Kora) and give you an idea how to make use of them in your music. FYI, we also do repairs on most string instruments we sell – ask for details.
Should Toumani Diabaté and/or any other African greats walk in the door, we would not discourage him/them from performing, either.
Do you play guitar? This could be THE EVENT of 2009 for you here. Dress to impress (African-style suggested but not required) and be ready to be transported to the land of the Manding. Bring a musical date if you can, because this promises to be a very memorable event unlike anything we've ever done at Motherland Music. Also, we expect some African VIPs to attend. Paid attendees (attention bootleggers, we'll be closed to unpaid attendees): bring your video or still camera or other recording device (to record for your personal use).
This event will be audio recorded in
by our own Ryoji Inatsugi
using his Samson Zoom H2.
You already attended and want to get a copy of the audio? Contact Ryoji here.
Attendance will be limited to the first 30 folks who get their tickets. This is a very special occasion!! We hope you'll show up here to take it all in and if possible share the experience with someone you love.
Attention All Drummers & Percussionists (first, thanks for reading this far down our home page!): Would you be interested in joining a regular community drum circle here at Motherland Music on a Friday or Saturday night? What time works for you (or better yet, your group!) except the 2nd and 4th Saturday nights of the month (they're reserved for All-Women's Drum Circle)?
Please email Dan with your comments and suggestions.
And for best results please be persistent; Dan often has so many people trying to reach him
in any 24-hour
period,
we hope you'll understand why he cannot reply to every message!
Feel free to send additions and/or corrections to Frank. {If you're convincing, he'll try to make the change(s) required. Thanks!}
HERE
