Course Description

This is a hand drumming class open to all students including music majors. The course requires that students have a hand drum of their own as well as the course book Learn To Groove. Congas, bongos, djembes, doumbeks or any other hand drums are appropriate. The class will focus on simple hand drumming technique and time keeping along with understanding and playing syncopated patterns. The history, geography and artists associated with the rhythms presented in the course will be discussed. The course is designed to help students achieve fluency with syncopated patterns that are associated with dance rhythms from West Africa, the Caribbean, Brazil, and the United States.
The fundamentals are focused on the three most common rudiments; the single and double stroke roll and the paradiddle. The two measure phrases are based on the 3/2 and 2/3 Son and Rumba clave patterns found in Afro-Cuban and Caribbean music as well as the Bossa clave from Brazil. These patterns are also found in Rock and R+B. Polyrhythms and 6/8 grooves are drawn from African dances and Swing. The goal is to flow freely from one rudiment and one pattern to the next, subdividing in eighth notes, triplets, and sixteenth notes.