Pandeiro patterns

If anyone is looking for some nice pandeiro instruction have a look at this site. Good video and written lessons.
http://www.laits.utexas.edu/orkelm/pandeiro/introdemos.html

The lessons are from Mestre Carlao, who is based in London now I think. I remember training with briefly and his music is fabulous.
http://kabula.org/carlao/


Also, I really enjoyed having the congas in class last night. So, heres something in the same vein.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKbgUTVuPdY
Slow day at work yup...

Reds semi final 2 July

Elwin And Paul C will support Charlie and his crew during the Reds semi final on 2 July, with two surdos. It won't be samba but it will be noisy. The Reds just requested one more person on surdo, so if anyone is keen to join them please email me ASAP.

Reds finals

Good morning from Holland! It's 7.30am and 9.8 oC outside. But all is well and we've had pretty good flights with Ruben sleeping for 9 hours between Hong Kong and Amsterdam!

Hope the first Maracatu class went well yesterday, keen to hear how it went. Also Paul D. did you sort out the trailer issue?

I received an email just now from the Reds, they may like to have 2 drummers during the Reds finals series. "The drums will be positioned in with Charlies crew at the Northern end and will work with them to get the chant going through the game." If anyone is interested please email me asap. Somehow I think Paul C and Elwin may be? Date is either 25th June or 2nd July - it depends on how the next few games go.

Afro-Brazilian Rhythms - Session 1

Hi everyone

Tomorrow is our first session for north eastern rhythms. We will meet at the same place and same time and the cost will be $10 to cover the hire of the hall. I would also like to continue eating dinner there before the percussion begins - is anyone else going to be there?

I would love to have the opportunity to share the following rhythms with you over the coming weeks: Aluja, Afoxe, Coco and Maracatu - multiple variations. These rhythms are really really interesting and are probably not played by any other group here in Australia! I am confident that in the time available we will be able to play most of these to performance standard. This means that each rhythm will have an introduction, a couple of grooves, breaks and an ending. It also means that I would like us to strive to play in the traditional style - holding sticks differently and moving in time with the beat. By pulling these things together we will look and sound great.

I would also like to encourage anyone else who has a rhythm that they want to share to stand forward and sieze the opportunity to pass on the knowledge. The beginning of the night is typically spent playing Pagoge but over the coming weeks this time can be spent on experimentation.

Ok I look forward to seeing you all tomorrow,

Cheers for now,

Paul

End of Reds season - thanks everyone!

Last night was the last time this season that we played for the Reds. It has been challenging at times, but by keeping an open mind and by having open and frank conversations with the organisation, we got there in the end and had some good fun too!

I'd really like to thank all players for helping out with this. These gigs have been very important for the samba school, there is no way I can do free classes or even $10 classes without gigs like this.

In particular, I'd like to thank the following dedicated sambistas for their dedication:

1. Elwin, with 8 games out of 8! He has earned himself a soccer jersey sponsored by Arrivederci!
2. Gail and Darren, with 7 games each!
3. Denis and Josh, with 5 games each.

Well done all, and again thank you very much!

As per my previous post, we're now on the lookout for more gigs, in particular non-sport gigs like festivals, performances etc. Please keep an eye out!

Enjoy the Maracatu immersion!

What's next!

OK, now that we've (almost) finished the Reds season, just a quick summary of what's up next:

• This Thursday 2 June, a special rehearsal, with lots of pagode, samba and samba-reggae.
• From next week 9 June till 14 July, Maracatu special, by the famous Paul Dennis. I have asked him to work on a few songs that we can perform, so I hope all of you will attend all workshops so we get some results!
• Thursday 21 July, special rehearsal featuring Fernando Camacho. For those of you that don't know Fernando, he is a Carioca (= someone born in Rio) who had a severe disability: he didn't know how to samba. He then made a special trip to Brisbane to learn to play samba in a friendly environment, and after we cured him he went back to Rio. He's now coming back for a short repeat treatment. Please be gentle with him as he's easily frightened.
• Sunday 24 July, special performance at Angus' Kindy in West End. Ever since leaving Kindy, Angus has been keeping in touch with his old mates there so we celebrate this annually with a special performance. Further details to follow, but it will involve a children's party in the afternoon at Angus' place with lots of cachaca (brazilian cordial). 
• Second half of August: special workshops with Carlos Ferreira. This will involve group instruction as well as some specific instrument classes (in particular caixa). Also he will be able to do dedicated Brazilian drum kit classes. More details soon.
• Rest of the year: I'd like to do many more non-sporting gigs. Please let me know any opportunities: festivals, special events, etc.
• Recruitment: there is scope for some more players, and I'd love to have a good tamborim section again. Please keep an eye out for new members.