Featured CD

Preview the new CD
"Rise Up" by Barabajaba.

Featured Product

This is an amazing audio and notation encyclopedia of every djembe and dun dun part for 50 Rhythms!

How to solo on djembe part one: my philosophy

having fun playing drums and percussion with friends

Soloing on any drum especially djembe can be daunting at first. Everyone wants to do it but how do we start? First of all, what is a solo or “lead”  as we also say in the drumming world?

Traditionally speaking a solo in West African music, specifically music from Guinee and Mali is a phrase or group of phrases chained together that interact and accent the dance choreography or dancers movements. The solo inspires [...]

Space, the final frontier. Add a little space to your solo’s!

Space, the final frontier. Soloing concepts

Most young soloists and even experienced players play too many notes. My suggestion is to approach drumming as a musical composition. In music, soloing is more about what you don’t play, then what you do play. I am talking about space. Phrasing and space. Space and phrasing. As Lao Tsu the legendary philosopher once said, ” it is not the walls that are important but the space with [...]