Clinics

Background

So far I have given clinics to musicians and non musicians alike, and find that I have been comfortable with varying musical backgrounds. However, you probably already know that it is easier to give a clinic with a specific skill level in mind, so I have categorized potential presentations accordingly, the durations being approximately one hour.

AN INTRODUCTION TO LATIN MUSIC: (basic)

For non musicians or hobbyists who have no background in Latin music, this will be a simple and concise introduction. It will include:
· an explanation of "clave" (the rhythmic phrases which are the foundation of Latin music)
· how the clave fits together with the conga, bell and drumset patterns (Rumba, Cha-cha, Mozambique, Salsa)
· some recorded examples of famous Latin standards (e.g. Oye Como Va, Mambo Number 5) and how they fit into clave
· Hand out sheets with examples of the performed examples
· How the clave evolved to more intricate forms
· interactive demonstrations

BATUCADA: THE HEARTBEAT OF BRAZIL: (basic to intermediate)

This is a clinic that I performed at the Blue Skies Music Festival every year from 1997-2003. This clinic demonstrates the infectious power of Brazilian "Batucada", the massive "Samba Schools" that perform in Rio during the Brazilian Carnaval every year. Completely interactive, this clinic needs lots of drums and lots of people to be a success. Involved is a demonstration of the individual parts, sections, and the "calls" that make the Batucada one of the most exciting musical experiences in the world.

CLAVE IS EVERYWHERE! (advanced)

This clinic was presented at Humber College and was designed with musicians in mind. A comparison of Cuban "clave" to other forms of rhythm based music to demonstrate the similarities. In addition to hand outs with examples of what I call Clave in all forms of music, I will play percussion patterns, play recorded examples, and analyse Cuban standards and show how they fit into Clave from a compositional point of view. This clinic is presented to professional or amateur musicians who have reading and theory backgrounds (but pure ear trained musicians or music lovers can definitely appreciate this).

JUNGLE

This is a demonstration of jungle styles from old skool to modern drum'n'bass applied to acoustic drums. Aside from performing mind blowing jungle techno styles live, there is also an exploration of the use of samplers and MIDI to enhance your sound and keep costs under control. So much stuff invented in the 80's still has value and is a good starting point. I use my special snare-heavy jungle set up with sequencer, samplers, triggers, MIDI and a small digital mixer and effects.