Unbeatable Energy's Epic Adventure To Africa

Sidiki’s band, featuring vocalists, instrumentalists, and drummers, added a unique flavour to our workshops, creating a mesmerizing blend of rhythms and melodies. His dedication to showcasing African culture extended beyond music, with enlightening excursions and festival experiences that gave us a deeper understanding of the community.

The course far exceeded expectations, thanks to Sidiki’s commitment to authenticity and punctuality. I am eager to share the rich music and insights gained with the schools, businesses, and community groups I work with back home. This experience has been truly unforgettable, shaping my perspective on music and culture in profound ways.

by WilkesWood

Learn Classic 'Sunu' Djembe Drum Pattern

In this video, I show you a step-by-step guide to playing the Malian 'Sunu' djembe pattern. Like the classic 'Djembe Populaire' rhythm, the Sunu pattern has lots of special hand coordination techniques which provide a great foundation for tackling more challenging phrases in the future. In the process of nailing this pattern, we will have some fun by using the Quincy Jones' 'Soul Bossa Nova' (aka Austin Powers theme tune) as a way of understanding the feel of this pattern around the pulse. Enjoy!

In this video, I show you a step-by-step guide to playing the Malian ‘Sunu’ djembe pattern.

Like the classic ‘Djembe Populaire’ rhythm, the Sunu pattern has lots of special hand coordination techniques which provide a great foundation for tackling more challenging phrases in the future. In the process of nailing this pattern, we will have some fun by using the Quincy Jones’ ‘Soul Bossa Nova’ (aka Austin Powers theme tune) as a way of understanding the feel of this pattern around the pulse.

This practice video supports the learning of the Malian ‘Sunu’ rhythm. See the full breakdown of this rhythm in the video entitled ‘Learn Classic ‘Sunu’ Djembe Drum Pattern’. Play along with me as I take segments of the classic pattern to create solid grounding in the coordination.

by WilkesWood

Learning Djembe - creating a positive mindset

Learning djembe - creating a positive mindset

As I'm about to embark on a big Africa study trip adventure, I wanted to talk about learning and practising djembe and the attitude I have found useful to adopt on the way. As someone who has often fallen victim to the dreaded 'I'm not good enough' thought, this video is really about the things which motivate us to play a musical instrument. I hope some of you find it useful.

by WilkesWood

Learn Samba Rhythm... Using Sweets!

Wait! Don't eat those tic-tacs yet - make a funky rhythm first! Want to know how your mints can make music? Find out how in this video!

by WilkesWood

Djembe Drumming Lesson - Djembe Tone, Not Djembe Thud

In the early stages of learning djembe technique it can be difficult to create resonance when making the tone beat on the side of the drum. This video looks at what might be going wrong and what you can do to change a flat thud to a nice rich tone.

by WilkesWood

Free African Drum Lesson - Four Pulse Exercises

Learn Samba Rhythm... Using Sweets!

This video provides four exercises for playing African rhythms where the counting is in 'threes'. There is an easy exercise which for many people comes naturally; one which is a little trickier to feel; a harder exercise and finally a nice challenge exercise at the end. All these patterns lend themselves to 12/8 and 6/8 patterns for West African djembe and Dundun drumming. Good luck with it and do leave us a comment on the video to tell me how you get on.

by WilkesWood

Free School Drumming Lessons - Teach Your Students Online!

Put a drum in front of a child and they don't need to ask what to do - they can play already. But how do you help young children discover that a drum is not just something with which to create noise, but, with a few steps, can create music. This fun, easy game helps young children learn 'turn-taking' to create rhythm dialogue. It also helps them appreciate the way little 'pockets of silence' transform a group sound from noise to instant drum music.

When I went to Gambia over 20 years ago I was amazed by the way that people were able to create so much sonic power in a single clap.

From ‘ear splitting’ high fives to more subtle ‘popping’ pulse beats to accompany songs, the people in West Africa showed me that even without a drum, I could harness the power of the drum beat just using my own hands.

This video shows teachers and drumming enthusiasts how to create this awesome ‘popping’ clap beat – which I call the ‘Starfish’ clap. After learning the clap sound, stay on the video to learn an easy ‘off beat’ rhythm which has worked with children as young as 6 years old.

by WilkesWood

Free African Drum Lessons - Mix mix 4/4 + 6/8 Pulse

This is an easy exercise to help you get comfortable with playing rhythms where there is a cross-over between a pulse in 3s and a pulse in 2s. Getting started with this simple technique will open many possibilities to develop polyrhythmic patterns and help you get to grips with djembe and dundun rhythm arrangements where the two pulses can be felt simultaneously.

by WilkesWood

Beginners Djembe Drum 'Ice Cream' Rhythm

This rhythm is one of my favourite groove patterns, as it creates a nice sense of momentum when played alongside other patterns which play on the beat. It is loosely inspired by Senegal rhythms such as the Mbalax rhythm from Sabba drumming. In the video, I use a silly 'ice cream' chant to help grab the feeling of the beat. I also break the rhythm into parts so you can focus on the different techniques and coordination.

by WilkesWood

FREE TUTORIAL: Learn Djembe 'Populaire' Rhythm

Djembe 'Populaire' is one of the most important rhythms in West African Djembe playing. It is often called the 'Passport Rhythm' - play this and you can cross the boundary from a beginner to a pro! This seven video playlist starts with a full overview of the rhythm and its specific coordination, followed by six practise patterns that take you in stages to mastering the pattern in full.