Want a great djembe ‘Tone’ sound? It’s all about the way you lift your hand
Want a great djembe ‘Tone’ sound? It’s all about the way you lift your hand
If you have just started learning the African djembe, you may be feeling frustrated with the sound you’re creating on the side of the drum. Perhaps you are wondering why it is that whenever you attempt to make the tone, you get a flat dead muted note. If you’re experiencing this frustration, try focusing more on the way you lift your hand, than the way it falls on the drum. Any unnecessary movement in the joints, fingers and wrist as you lift your hand will affect the quality of your tone.
Raising your hand to strike the drum, the tips of your fingers need to be the first thing that lifts up with the rest of the hand, wrist and arm following behind. Imagine you’re a string puppet and there is a cord attached to the very tips of your fingers. As the imaginary cord lifts, your fingers come up first and everything else follows. Doing this sets you up to strike the ‘tone spot’ on the djembe with the right angle so fingers bounce off easily. As your hand and fingers come back down for the strike, your fingers will be slightly raised at a 30 degree angle and land gracefully on the tone spot of the drum. If your fingers are relaxed and not tense (more on finger relaxation soon), they will bounce off the drum creating a beautiful resonance for your tone. But the point is not to think about the way your hand and fingers drop – it is the way you lift which matters.
You can see a djembe lesson video here:
The difference between a ‘good lift’ and a ‘bad lift’ can be very subtle. It is really about which part of the hand/arm lifts first. Here are a couple of examples of what can go wrong as you lift your hand to play:
1. Dropped wrist technique
As you raise your hand to strike a tone, your wrist might lift up first with your hand hanging on behind. Because your hand has been in this hanging position, your fingers will be projected forward as they fall to the drum, striking the ‘tone spot’ at the wrong angle. Instead of the fingers landing in a flat position, the projected angle of the fingers will absorb the bounce and press into the skin giving you a dull closed note without any resonance.
There is alternative outcome to this scenario with the ‘dropped’ wrist. When you raise your ‘hanging hand’ to the optimum height, you may flick the wrist back so that the fingers don’t project forward as they come down. The problem with this is technique is it creates too much movement between the arm and the hand as you play. Any unnecessary movement in the hand will sap your energy, hindering your ability to play with control and maintain stamina when playing for prolonged periods. However, the main issue is that this flick of the wrist at the top will potentially create a ‘slap’ sound instead of a tone – not a good ‘slap’ but a bad slap without any control or subtlety.
2. Dropped finger technique
This technique is far subtler than the wrist one – and hence harder to detect and correct. In this scenario the wrist is fine. It is not interfering as the you lift and in general the hand is lifting first. But there is just the slightest drop in the fingers as the hand lifts up. You may barley notice it, but it can make all the difference. Usually in this scenario the knuckles are lifting first – either the fore knuckles or the front ones. In the same way as the wrist technique (but this time less acute) the fingers project forward and absorb the bounce to give you the same flat sound without tone resonance.
How to improve your lift movement
If you think you might have fallen in to one of these habits and you are getting frustrated with your sound, here is a fun way to apply a nice ‘fingertip lift’ technique. Rest your hands on the side of the drum with your fingertips in contact with the ‘tone’ spot of the drum. If you don’t know where this is, check out our blog on hand positioning). Then lift the fingers up (really make sure your fingers up first) and do a ‘hiya’ with your hand. The hand just lifts up and come sown again. If you are with a group, you can all get really silly and start doing ‘hiya’ gestures with each other. Invariably this hand sign involves the fingers lifting up first so this gesture will trick your hand into applying the lift of the finger tips. With a little practise, this gesture will form a new habit in your hand movement which over time you will unconsciously apply to your tone technique.
I understand there is a counter argument to this technique that the arm and hand should remain as one unit and be straight. With the fingertips lifting first, the hand and the arm will not necessarily be straight and there will be some movement in the wrist. However, I don’t think there is really any problem in there being some wrist movement when djembe playing – what is important is the way it moves. With this ‘fingers first’ technique your wrist will be involved with lifting the hand up but will not interfere in a way that detriments your technique.
The other thing to recognise is the movement in tone and slap becomes far subtler as your technique improves. This means that this application of hand and arm technique may be highly pronounced when you first start to practise but will be less exaggerated over time.
I hope this blog helps you on your journey in mastering the djembe tone sound and I hope the exercise proves useful. At the very least – it’s nice to just say ‘Hiya!’
Receive further djembe tuition videos on our Youtube channel. We have a great series of video called Djembe for absolute Beginners:
Drum Roll for 2023!
Drum Roll for 2023!
Dear friends, happy new year and welcome to 2023.
So how was 2022 for you? Did you manage to have fun? Was it a challenging year? Were you feeling the heat in the summer? Were you shivering in December? 2022 really was something of a roller coaster wasn’t it!
1. Lowering our Carbon Impact
In May this year we acquired our new Electric Van and so now we can travel to deliver your event with zero emissions and a low carbon impact.
2. Large Workshops
We delivered some really big workshops in June – Two Samba workshops each for over 200 people. The sound of a group this size playing was breath-taking!
3. Restrictions were Lifted
Schools, Corporate and Community clients finally opened up for group gatherings following two years of covid restrictions – our diary got super busy in the summer!
4. Festivals were back!
We had a great time at the Underneath the Stars Folk festival this year, delivering a big Boomwhacker Percussion workshop for the punters!
5. Group Drumming Workshops for Children
In November we worked with seven different Rotherham schools as part of a multi booking event for Wickersley Academy Trust. Hundreds of children discovered the joy of group drumming through our African Music Experience workshop!
The Challenges of 2022 and Our Remedy for 2023
It all started well. Lockdown began to ease and pretty soon the simple process of people meeting up to socialise no longer felt like a complete palaver.
Suddenly, we could hear each other when we talked as our voices were no longer muffled under a mask; we didn’t have to queue so much, and no longer did we have to relentlessly complete covid disclaimer forms each time we entered a building or participated in an event.
But as the year went on problems developed in the world that began to affect us all. As the weather got super-hot, 2022 broke the records as the hottest year ever and we were reminded that climate change never went away during covid and remains the biggest threat to humanity and life on earth.
But if that wasn’t worrying enough, someone’s reckless decisions created a crisis in Eastern Europe sending tremors all over the globe.
Yes, I know this is a rather depressing opening to a New Year blog. But given the challenges of 2022, it feels appropriate to recognise the fear and uncertainty 2023 brings.
As someone whose profession is engaged in using music to enhance mental health and wellbeing, it feels important to consider such feelings and how they can be processed to feel positive and strong for the coming year.
While the big problems in the world dominate news headlines, it is vital to recognise the need to switch off the noise; doom, and gloom of the media and think about what we can do with the time given to us to improve our wellbeing and the wellbeing of those closest to us.
I am not a life coach nor a therapist, but I found something that improved my life nearly 30 years ago. It continues to really make a positive difference to my quality of life today – drumming!
I have been drumming since the age of 13. Apart from playing West African and Brazilian drums and percussion, I am forever tapping on randoms surfaces and objects – window sills, cereal boxes, steering wheels, tin cans, cd cases, paper, plastic bags, match boxes.
And if nothing is to hand, I will be tapping on my legs or stamping my feet. Yes, it drives my loved ones mad, but they know I am a better person for it.
But the real magic of drumming is massively amplified by drumming in a group with others. It is such an exhilarating feeling for everyone when they can share the joy of music and rhythm through something as accessible and inclusive as a drum!
Why not make 2023 be the year you connect with other people around you to make your world and community a better happier place.
We have been connecting people through music for over 20 years. It works!
If you want to discover more, click the button below…
An Orchestra in 15 Minutes? Boomwhacker team building in Brighton.
An Orchestra in 15 Minutes? Boomwhacker team building in Brighton
Many companies and organisations are going through a substantial period of change. Our latest client, an international household name in the food and drink industry, was no different. With many well-known products and brands in their expansive portfolio, the client was centralising its operations. This meant that all their brand teams, with very different people, career backgrounds, skill sets, ethnicity and ages would need to work more closely together.
Events company Top Banana organised a whole two-day event with the client to help them with this organisational change and we brought in our team from Unbeatable Energy to kick off the Culture session. Our brief was to demonstrate working together and embracing differences, whilst also providing something high energy in only 15 minutes and repeat this with four different groups of 150 people! We were not fazed by this challenge, as Unbeatable Energy have the perfect tools for this job – tuned acoustic tubes called Boomwhackers. We provided these instruments for all our participants to play, as well as our team providing a high-tempo back up on West African drums.
Steve Rivers led the Unbeatable Energy team, assisted by me and Justine Hart. While I provided accompaniment on the bass drums, Steve and Justine’s effortless djembe playing was a joy. The sound we made blended well in the room’s acoustics. The ceiling was high, but the sound was tempered by the copious seasonal decorations, lights, trees, massive baubles and the natural acoustics of the room. This meant that the sound travelled well to the people further back. Being a promenade venue by the Brighton seafront, the sun from the beach shone in to the room space creating a lovely warm light and ambience.
After a brief introduction, Steve announced that we were all going to have an “Orchestra in fifteen minutes”. Huh? I beg your pardon!? Yes, that’s what he said! Without any further ado, everyone was guided on playing and creating sounds from each of the differently coloured tubes.
A top tip was ‘More technique; less strength helps get the best sound’. Each participant found their own way soon enough and quickly understood Steve’s ‘conducting’ from the stage.
About five minutes in, everyone was making a reasonable noise, but had someone mentioned an orchestra?
So, a couple of colours were introduced to set a basic tempo. Then one by one, other colours were included with their own rhythmic patterns, which all combined to create quite a ‘funky’ groove. Justine and I helped any sections if things went a bit sideways (as they are bound to) but soon each part started to fit in again with the other rhythms. At times the rhythms started to speed up – at one point Steve even had to stop the music, explain that it was racing, and start again. This was okay as learning to recognise what needed changing and then adapting was all part of the learning process.
Steve then modified the original tempo, and the sound patterns were developed and transformed. Despite the complexity, the playing and syncopation then remained remarkably fixed and steady.
The rhythms had started, developed, and finished with a glorious crescendo! No one could resist cheering and applauding what we had all achieved together. It may not have been ‘The Proms’, but it was orchestral, and yes, in less than fifteen minutes! Encore, encore!
What can we learn about the dynamics of effectively working together in a short 15-minute percussion music activity? A 15-minute team building activity is like a microcosm of how a diverse team can work together.
Our sessions were followed by the facilitators presenting the new company ethos and culture guidelines. The experience of everybody playing, listening, getting ‘it’, losing ‘it’ a bit, and then getting ‘it’ back again resonated with the presentations. The cooperative morphing nature of the rhythmic tune demonstrated how disparate groups can still work (and joyfully play) with little effort.
The learning points that Unbeatable Energy and the client’s delegates drew from the sessions were:
How we act is more than what we say
We all play a part, intentionally or not
We can change what we do, but we do need to spot when to adapt
Coming together creates something new.
We would welcome the opportunity to work with both the client and Top Banana again and we are pleased to have played a small part in that ‘something new’.
By Demetri Dourambeis
Planning a company event soon? Talk to us about how we can raise the morale of your team (or your client’s team) with drumming and percussion team building.
Drum Team Building – it’s great to be back in business!
Beginners Djembe Drum 'Ice Cream' Rhythm
I know it has been said already by thousands of businesses the length and breadth of the country, but I will say it again – it is so amazing and such a relief to be back to near normality once again. It is fantastic to be able to meet people face to face. To talk to a real person and have a real conversation without anyone’s screen freezing or people being muted. And to drum live with other people – that is something I vow never to take for granted again. The theme of this month’s blog is gratitude; because for all the people and things we lost in this terrible year, for many of us a sense of gratitude has been gained.
Our event for Hightown Housing Association was planned and booked in January 2020; two months before the pandemic. Like so many other events, it was delayed again and again over the course of 18 months. Finally on the fifth attempt, it really happened! So last month nearly 250 of the Hightown’s staff came together at Shendish Manor in Hemel Hamptead to take part in their ‘Connect’ day – a special event for staff to have a well-earned rest from their work agendas and take part in a series of fun, creative activities with the company of other colleagues. As you can expect we were providing the ‘unbeatable energy’ with a series of interactive drumming and percussion group sessions.
Throughout the day we ran three big African Drumming Team Building workshops, each for 50-60 participants, plus a big post-lunch ice breaker where everyone participated in a percussion activity using our harmonic ‘Boomwhacker’ percussion tubes.
I had forgotten how exhilarating the sound is from a big group drum session. In the African drumming team workshops, you could feel the rumbling, vibrating bass of the djembes and dundun drums in your belly. You do not get that via Zoom or YouTube! As is always the case, with the support of the big group playing together it was easy for everyone to access and feel the beat. Only minutes into the session, the West African rhythms were in full swing. In fact, it wasn’t long before some of the participants were on their feet dancing!
In the ‘Boomwhacker Energiser’ session it was extraordinary to hear 250 people all playing in synchronicity throughout the room: fusing multiple patterns into one giant musical sound. Who could imagine this had been achieved by the group in only 10 minutes!
So how did such musical magic happen in such a short space of time? I think it is safe to say that everyone was so happy to be out of lockdown and so grateful to interact with others, that the entire group of delegates were always fully engaged throughout. There was no complacency present. All the activities on offer gave everyone a much needed sense of release as reservations were let go of and group positivity prevailed. For corporate events it is rare to see so many participants dance to the rhythms being created. Participants are so enthralled by the rhythms that they really want to get up and dance, but it is often hard to overcome the shyness that comes with dancing in front of other colleagues. That so many felt able to let down their guard and participate, just showed how positive the atmosphere was and how safe everyone felt to express their joy of the music. I very much felt it too.
“SO glad we finally managed to make this happen!! Well worth the wait. The drumming circles were amazing and SO many staff have already commented that they and the Boomwhackers were the highlight of their day! Thanks for the energy”
If your organisation needs to re-connect, please contact us to discuss how we can help.
Its our African Drumming Class 25 year anniversary!
Its our African Drumming Class 25 year anniversary!
This month marks our 25 year anniversary of running African Drumming Classes in Sheffield. It’s been an amazing journey so far!
On the 6th October 1994 I ran the first class using 1 Djembe hand drum, 4 conga hand drums, an assortment of plastic tubs, sawn off broom sticks and a variety of pots and pans!
25 years later with more drums and percussion (and a far better understanding of the music and of how to teach), I am still running the class and loving every bit of it! Hundreds of people have joined us for unbeatable beats over the years. To date I know of at least four couples who met as result of the class and are now married with children – including myself and Nicky!
So to celebrate this milestone, we have created this video with a few of the many highlights from the last two and a half decades:
Some of the students started attending the classes when they were aged only 9 or 10. It has been so special to see them grow and develop into such talented musicians over the years. Now grown up, they still continue to drum with us – when they are back from University that is!
I would like to thank everyone who has been part of this beautiful weekly event over the years. The class continues to be a total pleasure for me to teach and has become one of my social occasions of the week. You have all been amazing and I look forward to many happy years of rhythm bliss to come!
Why not take the celebration a little further by joining us this season! The group is big, welcoming and the energy is amazing! Find out more about the class here!
Why should an African Drumming class perform?
Why should an African Drumming class perform?
I have been running regular African Drumming evening classes in Sheffield now for 25 years! The weekly classes remain an enjoyable mid-week activity, however working towards polished pieces and a performance heightens the sense of personal fulfilment, achievement and appreciation. For both myself and the students the performance becomes a crucial motivator on the wonderful journey of music making.
Last month the students from our class performed their very first 30-minute performance set comprised of multiple rhythm and break patterns which have been orchestrated into three musical pieces.
You can see the result here:
Video guide:
1st Piece “Degu Degu Racca Racca” 00:09
2nd Piece “Soko Moolan Chegin Jarafoli” 11:22;
3rd Piece “Kassa Musolu Jarafoli” 22:30.
Musical sources and inspiration: Songalo Coulibaly, Iya Sako; Hans Sutton; Sidiki Dembele; Babara Bangoura; Moudou Diouf.
The Diversity Festival runs every year in Sheffield and is a free celebration of unity and mutual respect between Sheffield’s many communities, for people of every gender, sexuality, ethnicity, age and ability. Find out more here
So how does performing to the public enhance the experience for students? Here is what some of our students have said:
Amy:
“Performing at gigs makes me feel alive! Creating an electric, energetic atmosphere for people of all ages to enjoy makes me feel like all the practice is worth it. It puts all the learning to the test and gives me a great sense of achievement.
It’s so good to know that we do gives others immense enjoyment 🙂 whether that’s dancing to us, drumming on the tables with us or tapping their feet to the beat :)”
Louise:
“Drumming classes with Steve are always fantastic fun and highly energising. However, the fact that we’re gradually working towards a live performance makes them even more exciting. Steve has a charismatic teaching style and always pitches the classes just right, ensuring that both beginners and more advanced drummers are contributing. The performances we’ve done over the last year have been great and it’s always so good to see the response from the audience. As a group we were particularly proud of the latest one we’ve done, which included 3 pieces that we’ve learnt over quite a long period of time. The atmosphere on the day was brilliant and there was such a sense of camaraderie with all our fellow drummers in terms of what we’d achieved. I only discovered drumming just over a year ago and wish I had sooner – it’s just the best tonic for lifting your spirits, which for most of us with busy lives is an absolute essential!”
When someone asked me about why I put these performance pieces together I told them,
“The class we run on Thursday nights has been gigging more regularly for the last year after a period of sporadic short one-off sets at charity events. Although these were valuable showcases and entertaining, the performances had no on-going development or legacy. This year, after having done some short performances at various local events, I realised how much I loved composing and arranging.
With such a devoted passionate group of students, I decided it would be great to keep everything we were performing alive so we could build a repertoire. This is the result so far – our first 30 minute set comprising three tracks; each of which is a sort of 3-groove sandwich with funky breaks in between.
This gig I know will be the first of many, but it has been a big milestone in the group’s development and has provided a massive boost of confidence and self-belief.”
Steve Rivers, class teacher and Unbeatable Energy director.
Our African Drumming classes take place every Thursday night in Sheffield City Centre. You don’t need to become part of the performance group to become part of the class and you don’t need any prior experience of drumming or music making. All drums are provided. Over the weeks you will learn the sounds, breaks and techniques towards arrangements which can culminate in a performance. African Drumming is highly invigorating, therapeutic, social and very addictive! Why not come and join us this Thursday! Click here for full details and to book your place.
Lets learn an African Song - 'Sunumba' from the Sunu rhythm, Mali
Lets learn an African Song - 'Sunumba' from the Sunu rhythm, Mali
Fancy learning an African drumming song? This was one I learnt a couple of years back after attending an African Drumming course with UK teacher Hans Sutton. Watch and listen to the song here:
I have transcribed the words against the Sunu dundun rhythm as follows:
The X = bell beat; circle indicates open dundun beat; a ‘C’ indicates a closed dundun beat; / = space in pattern.
Disclaimer: Transcription does not account for the subtleties of the sunu swing.
According to Hans Sutton, the song translates as:
Ah, where’s Sununba? Eh, Sunun can’t be found. Suffering isn’t your enemy; death is your enemy.
Eh, there is no God but God, Eh, and Mohammed is his prophet, Eh, In the name of God, Eh, In the name of the prophet, Eh, Who must we thank? Let the great man Sununba be thanked.
Ah, to reach old age is sweet, Eh, Jeneba Tera; Suffering isn’t your enemy; Dearth is your enemy.
Sunu is a rhythm played by the Kagoro people in Kaarta, Mali, West Africa. The original source is from Ibrahim Sarr, “Porte 386 Medina Coura.
Enjoy the song! Find out more about our African Drumming classes here.
Teenagers in crisis - what can we do to help?
Teenagers in crisis - what can we do to help?
As a parent, this week’s ‘Panorama: ‘Kids in Crisis’ made me worry about the future for our children when they reach their teenage years. With pressures from school, social media, family strains and the general fast pace of life, the programme highlighted that more and more teenagers need access to extremely overstretched mental health services. There was a big focus on prevention and early intervention leading to better outcomes than later, emergency measures. So what can parents and adults working with young people do to help try and prevent young people suffering from mental health issues?
One thing is to allow children and young people access to a range of group activities that allow them to focus on the activity in hand and working productively with people in the group, and not on external pressures and what other people may be thinking about them. Different activities will suit different young people and include sport, drama, music and organised groups such as the Scouting movement and the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme.
The Radio 4 series (aired in July), ‘Storm and Stress: New ways of looking at adolescent mental health’ featured Jack Drum Arts based in County Durham.
To quote the presenter
“Drumming isn’t necessarily the first thing that comes to mind, but for some young people, an organisation based on drumming has been a life-saver”.
Here at Unbeatable Energy we have a long track record of providing drumming workshops to children and young people through schools, youth groups and the scout and guiding movement. Young people are also welcome at our Sheffield evening classes. We find that group drumming brings people together and often levels the playing field so that the quieter individuals really shine.
Residencies at schools can provide an excellent opportunity for longer-term engagement and progression. One of our ex-students, Amy Cawthorn, participated in such a residency in Rotherham back in 2012. She is now the leader of the community group ‘Rotherham African Drummers’. Here is Amy’s account of what African drumming meant for her as a teenager and what it continues to mean today:
“As a teenager African drumming gave me a sense of focus. It helped me to stay calm and it was (and still is) a brilliant way to relieve my stress – especially during exam time. Sometimes, as a teenager (and even now as an adult) I find drumming relaxing, an outlet, a way to express my emotional state when I’m on my own, and – as a group – it’s a good way to share something with people. A shared experience can help bring people together and I think this is what I’ve taken from my teenage years.
“African Drumming is a great way for young people to meet others and build their confidence and self-esteem through participating in a group activity. Measuring goals both on musical and personal levels can really help people of all ages, backgrounds and beliefs to create meaningful relationships, build support networks and to have an outlet for all kinds of emotional relief.
“I can have the worst day in the world but get me on an African djembe drum and I feel miles better!”
Like this story? You might also like our scout camp article here.
For more information on how we can we can bring some Unbeatable Energy to the young people you work with, see our community page or call us on 0114 2747527.
A big boomwhacker event with added 'wow' factor!
A big boomwhacker event with added 'wow' factor!
Yes, that’s right, that really is a concorde plane in a giant hanger with people playing boomwhackers underneath!
Leading a corporate boomwhacker session for 700 people under a Concorde has always been on my bucket list and now I can tick it off – hooray! Alright, not really – who knew such a thing was even possible? I was incredibly excited when I heard about this potential gig via the Out There Events company and had to visit the venue on a recce to see it with my own eyes. A genius idea to turn a redundant but world-famous aircraft into a venue! With carpet, seats, a buffet and everything else you may expect from a regular conference venue, but UNDERNEATH A CONCORDE – this was a fantastic venue to get people playing boomwhackers.
I love leading big gigs like this. They are incredibly exciting and a little scary. In fact I need an adrenaline hit like this every once in a while – I really thrive on the challenge. And there are challenges with such large gigs. The layout of the boomwhackers must be carefully planned to ensure musical equality and harmony on the day. I need a large team and they need to know exactly what is going on. Inevitably, on the day things can change and numbers of people can fluctuate, but not to worry – we always pack spare boomwhackers for this reason. The biggest challenge with such a large group is how to facilitate the live music being made as there can be a time delay between one side of the room and the other. There are various plans we put in place to mitigate this potential issue – careful planning of the location of the colours and positioning team members on stage to lead colours both really help. However, I need to really put my trust into the participants as well – I facilitate the music, but actually they are the ones who self-correct if the pulses start to go off-time. It is a real testimony to the power of teamwork that when a big group of people really focus on a task they are able to come together in synergy and synchronicity – the success of this event really proved this theory. There is more to these corporate events than you would originally think!
We would like to thank Out There Events for enabling this unique opportunity. They understand all the planning that goes in to such an event to make it work. We would also like to thank the Concorde Conference Centre – we would love to return! And finally, a big thank you to all the willing participants who made this one of our most memorable gigs yet.
If you have a conference event coming up and would like to make it a highly memorable success we’d love to hear from you. To book an event or discuss your requirements please contact us – we will be delighted to help!
African drumming circle challenge with Royal Mail Team
African Drumming Workshop With For The Suzuki Violion Group
We have just received some wonderful footage from a big drum circle session last month with staff from Royal Mail. It’s just too good not to share!
The video is the culmination of a workshop where the entire group of 110 delegates split up into 5 smaller teams to device their own rhythm composition. Their compositions were then incorporated into one big group drumming piece.
The drumming session was part of a leadership programme facilitated by People Create. We loved working with People Create – they provided a great brief before the session. The whole leadership programme was about evaluating success not by one’s own personal achievements, but instead by your ability to help colleagues acquire the same level of expertise.
The team break out part of our drumming session was a superb way to bring this to the fore. In team break outs there is always a mix of skill levels in the area of music, drumming and rhythm. As the session progresses, people with either a great idea or skill become the natural leaders in the session. It is their responsibility to communicate their idea in a way that everyone can understand and put effectively into practice. This can be tricky and just having a real flare for music and rhythm does not necessarily mean you will automatically be good at teaching and instructing those around you. What really helps is if a leader is able to empathise and relate to another person’s level of expertise and think flexibly of ways in which that person can understand, overcome obstacles and progress to their same level of acquired expertise.
The video shows some wonderful ideas. We were very impressed, not just by each team’s imagination and energy, by most of all by the way they managed to include everyone! We do hope we can work with People Create and Royal Mail again in the future.
If you would like further information on the sessions we offer, please get in touch.
