presents . . .

Djembe and Dunun Workshops

with Mamady Keita!

About the 2 day Workshop: Spend the weekend with master drummer Mamady Keita from Guinea, West Africa. Students will learn traditional rhythms, their meaning and history, as well as technique, breaks and solo phrases.

About Mamady Keita: Mamady Keita was initiated into the music of the Manding at age 7 and joined the Ballet Djoliba (National Ballet of Guinea) at age 13 spending the next 26 years as drummer, solist and eventually the artistic director of the company. in 1991 he founded the Tam Tam Mandingue school of percussion with over 10 branches in the U.S., Europe and Japan.

Mamady Keďta was born in 1950 in the small village of Balandugu, Guinea just a few kilometers from the border of Mali. From the time he was born he showed an affinity for percussion and rhythm and was quickly apprenticed to the Karinkadjan Kondé, the village djembefola (djembe player). At the age of 7 he was initiated into the djembe and after several years of working with Mr. Kondé he was recruited to the regional ballet in Siguri.

The president of Guinea, Sekou Toure, with some assistance from Harry Belafonte, decided to create a new national ballet in 1964 and Mamady was one of a 5 percussionists chosen from a select group of 50 from the all the regional ballets in Guinea. Mamady played in Ballet Djoliba for some 22 years, eventually becoming the artistic director of the ballet in 1979. He left Djoliba in 1986 for a Ballet Koteba in the Ivory Coast. A year and a half later while traveling in Europe, he decided to leave Koteba to persue a career in teaching and performance in Europe.

Based in Brussels, Belgium, Mamady quickly formed numerous performane groups as well as a school of percussion called Tam Tam Mandingue. Mamady's natural teaching and performance capabilities, honed from decades of experience in the ballets, quickly adapted to the mindset of audiences outside of Africa and soon Mamady was in demand around the world as the premier teacher of the Mandingue percussion tradition. To honor the memory and spirit of his master, Karinkadjan Kondé, and to meet the great demand for his instruction, Mamady began to certify others as professors and teachers of his tradition.

Today, Mamady lives in San Diego, CA and travels the world teaching and performing the village tradition and ballet from his youth as well as growing Tam Tam Mandingue into an institution that will be around for generations to come honoring the timeless and vibrant musical tradition of the Mandingue through teachings passed down to Mamady through his master and other masters of Mandeng music. For information on Mamady's classes and workshops in Southern California, please visit www.ttmusa.org.

Fees:

Dunun Class $20
Level I Djembe Class $25
Level II Djembe Class $30

Dambe Performance $8

Take All Classes and See the Performance for $150 !

Registration required. No drop ins. (download the registration form) OR print direct from HERE