Workshops

“A Day in Ballarat”
Inspiring West African Rhythms with Simon Fraser Sat 12th Dec, 2009

When	Sat 12th Dec 2009 10.30am - 12.30pm Lunch (Plate to share) 1.45pm - 3.45pm
Where	Old Buninyong Brewry 107 Yuille St, Buninyong 3357
Cost	$35 / $30 conc half day $65 / $60 full day Drum Hire: $2

A full day of wonderful, West African Drumming with Simon Fraser and friends. Suitable for players of all levels

On the Day

• Two x 2hr Fun Filled drumming sessions exploring the Healing Power and Energy of Polyrhythmic Drumming. Each session will be different so you can attend just one for the day BUT participation in the full day will be most beneficial
• Left /right brain integration exercises to assist participants in co-ordinating basic and more advanced techniques.
• Drums, shakers, CD's, books and all kinds accessories available on the day.
• Communal lunch

Teachers: Simon Fraser (Director / Drumming), Mady Keita from Mali
(Drumming)

Catering:Please bring a plate on the day to share for lunch (all plates, cutlery etc supplied)

Directions: Go to the round about in the middle of town (Buninyong), driving towards Geelong... turn right at Conish then left into Yuille to No. 107 Yuille where I'll have markers on the day.
Those coming from Melb need to come into Ballarat on the Western Hwy which becomes Victoria Rd till they hit Bakery Hill roundabout with a McDonalds, turn left at roundabout and follow the signs to Buninyong on the way to Geelong....which is Main Rd and about 15min out of Ballarat....
Call Vickie Maree ( local contact) if having problems finding it. 0421341842

Bookings: Simon Fraser
Phone:  0416053619
Email: simon@africandrumming.com.au

Mamady Keita Advanced Master Class
Fri Oct 2nd 5.30 - 8.30pm
St Kilda

When	Friday October 2, 2009 Time: 5.30 - 8.30pm
Where	VoyeuRhythmic 12 Grey St, St Kilda
Cost	$130 Cash Bookings Essential

Mamady Keita was born in 1950 in Balandugu, a small village in Guinea, West Africa, near the border of Mali. Even before his birth his mother was told that his name would travel beyond Balandugu, beyond Guinea and beyond all of Africa. She did not know what that meant until Mamady was born and before he could even walk he would turn over anything that looked like a bowl and he would start hitting it like a drum. It was from that point on that his parents knew he was destined to be a djembe player and gave him the nickname nankama, born for it, and brought him to study with the Master Drummer of his village, Karinkadjan Kond.

In 1957 Mamady was initiated into the secrets of the djembe and to the history of his people, the Mandingue. In 1963 he was taken to perform in the regional ballet, about 150 km from his home and in 1964 he was taken 2000 km away to the capital city Conakry, where the President of Guinea, Sekou Tour‚ was working with Harry Belafonte to produce the National Ballet of Guinea, Ballet National Djoliba. He was one of 50 percussionists who auditioned during 9 months of training and in the end was one of the final 5 who made it into the Ballet. At only 14 years of age, Mamady was by far the youngest member of the National Ballet.

That same year he starred in the Harry Belafonte film, Africa Dance. Mamady remained in the National Ballet until 1986, during which time he won gold medals in many International and Pan-African Festivals and was also named Best African Drummer. He went on to become the djembe soloist and lead drummer of Ballet Djoliba and in 1979 was named as Artistic Director. He created many of the musical repertoires used in the Ballets and trained many of the worlds top djembe players.

In 1986, Mamady decided to make his personal mark in the world by breaking out of the Ballet and establishing himself as an independent drummer. He moved to the Ivory Coast where he joined Souleymane Kolis group Koteba and performed next to such renowned African stars as Tour Kunda of Senegal, and Mory Kante of Guinea. During his stay in Ivory Coast, Mamady starred in another movie, titled La Vie Platine, and also wrote and recorded the entire sound track.

When Mamadys name began to travel beyond West Africa, a group of percussionists in Belgium decided to bring him into Europe to teach and perform. That happened in 1988 with a non-profit organization called Zig-Zag. In cooperation, Mamady helped open a school of percussion which they called Repercussions, and later that same year, Mamady established his own performance ensemble, Sewa Kan. The name refers to a Malinke proverb which says without music there is no joy, but without joy there is no music.

In 1991, Mamady decided it was time to go his own way and he established his own percussion school which he called Tam Tam Mandingue, drums of the Manding. Over the 13 years that bring us up to the present year 2004, Mamady produced 9 cds, 6 instructional video/dvds, a book (Mamady Keita: A Life For the Djembe), several documentary films (including internationally acclaimed Djembefola, by Laurent Chevalier), and extended his percussion school to include 18 branches across the globe (France, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Belgium, Japan, USA, Israel). Each year Mamady travels to these countries for one to three months at a time to teach workshops and perform with Sewa Kan. Mamady also brings students to Guinea every winter to participate in a 3 week drum camp at his house in Conakry. He currently resides in Belgium, but will be relocating to San Diego, California in September of 2004.