The term tres / dos - What does this mean

A place where discuss about secrets, tips and suggestions for practicing on congas and to improve your skill and technique ...

Postby deerskins » Mon Feb 25, 2008 7:25 pm

In Havana, my teacher told me that 3-2 stands for:
3 slaps
2 open tones
This was the common Havana style for playing this part and it looks like this:

.ttB.S.SO.bO.PTS

Notice the 3 slaps and 2 opens.
The name of the drum comes from its role playing this part in Guaguanco.
deerskins
 
Posts: 74
Joined: Wed Oct 18, 2006 4:34 pm

Postby jorge » Tue Feb 26, 2008 3:34 am

Another possibility is that the "tres" part of tres dos or tres golpe refers to hitting on 3, the third beat of the clave if you count clave as 4 beats, 2 measures in 2/2 time. This hit of the segundo drum is the part of the guaguanco that probably varies the least, aside from the clave itself.
jorge
 
Posts: 1128
Joined: Thu Jun 15, 2006 3:47 am
Location: Teaneck, NJ

Postby burke » Tue Feb 26, 2008 3:33 pm

Hey JC and Jorge - very cool to see an on line reunion take place!

I was also wondering the same thing as Mike about the split hand guaganco.

Hey Mike:

Thanks for sharing - had a little trouble lining up your notation:

On the conga in the first bar is the slap on the 'and' of 3 or the 4
Second bar its a alttle unclear where the B S fall (on the 'ands' maybe)

Tumba line up is also a tad hard to line up.

Thanks
Burke
burke
 
Posts: 753
Joined: Thu Sep 23, 2004 2:50 pm
Location: Nova Scotia

Postby Mike » Tue Feb 26, 2008 4:34 pm

Hey Mike:

Thanks for sharing - had a little trouble lining up your notation:

On the conga in the first bar is the slap on the 'and' of 3 or the 4
Second bar its a alttle unclear where the B S fall (on the 'ands' maybe)

Tumba line up is also a tad hard to line up.

Sorry about that. I hope it gets clearer this way:
Sorry for the poor quality of the photograph.
x= slap
B= bass
H=heel
T=tip
BTW I love to play this pattern with the tumba to the left
and the hand pattern like in my handwriting.




Edited By Mike on 1204043873

Attachment: http://mycongaplace.com/forum/eng/uploa ... 00x450.JPG
Peace & drum
User avatar
Mike
 
Posts: 2193
Joined: Wed Mar 28, 2001 6:00 pm
Location: Germany

Postby jorge » Tue Feb 26, 2008 4:40 pm

Mike and Burke,
The split hand rumba that Sabu Caldwell showed me, as I remember it, is:

4/4 Time 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +
Tumbador (Right) B T B O B T B O
Tres Dos (L) O O S S S
Clave (3/2) X X X X X

This proportional font really makes lining up music notation difficult. All 4 columns should line up vertically on the first beat, and everything falls either on a numbered beat or a + (upbeat). The tres dos falls exactly on the rumba clave for all 5 hits, and the right hand is just a straight 1234 with the open tone on 4. I hope it is clear on your screens, it took me a lot of tries to get it to look (almost) right on my screen.

Johhny Conga, please let me know if you remember it differently, it has been a few years since I have actually practiced this!




Edited By jorge on 1204045987
jorge
 
Posts: 1128
Joined: Thu Jun 15, 2006 3:47 am
Location: Teaneck, NJ

Postby burke » Tue Feb 26, 2008 5:29 pm

looks like everything on the Tumbador falls on numbers
The first open tone on the tres Dos is a flam with the Bass - second open on the Tres dos is on the "and' of 2
Slap on "and' of 4
Second slap is a flam with T
last slap also a flam with last B?

Is that correct?

Thanks Mike - much better :D
Burke
burke
 
Posts: 753
Joined: Thu Sep 23, 2004 2:50 pm
Location: Nova Scotia

Postby Mike » Tue Feb 26, 2008 5:34 pm

Jorge,
thanks, that´s an interesting pattern indeed. I could not really follow the discussion that has been going on as I am a man of patterns rather than a philosopher on Afro-Cuban music due to a lack of the cultural background, but I could read Sabu´s pattern quite easily. I love playing this pattern - just as much as the one I posted, which has more flow IMHO.

Burke, I would not really call that a flam (?)

Cheers
Mike




Edited By Mike on 1204047548
Peace & drum
User avatar
Mike
 
Posts: 2193
Joined: Wed Mar 28, 2001 6:00 pm
Location: Germany

Postby burke » Tue Feb 26, 2008 5:56 pm

Sorry - most likely the wrong term - just meant that some of the stokes look like they are played at the same time (together).
Burke
burke
 
Posts: 753
Joined: Thu Sep 23, 2004 2:50 pm
Location: Nova Scotia

Postby JohnnyConga » Tue Feb 26, 2008 5:58 pm

Well the way I learned it from George was to play a tumbao in my right hand and the segundo part in my left, that simple...and he never explained it in relationship to clave either....to me. He was tough on me. At the time he charged me $17.5o for a 45 minute lesson, which was a LOT for a teenager at the time...and when the 45 minutes were up, he was gone...I did also go to his apartment on Spofford just once, and he pulled out a locked box of 78';s with Chano Pozo playing on all of them, himself playing and singing..he would only play one for me, which is the only time I got to hear what Chano could do...and then he put it back in the box and locked it again....what i wouldnt give have those today...I imagine he is no longer with us, as he was much older than me when i met him at 17......Johnny Conga... :D
User avatar
JohnnyConga
 
Posts: 3825
Joined: Mon Oct 29, 2001 7:58 pm
Location: Ft. Lauderdale,Fl/Miami

Previous

Return to Congas Technique, Rhythms and Exercises

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 57 guests