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Hi Tone ,

Very interesting to hear you are playing in the candomble . Its not something that gets discussed around here very often . I love the music of Candomble both ketu and angola .Can you tell us more about your experience playing candomble please .Cheers . Niall ...

Hi Nial,

I would love to share things about candomble if people are interested.
It is wildly overlooked by us afro-cuban maniacs.
I am going out to play in a little while and as soon as I have recuperated I will start a new thread with some infos. We'll see if the forum wants to take it further. It is as endless a subject as the Cuban stuff, so I don't know where to start.

I will probably film and record tonight, so I can put some of that on you tube for everybody to see. Tonight is Ketu.

Axe!

Great tone thanks . Lookin forward to it !

Tone wrote:Hi Nial,

I would love to share things about candomble if people are interested.
It is wildly overlooked by us afro-cuban maniacs.
I am going out to play in a little while and as soon as I have recuperated I will start a new thread with some infos. We'll see if the forum wants to take it further. It is as endless a subject as the Cuban stuff, so I don't know where to start.

I will probably film and record tonight, so I can put some of that on you tube for everybody to see. Tonight is Ketu.

Axe!

Tht's cool you guys play candomble all night! In the Cuban tradition bata are not allowed to be played after dark, most tambors (at leaset here in the state and the ones I went to in cuba) take place int eh afternoon.
PC

Tone wrote:Hi Nial,
I would love to share things about candomble if people are interested.
It is wildly overlooked by us afro-cuban maniacs.
I am going out to play in a little while and as soon as I have recuperated I will start a new thread with some infos. We'll see if the forum wants to take it further. It is as endless a subject as the Cuban stuff, so I don't know where to start.
I will probably film and record tonight, so I can put some of that on you tube for everybody to see. Tonight is Ketu.
Axe!

Please do share whatever you can about Candomble,, it's good to have some diversity in the crowd, as we are definitely Cuba-centric here!
Our group ventures periodically into the Haitiano realm. We did a Mahi that ripped on Friday night! I was so into it that I was hootin' and holerin'

PC-
I had always thought the same thing re: daytime only for toques. I just got back from Cuba. Every toque I went to in Matanzas, (probably a dozen) along with bembe, guiro, iyesa, and arrara was done at night, from 8-12 or so. The only time they played ceromonies during the day was an Eggun and a Cajon del Muerto and what I think was a bembe del muerto. I didn't ask, but it was in conjunction with the cajon del muerto the prior day at the same house. I suppose it may have been for somebody who recently passed and was in honor of them. or maybe was the ceromony of somones death.. Abakua was during the day, from what I saw.

I only spent a little time in Havana, but there toques are during the day. One of the players that I was hanging with told me that toques for San Lazaro (and another Orisha as well, I forget who) are also held at night in Havana. On top of that, he mentioned that if they feel like it, they do a nighttime toque.

I think Leedy2 is right about 45 mins a day is good. Every so often I get in a groove and I can play 2-3 hours straight but after I ahve to soak my hands in hot water and epsom salt......you really don't need to practice that much. I dance salsa as well.....I used to go to class about 3 times a week 1.5 hrs each time. I learned just fine. Don't need to practice no 7 hours a day.....only can do that if you don't have a JOB or no other hobbies that you do. Even with synthetic heads 7 hours a day is going to hurt your hands. Some people go overboard on lots of things.......too much of a good thing is a BAD THING!

Coming up as a teenager and learning I put in anywhere from 3 to 5 hours a day for 3 years on the drum..That also included ,rumbas,jam session, and gigs...With my Conga Camp I teach for 6 hours a day with one person...it can be done it has been done and there are a couple of them here that have come to me and have done 6 hours a day for 5 days with me...Of course people need to make a living and pay their bills...But you can make the time for the drum...I used to do 2 hours a day after my 9 to 5...just to get the practice time in...if you really want to you can make the time...saturdays sundays holidays...there is no excuse for not practicing!...unless your bedridden and really sick...and even then Id recommend practicing to keep up your endurance...endurance and stamina is also what it takes to play the drum for any length of time....as Abakua said in Cuba after the morning school, the rest of the day is about honing ones skills and learning, and that could be up to 6 hours of study and application. Even today at the age of 62 I put in at least 2 hours a day on the drum, and seriously practice, no bullshit, if you cheat on the practicing , you cheat on yourself...create a syllabus for yourself and stick to it...find a Mentor to help speed up the learning time...for those really interested I can help you and so can my Conga Camp/Intensive...but "keep practicing" it's how I got to Carnegie hall in 1979..literally and figuratively !...

Doctor_J wrote:I think Leedy2 is right about 45 mins a day is good. Every so often I get in a groove and I can play 2-3 hours straight but after I ahve to soak my hands in hot water and epsom salt......you really don't need to practice that much. I dance salsa as well.....I used to go to class about 3 times a week 1.5 hrs each time. I learned just fine. Don't need to practice no 7 hours a day.....only can do that if you don't have a JOB or no other hobbies that you do. Even with synthetic heads 7 hours a day is going to hurt your hands. Some people go overboard on lots of things.......too much of a good thing is a BAD THING!

The should be no reason to hurt your hands despite how many hours a day your are playing . In my opinion the more time you spend with the drum the better , unless that is that its hurting you in some way . I try and put in as much time as possible on both congas and drumset . Some days its harder than others due to gigs and teaching etc but i try not to come up with excuses not to practice Some days its hard to be inspired , and feels like work to go into the rehearsal space but i force myself !

And then there are knuckleheads that want to continue to be multi-instrumentalists while working too much overtime. I've recently picked up guitar again and have somewhat let congas go, to focus more on bongo. So lately it's been bongo one day and guitar the next. Fortunately I do think that there is some carry over effect from playing any one instrument to any other instrument. At least mentally, if not physically.

roberthelpus wrote:And then there are knuckleheads that want to continue to be multi-instrumentalists while working too much overtime. I've recently picked up guitar again and have somewhat let congas go, to focus more on bongo. So lately it's been bongo one day and guitar the next. Fortunately I do think that there is some carry over effect from playing any one instrument to any other instrument. At least mentally, if not physically.

Same here, I studied saxophone on conservatory, but lately I play much more piano - jazz, timba/salsa, flamenco, all those genres I try to do really seriously. To all that I learn bata/folkloric music on congas, shekere etc.
The good thing about this is I have pretty decent overview how things work, I can help any member of the band with his part etc. The bad thing, obviously, is, I cannot play any of the instruments really well, technicaly. One has to practice few hours a day on ONE instrument to become a master of it, and every great musician I know did that at least for few years and continues to practice at least two hours every day.

So, I'm thinking about stopping my saxophone playing for a while. I'm 27 years old, and I'm really bored of myself not doing things properly, so I think it would make more sense to simply focus on piano and bata...

Aaah, I remember 27. When I only needed 3 hours of sleep a night, and playing alto sax and guitar seemed such a natural thing to do.

Jibaro wrote:Not 7 hours a day... 10,000 hours total, which is 4 hours per day for 7 years.

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/ ... 969415.ece

It is practice, however, that makes perfect, according to the sociologist whose books have become required reading within the Conservative party. The best way to achieve international stardom is to spend 10,000 hours honing your skills, says the new book by Malcolm Gladwell, author of the best-selling The Tipping Point.

“What’s really interesting about this 10,000-hour rule is that it applies virtually everywhere,” Gladwell told a conference held by The New Yorker magazine. “You can’t become a chess grand master unless you spend 10,000 hours on practice.

Three hours is about my max, and then not at all the next day.

But,,, there is no perfect ! Its never all done, and there are no masters ! We are all students !

vasikgreif wrote:

roberthelpus wrote:And then there are knuckleheads that want to continue to be multi-instrumentalists while working too much overtime. I've recently picked up guitar again and have somewhat let congas go, to focus more on bongo. So lately it's been bongo one day and guitar the next. Fortunately I do think that there is some carry over effect from playing any one instrument to any other instrument. At least mentally, if not physically.

Same here, I studied saxophone on conservatory, but lately I play much more piano - jazz, timba/salsa, flamenco, all those genres I try to do really seriously. To all that I learn bata/folkloric music on congas, shekere etc.
The good thing about this is I have pretty decent overview how things work, I can help any member of the band with his part etc. The bad thing, obviously, is, I cannot play any of the instruments really well, technicaly. One has to practice few hours a day on ONE instrument to become a master of it, and every great musician I know did that at least for few years and continues to practice at least two hours every day.

So, I'm thinking about stopping my saxophone playing for a while. I'm 27 years old, and I'm really bored of myself not doing things properly, so I think it would make more sense to simply focus on piano and bata...

Multi instrumentalist is like cross training for a more wholesome overall result. Like mixed martial arts or the triathelon event at the olympics. I have always loved drums & percussion. I never intended to be the master of any of it, but only be profiecient at all i loved to do & apply myself to. Congas, Bongos, Timbales, Surdo, Bombo, Cuica, Berimbao,Cajon, Guiro, Maracas etc etc etc is all fun and I like to play as a multi percussionist and play all the colorful sound effects, toys etc. Its all good & all musical. Its also personaly gratifying and a positive thing to share with appreciative listeners & dancers. Its all relative. Do it for the love of doing it. Do ot as you can afford to do it in rhythm with the rest of the obligations & responcibilities of life. Thats all you can do ! ?

Giovanni Hildago claims to practice 8 hours a day.