Day 6: Drumming in the New Year

Day 6 - 31/12/12 New Years Eve

There was talk of a big party on the beach for this night. Even the performances at the Abene festival started and finished early (before time even!) so that everybody could make their way to the beach party in time to bring in the New Year. Impressive. The people here sure know how to party and have a good time.

In the day our preparation for the pyramid performance got more intense. The group is making its way steadily, knocking off one break after another. We completed Kudani and moved onto rhythm number two, 'Kuruni', which literally means 'Little Hill'. This is a hill in Mamady's village Balandugu.  Mamady's grandfather pretty much built the village from ground up. This small hill located in this village is a spiritual place. Mamady's ancestors got in touch with the spirits of the village and asked them to protect the village, its culture and its people. This responsibility was passed on from generation to generation. After Mamady's uncle, it was announced that it was Mamady's turn. When he returned to Balandugu, he made sacrifices for the hill to announce his acceptance of this responsibility. But since Mamady would not always be in the village he created this rhythm as a tribute to the small hill. That way, he would teach his rhythm to his students all over the world and then, each time this rhythm was played, vibrations from across the globe would reach this little hill and retain the sanctity of this beautiful place. I would like to go see this hill once.

After lunch, most of the participants would go sleep ono the hammock serenaded by the wonderful sound of the Balaphon. Aleya would be teaching Non-Stop Nigel who could be spotted dashing between Cora, Balaphon, Djembe and Dunun classes (watch out for his band Kinkilba). Dunun classes continued and we did some more of the rhythms taught by Mamady.

Nigel and Aleya at Balaphon class

After our evening class we all smelt a whiff of celebration in the air as everyone prepared to bring in the New Year, bidding adieu to the past and ushering in the new. We started off with some singing around the fire which is becoming a daily ritual and then made our way to the festival late only to catch the final few minutes of the performance.

our bonfire every night..

We followed the big crowd to the beach and ended up around another big fire where Djembe and Dunun was to be played. While we waited I taught the gang a famous Hindi song, 'Humma Humma' by Remo Fernandez- the perfect party song I thought which was sung perfectly and soon became Cherno's (our cook and all round happy person's) favourite song of the workshop (so much so that he would sing it EVERY TIME he saw me). To our left there was some Sabar drumming not too far away, for those interested in reggae and commercial music, that was there too.

As the clock struck twelve, there were fireworks, cheer and celebration everywhere. The drums started on the dot and the party began. I took a moment staring into the ocean and made my pledges for the year, in gratitude for a year full of progress, valuable lessons, joy and love. I couldn't ask for much more but just the courage to carry on. I wish you all a wonderful 2013, one full of excellence and a year trying to be the best you can be.

Happy 2013 to everyone from Abene, Senegal!

The rest of the night was a blur; one full of drumming, dancing, laughter and happiness with a group full of people who have come to be very close to each other. All thanks goes to the Djembe.

Come. Drum. Be One.

Taal Inc.

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Day 5: Lets Drum!

Day 5 - 30/12/12 work begins

I woke up with a wonderful itch to play. My hands wanted to play as I was woken up by the lovely sound of drumming. It was the first day of the dance class. Tannis, my roommate was super excited for this. Salimatu, the teacher is a lady who smiles constantly and moves naturally, like dance is in her every breath. After freshening up and saying hello to our little friend who lived in our bathroom I went to listen to some of the young djembe players who accompanied the dance class.

spider spider on the wall

students at the morning dance class and the accompanying drummers

The weather has been beautiful; hot in the day and seriously cold at night and early in the mornings. This was very unlike what I had expected. I never thought I’d say this about Africa but I am happy I have a sweater and a skull cap.

I have also learned my first few (highly useful) words in Wolof, one of the main languages spoken in Senegal:

Nangandef – How are you?

Marikidjan – I am fine

N'deki bi Nehna - the breakfast is good.

Ann bi Nehna - the lunch is good.

Rare bi Nehna - the dinner is good.

I have started appreciating beer more now since I have been in Abene. Maybe it is because it is one of the only available drinks apart from wine that should be used to wash hard stains from clothes considering its high vinegar content! These are the local beers that are available here in Abene: (in increasing order of size of bottle).

Flag (pint size bottle with most decent taste)
33 Export (larger bottle with average taste)
La Gazelle (largest bottle with least taste)

It is safe to say that taste of the beer is inversely proportional to the size of the bottle. I noticed that new tourists jumped at the ‘La Gazelle’s’ first and then as they grew wiser and older, started holding bottles of ‘Flag’ in their hand. The brave ones, made their way to the ‘Mini Marche’ (Mini Market) in Kafountine (the neighbouring village) to buy some decent French Merlot or Moroccan Wine. ‘Not bad for a Muslim country,’ I thought...

By the end of this trip I should be able to put on a good English accent and have improved my French by a bit (*French as spoken by an African).

During lunch time I decided to share some Methi Parathas (Indian fenugreek flat bread - recipe on hyperlink) made by my grandmother, with the entire group. That was the only way it would be consumed before getting spoiled. It made me miss home and everyone back in India for a bit.

This is Mamady, Iya and myself chilling after lunch and revelling in our food-comatose state.

Iya Sako, Mamady Keita and yours truly

Djembe classes were progressing well. The group grasped the introduction breaks of Kudani quickly. We stumbled with the feeling a bit at times but it was nothing some goods old practice won't cure. For those unacquainted with this rhythm (or the Bali blog where I put the description of this rhythm up for the first time), Kudani is a rhythm created by Mamady as a tribute to his grandmother. His grandmother was called ‘Kudani’.

I had my first dunun class with Seckou. He is a great teacher who focuses on technique and feel and enjoys his way through it. We went over the dunun patters of the rhythms taught by Mamady earlier (Lekule, Tiriba and more to come).

dunun class with Seckou Keita

... view from dunun class(room)...

We were all given maps of Abene that were made especially for us tourists. This will give you an idea of the village. To the left is the Atlantic Ocean and to the right is the village centre.

Map of Abene

This evening I wanted to go to the festival late so that I could last till the last performance and maybe even have an experience of the disco. There's something about our full packed drumming day, the fresh clean air and the food that makes me rather tired by 9:00pm. So I packed in a power nap post dinner and made sure I reached the festival by 10pm. We caught a bit of the last act and then I witnessed the smoothest administrative transition into the disco; which is a room to the right of the stage where one has to pay an additional 500cfa to enter. And now, I seem to have cracked the code as to why some of the locals are so ‘nice’, ‘peaceful’ and ‘welcoming’. As the transition from festival to disco takes place some of them ask you to pay their way in. Considering that they did not have much and to spread the love, we had with us Adulaye and Big Lamen two characters from Abene and The Gambia respectively. One worked in the fake jewellery business and the other in the boutique business.

I could have been in any club anywhere in the world based on the music that was playing. Of course this part of the world likes its reggae and that is the truth; a 'mini Jamaica', like Jeremy, my French friend who works in the Congo calls it.

We got home soon after to rest and prepare for the next day, the last day of 2012. Another year had almost gone by... It was time to sum it all up, sieve the productive, learn from mistakes, look forward, leave the rest behind and walk home under the moon and the stars...

Come. Drum. Be One.

Taal Inc.

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Day 4: The 'Exam'

Day 4 - 29/12/12 the beginning / test

This was where we were to spend three weeks drumming...

... Our Classroom... (apni jo paatshaala, masti ki paathshaala - our school, a fun school)

"Today is an exam for everybody", Mamady said to start off the workshop in the morning.... 'No pressure', I thought to myself... ;)

We played Lekule and Tiriba for Mamady to be able to assess the level of the group on the whole. I could sense the tension in the group. Some of the participants were new and some old friends of the djembe. None passed the keen eye of Mamady unnoticed. Mamady usually gives the group the djembe accompaniments and then walks around the circle observing your every move very carefully. Many a seasoned percussionist has cracked under the pressure of this man’s unequivocal attention. The session ended with Mamady dividing the two groups into intermediate and advanced. I fell in the advanced group.

Day 1 with Mamady Keita

That afternoon we had Africa's famous peanut sauce with rice and chicken for lunch (Maffe Poulet – my favourite Senegalese preparation from the Bambara people who traditionally hail from Mali). I could not get enough of the sauce which would probably not be too great for my heart if I ate it every day but well, I couldn't care less about it while I was licking my fingers.

I was also very happy to meet Doug Manuel, head of Sewa Beats at the workshop. Ever since I started Taal Inc., I've noticed many companies sprout in India and the rest of the world. Sewa Beats is the only company whose ideology and philosophy stood out then as I learned about their extensive work in the field of training. Doug was there with his family for a few days and would be a part of our class for as long he was there. He is a good drummer and I'm very positive about our meeting and look forward to a very healthy journey together.

In the evening djembe session we started working on the pyramid of rhythm by Mamady Keita. He has been creating these pyramid performances for a long time (1977 being the year of his first ever pyramid of rhythm creation). This particular pyramid, 'Kudani', was created by Mamady as a tribute to his grandmother. Kudani was the name of his grandmother. The pyramid is fresh in my mind as I learned and performed it in Bali and also in India (at dumru, the drum festival of India with the Taal Inc. Rhythm Ensemble. I realized that we were going to perform this pyramid at the Abene festival on the 2nd of January 2012. What an honour- to play djembe in Abene before hundreds of people who will realize that the djembe really knows no borders; a successful day for Mamady's mission.

evening Pyramid session with Mamady

That night we set out to watch the Abene Festival 2012. The theme of this year’s festival is 'environment'. With every performance there was a short skit about the environment. Each performance goes on for an hour starting at 9pm and ending at midnight (this means 10:00pm – 1/1:30am in the morning by African time). After this, everyone heads into the disco where the DJ takes over. Amongst the genres of music played is, commercial house, reggae and sabar (traditional Senegalese drumming music). The party ends as the sun rises. This goes on for a week. Phew. The audience is amazingly participative for every performance at the festival. There are dancers, the festival clown and more... At the end of each performance the crowd gets involved and goes on stage and takes turns to 'echauff' (or heat up) the rhythm with the ensemble. I feel blessed to have this opportunity to witness this at such close proximity.

Come. Drum. Be One.

Taal Inc.

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Day 3: Les Belles Etoiles, Abene, Senegal

Day 3 - 28/12/12

Slept in and had breakfast at lunch time. Happy sigh. Breakfast here is simple; a typical Senegalese baguette with a range of fresh jams. They range from Papaya , Grapefruit, Banana, Berry and more... I have my bag of tuck and hence will be fine. My dear granny made sure that I have enough to eat when she heard that I was going to be in Africa for a month.

tasty nuts and other yummy Indian snacks

I don't much care for the coffee here but I do enjoy this tea-like drink whose name I’m yet to find out. I will do so in due course.

Our dining area:

Where we ate, danced, talked and smiled

I took a little tour of Les Belles Etoilles. It is a beautiful resort that is tucked away from the village so one can have enough privacy. Especially since international celebrities such as Mamady and Seckou are staying, security is a matter of consideration.

These were our quarters:

Our Home Away From Home

We had a little sit-out outside our room (that would be shared by our neighbours as well):

Our little Patio

From a closer view:

afternoon chilling - reading - philosophizing area

This was our room for the next 3 weeks:

one of the beautiful carvings that one can find on all the doors at Les Belles Etoiles

And the bar: (Matar's den - Matar will get a special introduction in due course)

The BAR

Tannis and I thought it might be good to have a SIM card and so we set out for our first walk in Abene village. The village is a long road! One side is the beach and the other is the town centre.

The village, similar to most villages in West Africa I've heard, have very 'friendly' people. Now I know this kind of curiosity that comes up with having foreigners around. It is similar in India. The difference is that the people in Abene are far more persistent. They will all come up to you and ask you to 'feel welcome', 'live free', 'live as one', and as cute as it is in the beginning, one can pretty much predict what the next stranger who walks up to you is going to say... Senegal is a Muslim country. But Abene feels like little Jamaica. Bob Marley is a local hero here.

It was prayer time when we set out for our sim card quest and hence nothing got done but the walk was worth it. We made a mental note to go visit ‘the Big Tree’ which was a great tourist attraction and Abene’s claim to tourist fame.

We returned to our rooms and retired after lunch to wake up to the sound of djembe playing. This was odd considering none of the other participants were here. I figured that Malo Sonko (our drum maker / provider / dununfola for the workshop) would've arrived. He had. I quickly went over and chose my drum and bought it with a lovely bag. Once again, one of you lucky drummers back home will have a beautiful hand carved drum from Abene.

my drum for the workshop (Bambara shell)

The rest of the participants arrived late that evening after sundown. By now I could've only imagined the trouble / problems they could've had on the way here. I said hi and introduced myself to some but not all of those who arrived that day. Little did I know on that day that I'd get along so well with each and every one of them. This was the group of people that would be family for the next three weeks. These are people I would drum with, learn from, help, laugh with, play with, celebrate with and build deep connections with. Such is the power of the Djembe.

It is always lovely to meet to people at a Mamady drum workshop. This time it was my chance to meet the drum community of the UK. They're all a lovely bunch of happy people. I will get to know them better in the days to come.

Come. Drum. Be One.

Taal Inc.

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Day 2: The Journey to Abene (via Ziguinchor)

Day 2 - 27/12/12

We decided to sleep in and wake up just in time for breakfast and some Internet time. God knows when we would have the Internet again... Something I have come to depend upon so much now.

It was lovely to see the cute cafeteria where the tables were djembes that had glass on top of them. This was one of the reasons we were encouraged to book our stay there. A good sign of the taste of things to come we thought.

the tables at Hotel Kingz Plaza, Dakar, Senegal

We reached the airport nice and early and checked in with no trouble whatsoever. It was a cute ATR fight with 'free seating', a concept I thought was done away with; but obviously not...

Dakar Airport - Before our cute ATR flight

After a fast 50 minute flight we landed in Ziguinchor (now officially the worlds coziest airport). We walked into the airport where everyone welcomed us with wide smiles. I looked around for the baggage belts but didn't find any. I looked behind me and found all the passengers in this similar predicament. Eventually, we noticed our baggage kept very neatly in a line where had to go and pick it up ourselves. Who needs unnecessary and expensive baggage belts when you have staging areas and healthy attendants who are willing to help for you a small fee, a good conversation and a smile...?

In similar fashion, a man walked up to Tannis and myself and said, 'Bon jour, je researche Varun Ven...', and before he even finished I smiled and said, 'Oui c'est nous'. He welcomed us and took us outside where we met our third companion clode (who we thought was a man and hence tried to spot en route and on the flight but to our surprise we were mistaken. Clode is a beautiful percussionist from the south of France also here for the workshop with Mamady.)

We met our travelers, - the driver, one of the dununfolas for the workshop (Cher), and of course, Ben. The 6 of us loaded our Stuff into our car, and embarked on our first African road trip.

ready to rumble: our first road trip in Senegal

The trip was bumpy, sandy and dusty. We passed the wetlands and saw a lot of mangroves on either side. The roads were alright in pockets. The driver drove extremely fast over bumps (all for effect I presume).

The Batmobile

It was a long drive anyways and hence I thought, 'why fight it?', and brought out the snacks so we could get comfortable. All that was left was for all of us to break into song. The horizon was incredible with the sunset to our left and the bright shiny moon to our right.

River Casamance

Every village we passed had a checkpoint. Seeing trucks full of militia is not uncommon on these roads, is something I came to learn based on observation and this was confirmed by Ben. 'Another reason the driver is driving fast', he said.

Next, we noticed a full on road block. To our surprise, we did not make it past the customary 'road closing' time. This was anytime between 7 and 7:30pm. We had made it there at exactly 7:02pm. This road was closed in the evening for 'security reasons'. Travelling on this route in the night was obviously not a done thing. We were making alternative plans of possibly crashing at a nearby lodge and then making it across the next day early in the morning. Since there were three cars stopped, plan A was going in a group to the captain and negotiating with him to let us pass. The situation was beyond our understanding. Ben would keep us informed as much as possible with the developments but I guess certain nuances and details were inexplicable at that moment due to circumstance and the language barrier.

This was sure an adventurous first day in Senegal. After a long wait we finally got permission and also a military truck escort to come with us and we continued our journey to what would be our home for the next month. The thought of hot chicken and chips with salad and a cozy bed waiting for us was oh so sweet at that moment.

We entered Le Belles Etoilles late in the evening and even though we couldn't see much in the dark, we could feel the beautiful energy of the place. We met Counba, the lovely lady who managed the place and Coral, the one who put the entire workshop together along with Justine (who we met later that evening).

As we made our way to our rooms, we saw a car pulling out and saw the man himself, Mamady Keita. He was going to the Abene festival to check out a band from his region: Wassolon that was playing that evening. Along with him were Iya Sako (our other djembe instructor for the workshop) and Seckou Keita (our dunun instructor for the workshop). It was only a brief meeting but it was great to see Mamady (for the second time in the same year). His energy is infectious and I was immediately reminded of all the wonderful things that were in store for us. 'Welcome to Africa', he said as he drove away.

We made our way to the cafeteria to have our first Senegalese meal. I had some fried chicken with chips and salad. The chicken was stuffed with some garlic and herbs that tantalized the taste buds without prior warning. Ah, pure bliss. We then lit up a bonfire and were joined by Mamady, Iya, Justine, Coral and Seckou.

I'm still digesting all of this, taking it all in.

The next day was when the remaining participants were to arrive. So it was good to know that I had a free day ahead of me. This meant we had one more day to laze around, take it all in, be touristy and prepare for some work the following day!!

Come. Drum. Be One.

Taal Inc.

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Day 1: The Journey Begins...

Day 1 - 26/12/12

Mumbai:

I leave with a mind full of things- clutter, inspiration, awe, hope, excitement, fear and expectations... I hope to come back with a far simpler, cleaner mind.
Traveling gives me a sense of anonymity via meditative tranquility. I don't have to worry about daily hassles and deadlines. My agenda simplifies and I act.

From this trip I wish to develop  a sense of sustained and consistent action that I will inculcate in my life everyday.... Not just intermittently but regularly... Until every cell in my body and being understands my purpose.

I am clear about what I want and where I want to go... I will no longer hide behind silly walls of excuses and prolong a decision of being the best I can be.

I would like to be calm, objective and patient....

I am blessed with love around me that propels my efforts and aims...Be this in the form of parents, friends, well wishers or coworkers- For this I am ever grateful.

I leave with an open heart and will come back with strength and energy.

Wassa Wassa

Ethiopia (adis ababa):

My first breaths in East Africa seem very familiar... The chaos and energy could verily be of  a place back home. There are a lot of Indians everywhere, going to the remotest parts of Africa for work I presume. I wait to board my next flight to Dakar via Bamako (Mali). I am sufficiently tired after my first flight but I look forward to what lies ahead. Ethiopians are very beautiful people... I think, as a race, they are a good looking one.

In the flight:

There was an announcement, a very nonchalant one at that, saying that due to a technical problem, the flight was going to fly to Mali via Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) and THEN go to Senegal. I smiled to myself at this very straight forward and affirmative announcement. Obviously, none of us had a choice in the matter and I noticed that we had in-flight entertainment, so I was ready to catch up n my movie watching. My flying time just increased from 14hours to 18 hours. 'Welcome to Africa' I thought to myself.

I landed in Dakar and was very fondly reminded of the Pune airport. It is a rather homely, do-it-yourself kind of airport. After changing some money I took my first cab to the hotel. And in typical style that was the first and the last time I will get ripped off by anyone in Africa. After paying him an insanely high amount for the cab I went into Hotel Kingz Plaza to meet my roommate Tannis Zimmer (my friend from Canada who I had met in San Diego)  who had already checked into the room. No sooner did I say hi  to her than I realized that I did not have my passport with me... A silly tourist mistake that could possibly end badly. Before I could ask the receptionist to call the cab driver (who had called the receptionist to get directions to the place) the driver had called saying he is on his way to return my valuable possessions. (well worth the extra I had paid him for the ride back I thought impishly;) ). God bless that good samaritan.

Now that I had already experienced my 'don't's' I could look forward to a safe and awareful travel ahead. No more buffoonery I promised myself... Let's see how long that lasts.

After informing the folks back home of my safe arrival and catching up with my dear wonderful and bubbly friend Tannis, I retired to look forward to the next day and what Mama Africa had in store for us.

Come. Drum. Be One.

Taal Inc.

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