Adam Hay plays Abakua on Conga and Drumset

- I'm available for video lessons via Skype and Video Gmail:
earthtoadam@gmail.com

This video:
Example of one basic Abakua part on conga (which should be bata, I think), taken over to kit, expanded upon.
In 6/8, basically. I threw in a 'backbeat' on 1 (snare).
What makes this groove so bizarre to newcomers is the heavy accent on '2' and '5', though this is very germane to Yoruban rhythmic sensibility, I believe.
These are rhythms which I think began in Nigeria (Yorubans), went to Cuba (Abakua cult), and are now finding their way on the north American drumset.
Best way to hear the roots of this music is to study Cuban and Yoruban drumming. There's never just one guy playing this stuff ... these are ensemble rhythms. Very important to keep that in mind when relegating one guy's part to a little drum on the kit that you hit with a stick.
Hand drummers of this ilk are never just sitting there playing one tone per drum. They play muffs and tones, bass notes and slaps. They converse with other drummers in the troupe doing the same thing.
Hard to get four sounds out of one tom on the kit with a stick ...
And to boot, this is dance music!
West-African based polyrhythms are as dense and wonderful and sophisticated as Bach's harmony and counterpoint. Hard to dance to Bach, though ... or Haydn. Or Beethoven.

I'm available for lessons in the Toronto area. Here's my email:

earthtoadam@gmail.com

Here's my website:

www.adamhay.net

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Music

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