Friday, August 27, 2004
GOOD NEWS! You'll Never Know the Djembe!
Absolutely. It is nice to know that our studies of this drum and African culture have no end. This means that if you are having fun now in your studies, the fun will just increase forever as you get better and better, little by little. This truly is good news.
Some students get discouraged when they discover that learning the djembe is not going to be an overnight process. The djembe is just like any other musical instrument – like the piano, drum kit or the violin. It is extremely complicated and there is A LOT to learn. I can’t understand why people will approach an instrument like the guitar as a serious study which will require years of daily hourly practice exercises and studying but cannot consider that the djembe could deserve that same amount of attention. The djembe is a complex musical instrument on a par with any other. The more I study, the more I realize this. But rather than being discouraged by this fact, I am excited. I am excited because I am having fun now and look forward to having more and more fun as I grow older and wiser through the djembe.
Some students get discouraged when they discover that learning the djembe is not going to be an overnight process. The djembe is just like any other musical instrument – like the piano, drum kit or the violin. It is extremely complicated and there is A LOT to learn. I can’t understand why people will approach an instrument like the guitar as a serious study which will require years of daily hourly practice exercises and studying but cannot consider that the djembe could deserve that same amount of attention. The djembe is a complex musical instrument on a par with any other. The more I study, the more I realize this. But rather than being discouraged by this fact, I am excited. I am excited because I am having fun now and look forward to having more and more fun as I grow older and wiser through the djembe.
