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 Introducing
children to the basics of Afro-Cuban rhythms can be
both fun and educational. I've developed this program
primarily for elementary grades 4, 5, and 6, but it
can also be applied to middle school.
Let's start with the clave rhythm which is
extremely important to every aspect of Afro-Cuban
music.
Now let's try 2/3. I've chosen "It's a Small
World" as an example, so clap your hands in the 2/3
clave and sing this song and you'll feel that this
clave fits the melody. Try clapping each songexample
using the opposite clave
and see which one feels better to you. Of course these
songs were not written with clave in mind, so they
may not be as in clave as they should be, but I feel
that it's important to use songs that the children
are already familiar with.
Experiment with other songs and you'll be
able to find plenty oftunes to perform using the clave
rhythm. If the song doesn't feel quite right, often
a subtle shift in the melody can make a big difference.
This method can also be used in school band. Begin
by finding which charts work with clave and then add
an Afro-Cuban percussion section which includes timbales,
congas,
bongos,
guiro,
maracas,
and of course claves.
Now let's begin in the classroom. First introduce
the students to the clave rhythm and have them clap
along. In order to get the children comfortable with
the syncopated rhythm, I suggest starting with the
3/2 Clave. Using the tune "Shave and a Hair Cut Two
Bits" is a great way to get children to feel the rhythm.
You'll notice that I've highlighted the words corresponding
to the Clave pattern. You may want to assign a rotating
rhythm section to be hand clappers and the rest of
the students as singers.
Next teach them the song. In this case let's
use "The Hokey Pokey". Now add the rhythm section
clapping the 3/2 clave. Since some Afro-Cuban rhythms
are determined by tempo, so the "Hokey Pokey" will
eventually become a mambo. Start slow before picking
up the tempo, I think a goal would be about 80 B.P.M.
Since this will be a mambo, the patterns shown here
will reflect that rhythm. If the class has the luxury
of piano accompaniment, the piano should also be played
in clave.
This is a very basic rhythm for the piano,
but will give the right feel to the song.
Now, if possible, lets add some Afro-Cuban
percussion instruments to the rhythm section. The
rhythm patterns will be very simple, but they are
in clave. The point of these exercises is to give
the children a starting point to learn from without
compromising musical tradition. Understanding that
the children will not be able to play the instruments,
in tipico fashion, I've chosen the main parts of each
instrument's rhythm pattern and simplified it so a
child will be able to play it. First substitute hand
claps with claves
perhaps, from the new LP Music Collection. This new
line of LP Percussion instruments, were specially
designed for children. Next add some LP
RhythMix Chick-Itas or LP
Maracas.
Then add an LP
guiro.
An LP
Mambo Cowbell can be added now.
A set of the new CP
Traditional Bongos can now be added, and since
the bongos have two different pitched drums (high
pitch macho low pitch hembra) the drums can be shared
by two students. The new World
Beat even offers separate small and large bongos
which gives the children an opportunity to each play
their own drum. The student playing the macho (small
drum) will play the rhythm
and the student playing the hembra (large
drum) will play the rhythm.
If only one child is playing the bongos then
combine the two patterns. The congas are the last
drums to be added. If you have two drums, the student
playing the smaller drum (conga) will play the
rhythm and the student playing the larger
drum (tumba) will play the
rhythm. If there is only one conga
drum, then have the student play the
rhythm pattern. If by chance you have a student
familiar with drumming, you might want to add palitos
(sticks) playing the cascara rhythm pattern
on an LP
Jam Block. Once again, these examples are a far
cry from the traditional techniques of Afro-Cuban
drumming, but they do include the basic rhythm patterns
used by each of these instruments. I hope that this
will give you a starting point for introducing Afro-Cuban
rhythms to the musical portion of your student's daily
curricula, These techniques can also be applied to
other Afro-Cuban rhythms (Cha-Cha/Bolero, etc.). To
gain a better understanding of Afro-Cuban rhythms,
check out LP's Understanding
Latin Rhythms book, which includes an informative
cassette tape.
I can only hope that introducing Afro-Cuban
music will enrich a child's life as much as it has
mine.
LP endorser Kurt
Rasmussen is a talented multi percussionist who
currently performs with Cirque du Soleil, in Las Vegas,
and conducts numerous
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