Curriculum, learning and teaching
Teaching Brazilian percussion Ollie Tunmer gives curriculum some rhythm As the Director of Beat Goes On I have the privilege of delivering STOMP-style Body Percussion and Brazilian Percussion workshops in schools and CPD events throughout the UK and abroad. I’m very lucky that what I do is naturally loud, exciting and highly accessible, meaning that the sense of accomplishment and fun can be achieved fairly quickly! Maintaining this, however, requires some clear methodology. I find that, as a musician, if I have a verbal phrase that sounds like the rhythm I’m trying to learn, the rhythm becomes more memorable. If a workshop facilitator includes the keywords of a project, then participants will end up repeating the keywords using the rhythm that they’re learning. For example, when teaching an ‘agogo’ bell rhythm from the Brazilian style ‘maracatu’, I use the following: 1
e
&
a
2
e
&
L
H
L
H
Let
the
groove
flow
a
3
e
L
H
on the
&
a
4
H
L
a- go-
e
&
a
H go
L = low bell H = high bell
Along with many of my colleagues, I find this indispensable, both as a teaching / learning aid and as a compositional tool. Last year I delivered a 4 week samba project with Caitlin Sherring and pupils at Woodcroft Primary School in North London, during which pupils learned traditional rhythms and the names of 7 instruments, and composed their own samba ‘breaks’ using this approach – quite an achievement! Ensemble music-making frequently provides a platform for the development of other, non-music-specific, skills. The ‘mestre’ (leader) of a samba band has to develop communication and leadership skills. Training young people as mestres can allow them to take ownership of their learning. A ‘surdo’ (bass drum) player may be required to play a pulse-based rhythm which, although simple, is of huge
Autumn
Spring |
| 2017
importance to the overall sound of the band, providing a sense of responsibility for the student involved. One element that often provokes interest (and, at times, trepidation!) is the linking of music with other curriculum areas. As the awareness of the clear links between musical involvement and academic achievement increases, creative approaches for all subjects are still being explored, despite the merciless obsession with test results from certain strands of society. It takes a bold, courageous (and well supported) school or teacher to break away from ‘normal’ teaching styles but the results can be life changing.
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