Concert!

--> One of the course assignments was to perform a concert for the village of the pieces we had been working on here in our lessons. This happened Friday afternoon, under the canopy of the community drumming trees.  No better place to play drums in my opinion. With a small grouping of elders in front  of us and school children assembled after school let out, we began with an ad hoc Kinka to gather the audience. Soon after, we did our “set” which was an instrumental version of Gota, then one with dancing. Then came our Bobobo,  with singing, trumpet,  drums and dancing. It was magnificent. Some of the group was nervous, especially when a burst of laughter erupted in one of the Gota moves, but as soon as they realized their local audience was in fact thrilled with their efforts, everyone relaxed and gave a great show. Our teachers Torgbui and Selorm led us, along with a couple of drummers form Dzogadze (Promise and Kofi) and our own Dagbamete friend Jambolah. A fantastic musical end to the trip. Congrats to the performers, some of whom were totally new to this music.
-Kathy