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WHAT"S NEW?

-New classes starting at the Freight and Salvage in Berkeley March 3rd and 4th.

-Pagode Ensemble and Pandeiro and More! being offered Spring term at the Jazzschool

-Weekend choro workshop with Mike Marshall and Choro Famoso in Port Townsend April 22-25.

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Two new classes starting at the Freight and Salvage in March

Beginning Congas:

In this class we will develop some technique on the conga drums, and learn a few Afro-Cuban rhythms. We will learn the basics of the clave rhythm and how it fits into Afro-Cuban music. Bring a conga drum if you have one. Some drums can be provided.

6 weeks, beginning March 4th, 4:30 - 5:00pm

Shake Rattle and Roll - The art of small percussion:

Is the triangle really a viable solo instrument? What’s a caxixi? Should I use the jawbone or the vibraslap? And, what the heck do I do with this egg shaker? This class will answer all those important questions burning in your mind. They’re not just noise makers. Come learn the art of the small percussion arsenal and add spice to any music.

6 weeks, beginning March 3rd, 8:15 - 9:45pm

Pandeiro - the tambourine of Brazil - THIS CLASS HAS BEEN CANCELED, SORRY.

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Two classes for spring term at the Jazzschool to begin April 8th

New Class! Samba Pagode Ensemble

Pagode is Samba of the backyard barbecue variety. When you visit Rio de Janeiro you’ll hear this music on the radio and in the streets and in clubs and bars. Samba Pagode can be played in small venues with just a few people, a cavaquinho, tan-tan, pandeiro, guitar and voice is all you need. We’ll learn the conventions of the style, techniques on the instruments, and be able to perform 5 or 6 of these infectious songs in a traditional way. Prerequisites: All students in the class are expected to sing some of the choruses and/or sing the lead. Singers welcome, but trained voices are not required. Guitarists must have some experience playing Samba, and reading chord symbols. Cavaquinho players must be able to read chord symbols. Pandeiro players must be able to play the basic Samba pattern.
Required materials: Your instrument. Some percussion instruments will be available at classes if needed.

Thursdays 8:15 – 9:45 pm beginning April 8th
(10 weeks) $365

Pandeiro and MORE!

The Pandeiro (Brazilian tambourine) is an increasingly popular instrument across the globe because of its sophistication and versatility. The pandeiro is a mainstay of many traditional types of Brazilian music, yet thanks to innovators like Marcos Suzano the instrument has crossed into other genres as well. Focus is placed on developing good technique on the instrument and getting a good feel for many traditional Brazilian rhythms. Class also addresses funk and odd-time signatures. Prerequisite - Familiarity with some Brazilian rhythms. Students must bring a pandeiro to class. Some will be available for rent or purchase as well.

Thursdays 6:30 - 8:00 pm beginning April 8th
(10 weeks) $365

 

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Weekend choro Workshop in Port Townsend,WA April 22-25

CHORO: THE SWEET LAMENT OF BRAZILIAN MUSIC

Featuring Mike Marshall and Choro Famoso

Workshop: April 22 - 25, 2010

Concert: April 24, 2010, 7:30pm

Join Mike Marshall (mandolin) and Choro
Famoso <http://www.mcbooking.com/chorofamoso.html> Collin Walker (six-
and seven-string cavanquinho guitar), Andy Connell (clarinet and
saxophone), and Brian Rice (pandeiro and other Brazilian percussion
instruments) in this intensive workshop. Mike Marshall and Choro
Famoso taught at a similar Centrum event in 2007, and ever since people have
been asking "how soon can you get them back?!"

Choro is a great way for both jazz and classically oriented
musicians to meet on common ground. There are written charts with lovely and lively
melodies accessible to any competent player. There's also room for
improvisation, and in a vein that's a great way for classical
musicians to expand their skills in this. The thirty-person workshop
is open to all instruments (hand percussion, rather than drum set).
"There will be people of different backgrounds and abilities and
we'll be sure to match you up!" Marshall says.

Evening jam sessions, combined with film and audio sessions of Choro> innovators and masters, round out the workshop. Participants will receive free admission to the April 24th performance in the Joseph F.
Wheeler Theater.

Who should attend the workshop?

Both classical and jazz musicians will feel comfortable in this
workshop, and will enjoy expanding their skills through this style.
You should be proficient on your instrument, i.e. comfortable with the
mechanics of playing. It is very helpful to be able to read music for
this workshop. Written music will be handed out. Newest books from
Mike Marshall also feature tablature, but many of the songs of Choro are
not

> How do I register?
<http://www.centrum.org/admin/regforms.html>

"The Brazilian musical style of Choro represents the coming together
of European melodic and harmonic traditions with African rhythms and
sensibilities," says Marshall. "The way this came together in
Brazil is particularly exciting. There was something about the
Portuguese and Italian influence that gave a strong romantic feeling
to the resulting melodies, giving Choro a swinging groove that is so
Brazilian underpinning everything."

Choro, which emerged in Brazil in the middle of the nineteenth
century,
is a cousin of jazz with sense of yearning often described as a
"sweet lament," says ethnomusicologist and clarinet player Andy
Connell, adding that many ethnomusicologists believe that the name of
the music comes from the Portuguese verb chorar-that is, to weep or
to cry.

"There is a wonderful bittersweet quality about it," he says.
"It often seems bright and happy on the surface. But if you dig,
deeper you find a kind of sadness, a longing that the Brazilians call
saudade."

"My god, this is the sound" Mike Marshall said, when he first
heard Choro in its element. "I knew about samba and bossa nova, but
this genre is just mind-blowing."

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I am available for private or group lessons. To find out more send me an email by clicking on the contact me button above.

Directing the Begining Bateria class at California Brazil Camp 2008