Longevity in your Darbuka playing
Just what does that mean exactly? Longevity in your darbuka playing? Is that some sort of South East Asian spice!? Time and time again i see an enthusiastic student at a workshop or even in a forum on a drumming website, full of passion, eyes wide open to learning, could this be my one true calling in life i hear them thinking. Fast forward one year…poor lonely darbuka sitting in the corner of the room gathering dust.
Let’s talk about ways we can keep our darbuka passion alive with the flame burning in the years to come.
The darbuka and all of the experiences that it has offered me over the years has brought alot of joy into my life. I have been playing music for over twenty years now and love it more than ever. There are a few simple reasons for this and i keep a close watch on them everyday.
Emotional and stress relief.
One of the main reasons is that i improvise alot and this means that i get to express myself and my emotions through the drum. It has turned into a need for me. Almost everyday (but not everyday) i practice and play either at home, in the studio, at a gig or a rehearsal. If i dont play for a few days i start to feel strange and even a little tense. If you are lucky enough to work from home or at least in a sound proof office, try playing your drum for about 5 minutes every hour. Dont play load and lose your energy, just light and with the finger tips. This can also be done on a frame drum of course. It gives your brain a rest from the computer screen and relaxes all of your muscles in your arm, neck and back. You instantly unwind. Having health benifits like this will keep you playing in the years to come.
Don’t rush.
One danger i see is burnout. New players get very excited in the beginning and wish to play like the pro’s in the shortest amount of time. It’s a great thing to have that enthusiasm but only if you monitor it and remember that longevity will serve you in the end. Developing too fast can cause RSI, tendonitis and other musical related injuries. That is the last thing we want in our musical journey. When i was a teenager i practiced the guitar from six – ten hours per day everyday. I was on a mission! When i was twenty i developed tendonitis and had to stop playing altogether for one year. Had i taken that year off into consideration, i could have practiced alot less and ended up with the same result on my guitar! Do you see my point? You will be happier and better off as an uninjured musician.
Diversity.
One thing that may happen is that your ears will get tired of hearing a darbuka. If you are in a relaxed, quite mood is the darbuka the bst instrument to pick up and play? Why not play a frame drum? Frame drums come in all shapes and sizes and offer such a diverse musical range that caters for all emotions us moody muso’s go through. There are many techniques that cross over from the frame drum and onto the darbuka so by practicing one you are really playing the other. How good’s that! Play the Riq and improve your darbuka playing! Now we’re talking.
As a professional drummer i have to say that i much prefer playing with drummers that can play more than just the darbuka alone. Its just too limiting otherwise, we want some colour throughout the gig.
So, by playing more than just the darbuka and perhaps taking up Tar, Riq, Bendir or Tamburello we are watering our future as drummers and music makers in general. Not to mention bringing new and fresh sounds into the bands that we play with. I use to play in a Middle Eastern Surf band and introduced the Persian Daf into a couple of tracks. That just about blew away the audience every time! It was huge!!
Aiming for longevity in your musical journey will serve you well and bring much happiness into your life. Dont let your new found Arabic drumming craze just turn into another passing faze.
Hope that helps, Matt Stonehouse
Fingers of Fury Darbuka and Frame drum online tuition and community
Tags: Darbuka
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