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Gilded
Serpent presents...
Musical Instrument Tour
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posted March 10, 2014
Calvin Lai on Zurna
After Jill Parker's beautiful show Dance and Diaspora at the ODC theater in San Francisco on February 21, 2013, Calvin talked to us about his musical instrument. He describes a zurna as a primitive oboe. View this clip and hear the haunting sound!
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posted Jan 5, 2012
Susu Pampanin on Moroccan Tomtom
We caught Susu, Terrianne and Amina between gigs at their house in Petaluma. Susu had just gotten out of the shower. They demonstrated the tomtom, bendir, and darbukah for us in their beautiful studio. Rocky and the other dog, Mochi, were there to help. Sorry about cutting the heads out of the shots. Are not the tom toms beautiful?
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posted Oct 16, 2010
Ergun Tamer on Saz
Ergun is one of the organizers of the Middle Eastern Music and Dance Camp held in Mendocino, California, each year in August. Ergun plays many instruments. In this video he tells us about the Turkish saz. The saz has many names depending on the country, such as bazouk or bazouki. This instrument also comes in many sizes.
and please visit www.gildedserpent.com for more videos and over 1000 articles on Middle Eastern music and dance. Thank you!
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posted Oct 16, 2010
Murat Tekbilak on Darbuka or Dumbek
Murat Tekbilek is the son of Omar Faruk and Susie who are from Turkey. He shows us the different sounds this drum can make and his obvious talent. Also included is footage of Murat performing on stage with his father and Dror Sinai, Hasan Isakkut and others. More fun clips from camp are included of drum sessions and classes and the kitchen staff's dance.
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posted Aug 26, 2010
Tina Chancey on Renaissance Style Violin
Director of the Hesperus.org, Tina takes a moment from the camp’s busy schedule to tell us the difference characteristics of this style violin from one we normally see. She touches on the different posture used to play and also why she, a professional player of “Early Music” is interested in how Arab music and style relates to what she normally plays.
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posted June 13, 2010
Miles Jay demonstrates the Double Bass
Miles Jay demonstrates to us a few basic details about the bass violin. This instrument is also called the double bass, stand up bass and contrabass. He shows using the bow and plucking or pizzicato. He also demos the Arabic maqam Bayati and the basic tuning of the bass. This footage was captured in August 2008, at the Mendocino Woodlands, Middle Eastern Music and Dance Camp. Mile's web site is MilesJay.com.
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posted April 12, 2010
Scott Marcus demonstrates the Ney
Scott Marcus is a professor at the University of California in Santa Barbara. He directs the Middle Eastern Ensemble at the university. Scott is also a wonderful teacher. We had the chance to catch him after his class at the Mendocino Middle Eastern Music and Dance Camp. Scott has also written a book called "Music in Egypt"
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posted February 11, 2010
Paul demonstrates the Oud
Paul shows us his instrument, including the tuning he uses, why there are not frets, who his mentors are and the makers of his instrument. Paul has been involved with the San Francisco Bay Area Armenian music scene since 1959,
as a percussionist under the tutelage of Charlie Alexanian. Paul picked up the oud in 1973;
the result of a party conversation with a violinist (Greg Mazmanian) and a drummer (Mark Toomajian).
In 1977 he joined Robaire Nakashian to work with his Belly Dance Troup – Zaghareet.
The popular duo appeared at restaurants, festivals, and special events.
Paul performed at the Bach Dynamite Society with Peter Dorian and Alan Ishmael.
He played oud duets with Joe Zeytoonian at the 1988 Mid East Camp, and in concert with Joe in Miami 1990.
Currently he’s playing oud and percussion with the traditional Egyptian band Al Azifoon.
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Posted January 30, 2010
Daoud demonstrates a cura, saz or baglama.
The Saz family has many sizes.Cura is the name of the smallest size saz or baglama. This is an octave higher in pitch than an full size regular saz. Daouds band Baba ku also performs at the Renaissance Pleasure Faire every Spring in Southern California Find him at
Myspace.com/Babaku1Footage captured in August 2008, at the Mendocino Woodlands, Middle Eastern Music and Dance Camp.
Turkish Cura Saz (pronounced "jura soz")
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posted
November 28. 2009
Rowan
Storm teaches about the Daf, Tar, Dayereh and other frame
drums.
Filmed in August 2008, at the Mendocino Woodlands, Middle Eastern Music and Dance Camp.
Rowan Storm talks about the different names each frame drum has in each country and the confusion that can happen. She also tells us about women only drum groups in central Asia. Another topic- plastic vs natural materials
Be sure to check out the camp website at www.middleeastcamp.comand
Rowan's site at www.rowanstorm.com
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posted
July 9. 2009
Ergun Tamer demonstrates
the Kanoun
Ergun is one of the organizers of the Middle Eastern
Music and Dance Camp held in Mendocino, California, each
year in August. Ergun plays many instruments. In this video
he tells us about the kanun. The kanun shown is Turkish,
and made by Ejder Gulec. In a future video, Ergun will show
us the saz.
Be sure to check out the camp website at www.middleeastcamp.com
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posted July
9. 2009
Ling Shien Bell demonstrates
the Accordion
Ling Shien lives
in Fairfax, California. She is part of the musical group Helm along
with her husband Mark
Bell and
others. She came to the Gilded Serpent studio to tell us
how she has modified a standard western made accordion
to be able to play the quarter tones required in many of
the Arabic modes. She shows us a row of reeds that is normally
inside an accordion and how they work similar to a harmonica.
She plays parts of songs from Armenia and Afghanistan.
She also plays a song in the key of bayati. Please visit
Helms website at www.helmmusic.com for
more about Ling and Helm.
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posted
June 24, 2009
Fattah Abbou
plays and demonstrates the Ribab or Anzad
Fattah Abbou of Santa Cruz, shows us his musical instrument
called the Ribab or Anzad. Also included is a clip of Fattah
playing the music of the Tamazight from Morocco on his instrument
and singing in the style from his home of birth high in the
Atlas Mountains. This video was filmed with permission at the
Kosmos Camp held in June 2009 near Guernville, California.
For more about Kosmos Camp please visit kosmoscamp.com & www.azamusic.com for more about Fattah.
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posted
3-17-09
Sahba
Motallebi plays and demonstrates the Tar and Setar
Sahba is from Iran and
has been living in Los Angeles for the last 3 years. She
shows us her two instruments, the Tar and Setar. We see the
front and back of the instruments and the moveable frets
and pegs. She plays the instruments for us as well. Also
included is footage of Sahba on stage performing with Bahram
Osqueezadeh on the Persian Santur and Rowan
Storm on the
frame drum. Sahba also has CDs available
on her website www.sahbamotallebi.com
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Posted
1-31-09
Bahram Osqueezadeh
plays and demonstrates the Persian Santur
Footage captured in August 2008, at the Mendocino Woodlands,
Middle Eastern Music and Dance Camp.
Bahram play for us and talks about his intrument.
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Posted
11-11-08
Omar Faruk Tekbilek demonstrates
the Ney
Omar Faruk Tekbilek,
originally from Turkey, teaches and demonstrates the
ney and zurna. Also incuded
are short performance clips of Omar with the instruments
and band members.
Omar starts by telling us the story
of a holy man being taken to heaven on a holy horse or
"burak". He relates this to being taken out
of our daily lives by playing
music
on our instruments- "I have so many horses!" he
says of all his instruments. He tells us about the different
tunings and ranges of the different neys he has. He also
tells how he made
his own. In addition, Omar shows us a zurna or mizmar
and the double reed that it uses.
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Posted
9-24-08
Souren Baronion demonstrate his Musical Instruments
-Part 1
Kuval, Dudook, G (or Sol) Clarinet, Soprano Sax and Riq
or Tamborine
included also are snipits from performances
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Posted
9-24-08
Souren Baronion demonstrate his Musical Instruments
-Part 2
Kuval, Dudook, G (or Sol) Clarinet,
Soprano Sax and Riq or Tamborine
included also are snipits from performances
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One more regarding the Mendocino Music and Dance Camp-
Gilded Serpent reports from the Middle Eastern Music and Dance camp in Mendocino. It is Tuesday and this is our video report #1. Names and more details of people in the video will be added the article page on Gilded Serpent that this video is meant to illustrate. Video includes short clips from various activities. Souhail and Nasar talk with us. Robyn Friend dances with her husband playing for her in the background. Student drummers practice. Reports are made and uploaded from a laptop in an internet cafe in the town of Mendocino.
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Ready
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More Drumming Articles-
7-30-01 RECREATING
RITUAL Enhancing our daily lives with drumming and dancing, by
Tahya
The
rhythmic patterns and dance movements of this tradition,
steeped in antiquity, steeped in women's ancestry,
rekindle a natural and sacred state of well being.
9-6-00 A
Drummer's Advice to Beginning Dancers -
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"...Know
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where the instructor not only couldn't clap baladi
but didn't even know what it was..."
3-22-00 Dancing to Live Drumming by
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The Drum can
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Interviews
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7-1-00 Child Prodigy grows up, Reda D! An Interview with
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"I
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2-28-06 Loay
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In
addition to teaching us about drum solos, Loay also took some
time to share with us his valuable insights as a musician after
working for the past thirteen years with hundreds of San Francisco
Bay Area Bellydancers.
7-31-01 Salah
Takesh Interviewed by
Janine Ryle
For
years, he was involved in the San Francisco
North Beach scene during the eighties as a
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his brother, Jalaleddin Takesh was a kanoonist
and restaurant owner. We asked him to recall
some of his experiences for our North
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9-22-00 Interview with Michael Beach of the Brothers of Baladi by
GS Staff
We are a versatile
group. One night I play blues, the next jazz, then I become part
of The Brothers, playing either a drum set or dumbek.
Reviews
of drum related products and events
3-15-03 Review
and Rating of 2002’S MIDDLE EASTERN DRUM CD/TAPES by
Sierra/Sadira
This
is a review of eight of the most popular Middle
Eastern Drum recordings produced this year. Incuding works by
Reda, Susu, H Ramsy, Zaid, Mafufo, and more...
5-29-06 P.U.R.E.
Danceby Dhyanis
A collective of dancers and drummers plan to take music
and dance out into the streets this summer on July 15 in cities
across the nation and globe.
1-17-07 Perfectly
Masterful Teaching: Drum Solo Master Class with Jim Boz Reviewed
by: Rebecca Firestone
With his shaved head tied up in a bandanna, with a burly
torso, powerful legs, and a thick neck, he looks more like a
biker, a bouncer, or a circus strongman. Thus, his grace and
posture is even more amazing.
8-17-05 Workshop
with Issam Houshan March 26, 2005, San Francisco Reviewed
by Rebecca Firestone
In the solo improvisational forms of Middle Eastern
Dance, the chemistry between the drummer and the dancer is a
vital ingredient.
6-14-05 Dancing
With A SuperStar Jillina’s Drum Solo Workshop in
Vancouver by Erica
If you have the opportunity to dance with this amazing, educated, experienced,
beautiful, and did I mention fun? woman, do not hesitate to do it. It is worth
every penny and every minute!
11-15-05 Shareen
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Review by Mara al-Nil
I am pleased to report that what she said was true—everything
she covered in the workshop is on the DVD. Finding it, however,
is another matter.
2-21-02 Egyptian
Drum Solo Choreography Video, Volume 1
By: Al Wahid Productions Featuring: Jamilla Al Wahid and Reda Darwish on drum
by Gennevie Hebranson
If you are looking for a video that will inspire you ...
12-12-00 Armando's
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Video review of "Uncle Mafufo's Riqs & Defs: a practical approach
to Middle Eastern Frame Drums"
9-29-00 "Halawah" on
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San Francisco's
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10-31-03 Workshop
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Hossam’s
presentation requires the student to listen – and I mean
LISTEN.
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