rhythm is THE HEARTBEAT OF MUSIC

Rhythm pumps Life into music; it makes and keeps the energy circulating.  People all over the world enjoy rhythm; African rhythms, now spread globally, take us to heart of rhythm.  These mostly African or Afro-Cuban rhythms have been charted on the sketch of a conga drum head.  They are radial,  with the rhythm rotating clockwise to complete one rhythmic cycle.  Each part is represented by one concentric circle; it harmonizes with all of the other parts, but holds it’s own pattern.  The “drum-tone scale” used in these charts is as follows:

                                                Downbeat (Odd)                Upbeat (Even)

 High, Resonant Tone                 Go                              Do

 Slap, hard, precise                    Pa                              Ta

  Bass, deep tone                         Gn                              Dn

Each rhythm has several parts;  it takes a whole group of drummers, each playing their part in synchrony with the others, to really hear the song of the rhythm. When everyone “locks in”, like clock-work or gears meshing, most magically the synergy of the whole can be profoundly heard.  These rhythms are presented alphabetically, starting with Afanga, an African rhythm of welcoming.