Junior music students were treated to an unforgettable drumming workshop on Monday, as Ra McRostie brought the rhythms of West Africa to life through her high-energy lessons on the djembe and traditional percussion.

On Monday both our junior music classes were given a special treat when Ra McRostie visited our school with her djembe drums to give us all a lesson on West African drumming. Ra has travelled the world exploring drum and percussion sounds and has over 20 years of experience with these instruments.

After beginning with body percussion and getting loose, Ra taught the Year 9s a traditional rhythm from Guinea called Moribayassa. Most students played the djembes, learning and exploring all the different tones the instrument offers. Still, some students were lucky enough to play the different bass drums, using sticks and setting different rhythms.

The Year 10s had a similar lesson but with a more complicated rhythm. This time, Ra taught us a rhythm from Côte d'Ivoire called Kuku-Bela, which explored multiple different rhythms and challenged even our best drummers, while keeping simpler parts for our beginner students.

The biggest takeaway from this experience was how the drums are communicating with each other. When a class of drummers play 3 or 4 different rhythms simultaneously, a conversation between the drums occurs, teaching us how to listen to this form of communication.

We at the music department sincerely thank Ra and hope to have her back next year.