community

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Announcing the grooveKSQ 3 Day Practice Challenge!

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Announcing the groove 3 Day Practice Challenge! This is a livestream series on the studio’s YouTube channel that will broadcast Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (June 28, 29 & 30) at 2:00pm eastern. These videos are going to be short (less than 15 minutes), designed for intermediate students to help reinforce the idea of daily and intentional practice. You can join live or you can watch them after the livestream.

I strongly encourage you all to go to the YouTube channel and subscribe, as we are going to use that heavily over the summer.

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GrooveFEST Spring 2022 Recap

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Well, what a fabulous day this was! The students all played with confidence and conviction. These student performance days are truly my favorite thing, as we can get out of the practice room and show friends and family what progress has been made. The students really do make the most interesting choices for the songs they want to learn. Many musical styles were well represented: punk rock, jazz and funk classics, some hard rock in there as well, and also a rudimental classic from the 1940s.

Thank you to the students’ families who attended, and especially to the three families who were in attendance even though their son or daughter was not performing that day. That really says a lot about the community that is surrounding the studio and these awesome young musicians.

We also have to thank Mark and Jossy Osborne for allowing our students to come in and perform at Kennett Brewing Company, that was a treat to have a professional venue for the students to experience.

There will be video pieces for each student coming out this week on our social media platforms. Stay tuned!

Please consider making a tax-deductible donation for the general support of the studio to enable us to produce more programming like this. Click here to donate.

You can also stay in the loop by joining our email list. Text GROOVEKSQ to 66866 on your smartphone.

GrooveFEST FAQs for families…

The last public student performance the studio produced was way back before the pandemic. Since then, there have been quite a few new students join the studio. Now that things seemed to have normalized, it is time to perform again. After all, being great in the practice room is one thing, being great in front of a live audience is another kind of test altogether. I put together this set of FAQs based on the questions I received from parents and guardians which I think will be helpful.

1. What is GrooveFEST exactly?

A. GrooveFEST is a catchier name for a student recital or student performance. GrooveFEST is intended to be a fun experience for the students in a friendly live environment.

2. Is participation mandatory?

A. No, participation is voluntary, but I strongly encourage students to participate because it is a terrific learning experience.

3. Is there a cover charge or fee for participating?

A. There is no fee, but this is a fundraising event for the studio to help cover its general operating expenses. You can make a tax deductible donation to the studio HERE.

4. How much performance time will my student have?

A. Performance time allotted to each performer will depend on the total number of performers we have signed up. We have ninety minutes allotted for this event.

5. Where is the event being held?

A. The performance is being held on stage at Kennett Brewing Company, 109 S. Broad Street in Kennett. KBC is located in the same building as grooveKSQ but on the ground floor. KBC has two entrances, one on Apple Alley and one on South Broad Street.

6. What if my son or daughter is nervous about performing?

A. My job as an educator is to put the students in a position to succeed. Some nerves before live performance is a totally natural thing. If I think that your son or daughter is going to have difficulty, I will let you know. (note: this has not happened one time yet!).

7. When should we let you know if my son or daughter is participating?

A. The earlier the better! The more time I have to plan the program, the better experience everyone (performers and guests) will have.

8. Is this a competition?

A. The only person the students are competing against is themselves. So no there is no competitive aspect among the performers. We will have some trivia and games and maybe a few prizes.

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Djembe Master Class Notes

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Last night an enthusiastic group gathered here at the studio to learn from djembe master Pape Demba Samb. We spent a fun and energetic 90 minutes together communicating through drumming.

It really is something you have to experience live, and whatever you may have heard on a recording, hearing the sound of all those hand crafted Senegalese instruments played in a group really is an incredible experience.

Pape teaches individual lessons here at the studio. Please email me for more details.

We are planning on running another master class in April. Please join our email list by texting GROOVEKSQ to 66866 on your smartphone to stay up to date with the studio’s events.

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New Faculty Spotlight: Introducing Pape "Paco" Samb

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Pape Demba "Paco" Samb comes from a family that have been griots in his native Senegal for hundreds of years. As a griot, Paco is one of the keepers of the ancestral history, stories, and music of his Wolof peoples. As a master hand drummer, Paco not only plays the instruments but he and his brothers build several types of drums as well. He performs both contemporary and traditional Senegalese music, as well as reggae, rap, funk, jazz, pop and a variety of other styles. Paco heads his own drum ensemble called Super Ngewel and released his first album in 2014.