The Candomblé Orchestra

First of all, I would like to say this DVD is a masterpiece. An amazing compilation of Ketu Candomblé main phrases of almost all instruments (I say almost cause there is no voice and also, other instruments may already be used nowadays). So many phrases that it really mesmerized me. Also, they teach those phrases (even though summarized).People with no preview experience may find it really difficult to understand and learn by ear (although it is not impossible). They do not teach slow, but within the range of a fix pulse for each 'Toque' (phrase set). Also, they do not 'break' the Toques so you may learn it easier, they just show the full phrases and this is it. The explanation is done by just performing the Toques (although there are some more info at the end section, which is something like an interview).It is possible to learn the basics of Agogo, Rumpi and Le. Sadly, it is not really possible to learn the phrases of Rum, once its improvisation contains lots of other presetted phrases not teached within the DVD. That was the thing that made me really frustrated but I understand that if they also teached them, the DVD lenght would be too vast.If you are a student, be aware you will not be able to learn all the basics here, but it is undeniable an amazing source of help that I recommend. in fact, I would recommend it anyway. It is beautiful. It is worth the price. It is helpful if you are a student.

It is hard to overstate the excellence of this production. The publisher's description is accurate, but it is in the execution that this project shines. Every rhythm is broken down, separately, into parts for gan, pi & lé, and rum. They are played both with and without a metronome accompaniment. Several camera angles are alternated so you can see exactly how the musician is moving his hands. The whole ensemble is shown with and without 4-way split screen. Every visual is in focus and well lit. Every audio track is clear. Each clip has a title so you know what you're about to see, and every gan part is documented with simple animated notation that anyone can follow (e.g. x - - x - - x - - - x - x - - - ). The menus are detailed, so you can easily select a clip for later review (or just admire the wealth of content in the DVD). There is an interview (including hardcoded English subtitles) with musical director Bira Reis at the end, briefly discussing the history of Candomblé and explaining the typical agenda for a candomblé ceremony, including the coordinating roles of the rum player and the dancers. Everything a novice needs to begin serious study of candomblé percussion is here.So what's missing? Nothing that would fit into this package. Reis's description of the interaction between the rum and the dancers in trance is tantalizing. This is the heart of the ceremony (in my limited understanding), and watching this kind of performance is mesmerizing. I wish for a similarly outstanding film on that advanced topic.

Great DVD filled with hard to get music information on Candomble rhythms ...

excellent video and audio quality. the split screen showing all drum parts playing together is very well done. dvd is more than worth the money.

I agree with Li Rissato about the fine quality of this DVD, in the context of a documentary of this performance. The breakdown of each part as a separate recording is invaluable, as are the multiple camera angles. The agogo/gan parts are uniformly notated with the x and dot notation on the cover, which is a great starter kit.I have a similar frustration with using the DVD as a learning tool, however. There is no transcription at all of the rum parts, so I'm slogging through making my own. At some points I have to literally go frame by frame to figure out the articulations for each note. Without some other background in candomblé performance it is extremely challenging.I would recommend "Afrobook: mapeamento dos ritmos Afro Baianos" (only in Portuguese, unfortunately) as another source of information with lots of transcriptions, but only a few rhythms in common with this DVD.Marcos Suzano's on-line course "Afro Brasil - Atabaque & Pandeiro" is also helpful (excellent photography and instruction, transcriptions for most rhythms) but again, only covers a few of the same topics, and also only in Portuguese.Kirk Brundage's "Afro-Brazilian Percussion Guide: Candomblé" is in English, and offers cultural background and a large breadth of candomblé rhythms from three "nations", including the Ketu tradition of this DVD. However, it has only a tiny introduction to each rum part, so it's lacking in depth.Fortunately, scholars are focusing on this subject now and publishing papers on line. Hopefully this will result in more easily accessible English-language instruction in the future.