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MUSIC teacher Lydia Martin is drumming up support for traditional beats and will be in huge demand to roll out the rhythms during Ramadan.
She is taking bookings for corporate and private functions, team-building exercises as well as training and development sessions.
“I have always had a passion for the traditional music of this country and have made in-depth studies of the Fijeri – songs of the dawn, which were the haunting songs once sung by the local pearl divers,” said Lydia, who runs the Inspire Bahrain music academy in Saar.
“When I moved to Bahrain in 2002 I immediately began studying the Arabic darbaka and have always incorporated Arabic, African and Brazilian beats within my ‘tribal fusion’-style both in teaching, performance and corporate training.”
British expat Lydia originally studied music at the University of London, where she majored in composition. Before coming to Bahrain she wrote for the BBC and mainly classical and avant-garde performers but she is now also writing in a more contemporary style and planning to develop a musical theatre production featuring Bahrain and its heritage, which will ‘interweave the music of the pearl divers into a modern setting’.
“It’s all about putting unity back into the community and inspiring nations and generations,” she explained.
Traditional music is occasionally played when fasts are broken for ghabgas and iftars on a stringed oud or percussion darbaka. Lydia is a dab hand on the Arabic darbaka as well as the African djembe, which is a similar drum and, although the skills are transferrable, the rhythms are often different.
She runs a community drumming circle on Saturday afternoons too which is open to enthusiasts of all ages from five upwards, although under-11s have to be accompanied by a drumming adult.
At present the group of 25 enthusiasts is mostly made up of teenagers, with a few adults and younger children added to the mix.
Costing BD5 per session, Lydia describes it as a fun, exhilarating, challenging hour of percussive music-making which keeps players ‘on the edge of their seats’.
“Drumming shifts energy very quickly in a way that other art forms cannot do,” said Lydia. “It’s not only a great ice-breaker, it stimulates most of our senses simultaneously, whilst developing our multi-tasking abilities, making it a universal training tool too.”
“Singing, drumming and theatre are at the heart of Inspire and we believe that the next generation of inspirational leaders will be seasoned performers, at home with challenging, out-of-the-box situations which are echoed in the training of these practical and dynamic performance skills.
“For many in this region a practical approach to learning can be a challenge in itself. Used to sitting in presentations and being taught in a more formal setting, it can feel very uncomfortable moving away from the security of a familiar environment.
Drumming breaks down barriers between management and employee through the sharing of the same experience and the same starting point.
“Drumming does not differentiate between participants but the personal experience for each individual will be different. This applies to those who might be less able in terms of poor hand co-ordination or muscle weakness, for example.
“Drumming is not about teaching people to be drummers – so if they don’t hit the drum hard it doesn’t matter – it is about letting go of being led by the head and allowing the body to take over – after all, your personal rhythm comes from your own heartbeat and pulse located in your body and not in your mind.
“Drumming is a wonderful tool to explore what we do both individually and in a team situation – what are our abilities, capabilities, strong points, weak points and preferences?”
And, the rhythm of life goes on …Call 00973 39047734 or check out www.inspirebahrain.com for more details.
