Translation of Middle Eastern & Balkan rhythms and meters in my set up, consisting of darbuka, cajon, bendir attached to full drum-set

Ioannis Rizopoulos

This paper focuses on the structure of a practical method that facilitates the transition from traditional elements towards the modern expression of performing on percussion. The primal aim behind this idea is to enrich the performer’s experience by, not only exercising on odd meters and rhythms seen in traditional music of the Middle East and the Balkans, but also using a variety of instruments on the same time for getting the required acoustic outcome. On the other hand the main instrument on which the full combination of the percussion-set was based, the drum-set, is giving the perfect match on a try-out to combine different music practices of the East and the West. Conducting a study like that sets the start for experimentation on combinations of music styles and their representative instruments. The scope and significance of this research is described in the first section, highlighting the importance of the research question under examination in its final phase. In addition possible ways and primal findings that helped on finalizing the build up of a distinct set-up are commented. Technical matters leading to the desired musical outcome are outlined in the second section, along with the important aspects discovered during the implementation of the study. Results, findings and limitations of the study are described below. The next section, which forms the bulk of the paper, turns to the description of the data under examination, structured into the 3 intervention cycles of research. Sections 4, 5 and 6 all discuss in more detail the technical, notative procedure used and how it was transformed, during the research period, in order to strengthen the significance and application of the approach under examination; basically how to transfer Middle Eastern and Balkan rhythms and meters on a set up that consists of M. Eastern percussion and the drum set. The paper ends with a brief conclusion and the more detailed description of the resulted methodology.