OUR “EVERYTHING IS A DRUM” SONGS

AY ZUZUMA

COUNTRY: Jamaica

“Ay Zuzuma” is a song about what happens when our friend Zuzuma goes to market – watch that goat and pig! (More.)

ARSOMO BABA

COUNTRY: Morocco

“Arsomo Baba” is a song from Morocco inspired by a kid drawing a multicolored picture of his dad. (More.)

BALE ILE

COUNTRY: Nigeria

“Bale Ile” is a multi-rhythmic West African drum song that originated in Nigeria as a rollicking example of a Yoruban genre known as fuji. (More.)

BENE AME

COUNTRY: Ghana

“Bene Ame” takes us to West Africa where we band together to escape a despotic king. (More.)

BAMBO DU BAMBU

COUNTRY: Brazil

“Bambo du Bambo” is a samba from Brazil. The original is an embolada, a fast-paced, often-improvised song style popular in northeastern Brazil in which vocalists challenge each other, competing lightly based on verbal and vocal ability. (More.)

DAWEEDAM

COUNTRY: Afghanistan

“Daweedam” is a Dari chant from Afghanistan that tells the tale of a little boy who values his teacher so much he honors him by baking him a loaf of bread. (More.)

E Qee Qee

COUNTRY: Greenland

“E Qee Qee” is our version of a Greenlandic drum dance. (More.)

KERRY DANCING

COUNTRY: Ireland

“Kerry Dancing” transports us to a simpler time in the past when our hearts were full of song and dance. (More.)

LAU LUPE

COUNTRY: Samoa

“Lau Lupe” is a rhythmic Samoan song that tells the surface story of dancing girls and pigeons, but actually muses about the passing of time. (More.)


MELA BABKA

COUNTRY: Czechia

“Mela Babka” is a Czech song based upon the 1-2-3 rhythm of a type of song and social dance called the mazurka. In class we sing, but let beanbags do the dancing. (More.)


NANU NANU NEY

COUNTRY: Ethiopia

“Nanu Nanu Ney” is a phenomenally funky Ethiopian dance song from the 1980s. In class we use it as inspiration to enjoy the shoulder shaking dance, the Eskista. (More.)


OLAFUR

COUNTRY: Iceland

“Olafur” is an Icelandic epic, taking us to a battle between our children and a no-nonsense elf. (More.)


POR COLOMBIANAS

COUNTRY: Spain

We draw “Por Colombianas” from a set of flamenco rhythms that traveled from Spain to the “New World,” then somehow found their way back. (More.)


STO MI E MILO

COUNTRY: Macedonia

“Sto Mi E Milo” is an iconic Balkan folk song about the many benefits of owning a shop in the Macedonian town of Struga. (More.)

SWEETEST DARLING

COUNTRY: The Philippines

“Sweetest Darling” is a Filipino Independence-era “kundiman” that on the surface seems to be a song about love. (More.)

TRIBULCHAY

COUNTRY: Ecuador

"Tribulchay” is a song from Ecuador, in Quechua, that we sing, in class, as we find our ears. (More.)

YA MUSTAFA

COUNTRY: Egypt

“Ya Mustapha” is a playful song sung in many permutations all over West Asia and the Middle East, but always to a bellydancer's drum beat. (More.)

Wan BOTO

COUNTRY: Suriname

“Wan Boto” is originally from Suriname, which is a small country on the Caribbean coast of South America. This is a song fisherman may sing to greet an incoming boat. (“One boat is coming with just one flag.”) (More.)