London jazz festival 2012

The london jazz festival has only just begun But the event has dished out an amazing array of talent and entertainment on its first weekend. Hyperpotamus put on an awe inspiring show up at the arts depot. He wowed the audience with his captivating rhythms, melodies and unique dance moves in a thoroughly inspiring set. He finished off an incredible set with a cover of sweet dreams where he had the audience joining in this anthemic tune.

The barbican hosted SCENE FINLAND. I managed to catch 3 of the 4 acts: RAKKA + KUARA + ANNA-MARI KÄHÄRÄN ORKESTERI. The bands were incredible and each drummer left me feeling completely awestruck as each one had their own unique style and sound which was such a joy to behold. The final act of Anna-Mari and her accompanying band were so enthrawling on their first outing to London that I can hardly believe that they are not regulars on the scene. The drummer played most of the set with a stripped down kit with one crash cymbal, snare, floor Tom and kick drum. He played most of the set with his fingers tapping and manipulating the skins on the snare and floor Tom reminding me of the old footage of John Bonham slappingskins on his kit. I was utterly inspired to watch him produce such wonderous sounds on his set up and can't wait to sit back in the studio and try out some new tips! 

A a r o n

Team building with Boots

September saw slappingskins run a team building afternoon with Boots up near its uk HQ. in Nottingham. 350 delegates took part in my biggest ever drum circle. It was a real joy to work with such a big group of drummers and I'm happy to say that everyone took part in the beat as the whole event went off with a bang! A big thank you to Boots for the opportunity of working with such a fun team. I look forward to my next big event! Aaron.

A busy summer

It's been a very busy summer slappingskins. My intentions to keep up with my blog have sadly not been met but it's been a busy time. I've been to loads of events and festivals over the summer of 2012 including sunrise, womad, mannifest, greenman and other wonderful smaller events all over the uk and it's been one of the most inspirational years so far!
          The shows that I've been luckily enough to see this year will stick in my mind for some considerable time from the wonderful manganiyar seduction from Rajasthan to the sublime ballet nimba from Guinea. A few links below to these acts:

Aaron

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=vWhpOR39TO0&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DvWhpOR39TO0&gl=GB

 http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=YvKsrqCwyGQ&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DYvKsrqCwyGQ&gl=GB