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Drumming workshop with masters of traditional music of the Pacific Coast

In cooperation with the UNESCO Chair of Transcultural Music Studies, the Music Department of the Universidad del Valle, Cali, Colombia, held a first meeting with masters of traditional music of the Pacific Coast, with its Afro-Colombian repertoire. A central musical instrument of this region is the marimba, a xylophone with 18 - 28 wooden plates. This musical practice was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2015.

The students of the University of Valle had a whole week to exchange with the masters of these musical cultures. It was about the traditional knowledge in the region, which hereby came to the university for the first time. There were also lectures by professors of the Uni Valle and by guest professors. The opening lecture was given by Prof. Tiago de Oliveira Pinto: "The Presence of African History in the Music of South America and the Caribbean".

The 91 enrolled participants also had the opportunity to try out the basics of playing the marimba and also to work on repertoire. Different ensemble formations consisted of marimbas, drums, rattles and vocals. In the workshops, the different genres of Pacific Coast music were learned and performed.

The focus was always on the cultural knowledge of the Pacific Coast people, their approach to music, and the integration of knowledge carried from generation to generation.

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