Category Archives: African Dance Workshops
African Dance with Louis Pierre Yonsian: Every Saturday 1.30 to 3 pm
Uplifting, high-energy West African dance classes, with live African drumming!
Date: Every Saturday,
Time: 1.30-3pm
Venue: Birch Community Centre, Brighton Grove, Rusholme, Manchester M14 5JT
Booking: Online booking only:
Louis is a fantastic teacher. He breaks the routines down into easy to follow steps, so even complete dance novices can have a go, but also provides a level of challenge for more experienced dancers. His positive energy is infectious and will leave you buzzing at the end of each session! Generally, the class is a real mix of ages, experience & cultures and is a very warm and welcoming community to all.
Please read the Covid guidelines (see below) before attending.
African drumming workshops and performance for Eatock Primary school 03/02/2018
Ever wanted to come to one of our African drumming gigs but can’t quite make it out until midnight? Well here is your opportunity to see us perform at 10 in the morning! Drumroots are proud to announce that we have been invited to Eatock primary school in Westhoughton, Bolton for their special African Beats launch event on Saturday 3rd February. We will be putting on an extra special performance with our professional drumming group ‘Tanante’. Not only will Tanante be featuring Iya Sako our master drummer from Guinea but we will also be inviting a surprise special guest all the way from East Africa too!
West African Dance Workshop with Jokeh Sillah | 16th April 2016 |NEW ISLINGTON MILL
As part of our 10th birthday celebration we would like to offer a very special workshop with our friend Jokeh Sillah. A world class artist who has choreographed many West African performance troupes. Jokeh has a wealth of choreography knowledge and can work wonders with a group of students. Her workshops, which will be supported by drummers from Tanante are always welcoming and encouraging yet fast paced, inspiring and exciting! Don’t hesitate to book your tickets for the gig to see what surprises she has up her sleeve for the evening performance… (more…)
Drumroots in Sudan at the Festival of the Nile
Early in the autumn, The British Council
in Sudan asked Drumroots to be a part of The Festival of the Nile. West Africa has been so successful in popularising it’s traditional music around the world and our friend from the British Council, Mustafa, wanted to use this success as an inspiring example to encourage the youth of Sudan to engage with their cultural roots. Although we knew that we would be performing and leading workshops to celebrate traditional African music, little did we know what incredible experiences were in store for us during the week ahead.
Drumroots Summer Event for Mental Health Patients at the NHS 5 Boroughs Partnership Foundation Trust
Last month the Drumroots team enjoyed a series of workshops with the patients of the mental health department of the Hollins Park Hospital. The Therapeutic Activities Team of the 5 Boroughs Partnership called us in to deliver our drumming workshops with the patients and to prepare them for a summer performance event at the end of the short course. (more…)
Thanks from Drumroots for the Mamady Keita 2013 Weekend (Video)
A belated, but nevertheless massive thank you from Drumroots and Tanante to all involved in organizing the Mamady Keita Weekend 2013, last month. We had an awesome time at the event, really enjoyed being there and both supporting Iya Sako’s workshops and participating in Mamdy Keita’s. There was an ace vibe at the venue and it was excellent to see lots of old friendly faces that we haven’t seen for a while.
As for the evening’s entertainment; sadly we didn’t get to see much of the other acts, but Tanante with Iya Sako hugely enjoyed performing for you all. Thanks to everybody present who cheered, clapped, and danced to our music, and a massive thanks to our friends who joined us on stage for the end of our set. (more…)
Drumroots support and Tanante to Perform at Mamady Keita 2013: West African Drum & Dance Weekend, 13th-14 April 2013
Drumroots are proud to announce that we will be supporting the upcoming Mamady Keita Weekend. The full weekend of workshops and performances surrounding the visit from the world’s most popular and celebrated djembe player, Mamady Keita is a huge event in the West African music scene’s calendar in this country, and all those who know and love West African drumming will be excited in making preparations for getting involved in this extra special weekend! (more…)
Drumroots at Bury African outreach 13th October
Drumroots were invited to St Gabriels high school for the Bury African outreach Charity coffee morning. Our job: to bring the space to life with our drumming, lead djembe workshops and to perform with the participants on the main stage. As we arrived we realised that this was no ordinary coffee morning but in fact Bury African outreach’s 20th year anniversary, and a very busy fund raising event with activities such as wheel of fortune, tombola and many stalls selling all manner of things; African food, flowers, cakes, bric-a-brac and sweets, all to raise money with all proceeds going to the Bury African Outreach charity. (more…)
Maitre Samsou and The Beat Artists Performance 27th Oct 2012: African Dance Party (Video)
The Beat Artistes are back! With our African Drumming Master Samsou, we’ve been working hard over the summer in preparation for this event. Our new set raises the bar with heavy African rhythms, polished arrangements and choreographed dance moves. We’re really looking forward to taking this practice public, and what better place to do it than at a happening new African Dance Party event.
Joining us for the event and on the bill will be the outstanding African Drumming troupe, Kontaani. This hard working collective from Macclesfield are incredible to watch and perform with awesome energy and good vibes.
There will also be an early evening dance workshop to kick things off and later on DJ’s playing a range of quality African dance music.
Just to wet your appetite, here’s a video of one of the Beat Artistes, featuring Iya Sako, recent performances at Manchester’s Parklife festival. Watch the video then read on for details of the African Dance party, we’ll see you there! (more…)
Drumroots Perform at We Face Forward Closing Celebrations
As the grand finale of the performance aspect Manchester based African Arts festival ‘We Face Forward’, Drumroots and Tanante members teamed up with some of the region’s top African musicians for a free public concert. The event in association with Band on The Wall, included a collection of performers. This unique set of musicians, through a mixture of bands, colleagues and friends, had never publicly performed together, so what better way to collaborate than by delivering a stage show on a busy September afternoon in the centre of Manchester city centre’s Picadilly Gardens. (more…)
