Skip to content

Latest commit

 

History

History
39 lines (25 loc) · 2.35 KB

custard.md

File metadata and controls

39 lines (25 loc) · 2.35 KB
Raw

This tune is one of the RoR basics. It is (together with ‘Samba Reggae’) the RoR Tune which sounds most like “real” Samba.

A lot of this tune is based on the Tamborim’s voice, which can be memorized by “I’ve got custard in my underpants”. When learning the tune, start off there and make sure it’s burnt into everyone’s brain.

If you are playing Agogô or Tamborim, don’t mix up your voice with the one from afoxe, as they are very similar. Check out the differences and find your way to remember them.

Sign: making an offer to the sky

Background

Name: Custard is the English word for a sweet, creamy, puddingy vanilla sauce (Wikipedia). The name was chosen because of the memory “I’ve got custard in my underpants” for the tamborim stroke.

Musical background: A typical Samba Reggae style tune.

Sign: The sign used to depict a “W” for Welfare State (the former name of the tune), as can be seen in this video by RoR London. It changed into the current sign and can also be interpreted as “holding a bowl of custard”.

History: Part of the first set of tunes taken from Barking Bateria in 2000. Used to be called Welfare State, but was renamed because people don’t like the state.

Controversies

The rhythm clearly sounds like Samba Reggae, which is a tune developed and used by the Black liberation movement in Brazil. Many people in the RoR network consider it cultural appropriation to play this tune in our mainly white European bands, and there is an ongoing debate about abolishing the tune.

Difficulty

  • Surdos: medium
  • Repi: medium
  • Snare: medium
  • Tamb: medium (easy to remember, very tiring)
  • Agogô: medium (easy to mix up with afoxe)

Breaks

  • Break 1&2 are variations of the Tamb stroke in a call&response-way. In Break 1 the Surdos call, in Break 2 the Tambs.
  • Break 3 can be used to have kind of solo parts for instrument sections: Let them continue while the others play Break 3. At the beginning you might need to count the bars in your head to find the transition back to the groove. This is most important for snare players as they have a solo in the last bar.
  • Break 5 is a call&response between Snares and all others, which is really nice as an intro, or to speed up.