A funny tune based on the famous song “Tequila” by The Champs.
The Surdos make together make the melody of the saxophone in the song. It is thus important for the sound of the tune to time them right. The rhythm of Low Surdo is quite off-beat and can be easier to understand when copying the Mid Surdo line using the hand. The High Surdo line is very simple, so it is an option for one person to play Mid & High Surdo together.
The Surdo line has an upbeat, so when entering the groove (and Break 2), the Surdos always start a bit before the 1.
Sign: Shake salt onto your hand
Name: Tequila is an alcoholic drink made from blue agave in the region around the city of Tequila, Mexico. It was first made in the 16th century by Spanish colonisers, inspired by Pulque, a traditional alcoholic drink made from fermented agave.
Musical background: Based on the song “Tequila” by The Champs (YouTube). The Surdos make together make the melody of the saxophone in the song.
Sign: Outside of Mexico, it is common to lick salt and lemon from one’s hand before drinking Tequila. The tune sign represents using a salt shaker.
History: Invented by RoR Berlin in 2017.
- Low Surdo: tricky
- Mid Surdo: medium
- High Surdo: easy
- Repi: hard
- Snare: easy
- Tamb: easy
- Agogô: medium
- Break 1: Only Agogô, then everyone shouting “Tequila!”. Typically played after Break 2 or Call Break, also sounds good after other 3-bar breaks, such as the Progressive Break.
- Break 2: The Surdos make the melody of the saxophone solo in the song. Typically, Break 1 is played afterwards. There is an upbeat of 3 strokes, so the Surdos start playing immediately after the 4th whistle.
- Break 3: Call&Response between Repis and everyone else. The same as the first half of the Agogô line. Typically, Break 1 is played afterwards.