Ritmi 2002

New Fair-Traded Djembes from Ghana Now in Malta

Many of you have asked us about the possibility of buying fair-traded, quality djembes. Over the past few months we found a reliable partner who can provide us with quality, well-priced, fair-traded djembes.

The good news is that the djembes made in Ghana that we ordered some weeks ago have now arrived. They are:

These new djembes cost Lm65. All proceeds are in aid of the established local NGO Third World Group.

These djembes are being imported by the Third World Group's fund-raising project called Ritmi through the fair trade cooperative Koperattiva Kummerċ Ġust that runs the world shop L-Arka at 306, St. Paul's Street, Valletta. (2124 4865)

For more information about fair trade in Malta please visit the website of Koperattiva Kummerċ Ġust at http://www.maltaforum.org

On Saturday, 18 January, 2003, percussionist Renzo Spiteri (picture by Gaby Giacchino) will be leading a new set of ten one-hour drum circle workshops for adults at St. James Cavalier. The participants will be playing the “djembe”, a traditional West African drum. Participants can choose between two groups, one starting at 10.00am and the other at 11.15am. [Full Article]

fair traded instruments	Verżjoni bil-Malti A project inspired by the wealth of music and culture of Africa, the Mediterranean and Latin America. In aid of the Third World Group.
	Circle of Life, by Marika Azzopardi The Sunday Circle, May 9, 2002
	Ritmi - The Concert (March 2002)
	Supported by Maltacom and Sedqa
	New Fair-Traded Djembes from Ghana Now in Malta Many of you have asked us about the possibility of buying fair-traded, quality djembes. Over the past few months we found a reliable partner who can provide us with quality, well-priced, fair-traded djembes. The good news is that the djembes made in Ghana that we ordered some weeks ago have now arrived. They are: rather large (13" x 24", or 32c, x 60cm); they have an extra curve, and their extra long black rope makes tuning very comfortable. The wood ("Funtumia Elastica") is strong and the rings and skin fit smoothly. The producers say that these djembes have a "clear sound"; perhaps it would be fairer to say that they have an excellent sound. These new djembes cost Lm65. All proceeds are in aid of the established local NGO Third World Group. These djembes are being imported by the Third World Group's fund-raising project called Ritmi through the fair trade cooperative Koperattiva Kummerċ Ġust that runs the world shop L-Arka at 306, St. Paul's Street, Valletta. (2124 4865) For more information about fair trade in Malta please visit the website of Koperattiva Kummerċ Ġust at http://www.maltaforum.org Ara wkoll: Djembe-producing communities in Ghana The role of Fair Trade in djembe-production in Ghana Fund-Raising Drum Circle Workshops with Renzo Spiteri On Saturday, 18 January, 2003, percussionist Renzo Spiteri (picture by Gaby Giacchino) will be leading a new set of ten one-hour drum circle workshops for adults at St. James Cavalier. The participants will be playing the “djembe”, a traditional West African drum. Participants can choose between two groups, one starting at 10.00am and the other at 11.15am. [Full Article] Adrian Grima 18 February, 2003
Djembe Teens
"Our feelings and behaviours towards life develop as a result of what happens constantly to us and around us. It is said that our dreams, visions and feelings are what makes us human. Unfortunately in our Western civilised culture, since our childhood, we are continuously trained to hide them." Eric Edmond Van Monckhoven

Rosetta De Battista
"Rhythm is everywhere around me, in the way people move and speak; in the swaying of a baby in his mother’s arms; in the sound of an idle engine; in the clapping of an audience chanting an encore; in the farmer tilling the field on an early morning." Renzo Spiteri
The Protagonists	Moussé Ndiaye in Malta
Renzo Spiteri	Moussé about his Malta Visit	Concert with Renzo Spiteri
Moussé Ndiaye	Rosetta about Moussé	Tickets for the Concert
Rosetta De Battista	Public Workshops for Adults	Workshops in Schools
Sakhir Diop	Applications for Workshops	Moussé Ndiaye, Malta 1999
André Micallef	Rosetta De Battista Interviewed
Jesmond Psaila	The "Ritmi" Project
	The Aims of the Project	The Project in Brief
	Rhythms for Life - Approved!	Renzo's Drum Workshops
	Presentation of Ethnic Instruments	Comments about Workshops
	Marguerite Agius in Verona	The Times - Renzo's Workshops
Partners in the "Ritmi" Project	What is Rhythm to Me (Renzo)	Djembe Production in Ghana
Third World Group	In the Background
Koperattiva Kummerc Gust		Rhythm
Instruments from L-Arka		Griots of West Africa & Beyond
Parliamentary Secretariat in the Ministry of Education		A Venerable Profession
Parliamentary Secretariat in the Ministry of Education		The Griot & African Literature
helpline 151		Renzo's 2000 Rhythms
helpline 151		Renzo's Percussion Extravaganza

Léopold Senghor on "Rhythm": It is the thing that is most perceptible and least material. It is the archetype of the vital element. It is the first condition and the hallmark of Art, as breath is of life: breath, which accelerates or slows, which becomes even or agitated according to the tension in the individual, the degree and the nature of his emotion. This is rhythm in its primordial purity, this is rhythm in the masterpieces of Negro art, especially sculpture. It is composed of a theme - sculptural form – which is set in opposition to a sister theme, as inhalation is to exhalation, and that is repeated. It is not the kind of symmetry that gives rise to monotony; rhythm is alive, it is free.... This is how rhythm affects what is least intellectual in us, tyrannically, to make us penetrate to the spirituality of the object, and that character of abandon which is ours is itself rhythmic. (from Black Skin, White Masks, by Frantz Fanon [1952])
ritmu - aċċent meqjus tat-taħbit u t-taħrik tal-kliem f'versi, tal-battuti f'muzika; tabtib, tektik, bil-kadenzi skond l-aċċenti tal-metrika; temp, ftit jew wisq skond xi ordni, fit-taqsim intern ta' fenomeni diversi; eż. Ir-ritmu tal-ħajja, ta' l-iżvilupp industrijali eċċ. Erin Serracino Inglott
L-Arka, 306, Triq San Pawl, Il-Belt Valletta. Tel. 21 244865 - ritmi@maltaforum.org