Sencop السنكوب: Drums and Poems

Sencop (السنكوب) is a term used in Arabic drumming to describe an inversion of rhythmic phrasing, when a drummer flips the beat and turns it inside out, as a way to supercharge the emotional resonance of a rhythm.

During these dark times, when all too often words fail me, I turn to poetry for solace. And when I feel overwhelmed or paralysed, drums move me, remind me of my body, and make me feel unstuck. And so I've put together a mix devoted to drums and poetry, with the hope that they might provide a kind of sencop for the deadening rhythms of today.
 
I've strung together personal recordings, downloads of drum freestyles, and drum play-alongs, paired with people reciting their favourite poetry. The drum clips mostly focus on the darbuka, or tabla, an hour-glass shaped time-keeper capable of producing resonant low ‘doom’ tones and sharp high ‘tek’ sounds. It’s one of the oldest instruments in the world, and is still wildly popular, sounding rhythms across SWANA.

There’s a direct relationship between colloquial drum rhythms and the rhythms and cadence of speech. This soundscape is an attempt to explore that connection and the deeper truths these forms may offer.

Tracklist: 
00:00 Elissaneighborfromhell – Learning darbuka rolls
00:38 amiremamdrabouka – Darbuka improvisation
01:14 insights.isak reciting Abu Nuwas
01:30 theshikoz – Street tabla and riq
02:11 hassoun.hassoun05 reciting ‘I am a poet not a singer’ by Talih Hamdan
03:15 Darbuka solo
03:57 User9026945247756 – Darbuka and violin covering ‘Qariat el Fingan’ by Omar Khorshid
05:59 turki_583 – A drum improvisations in Riyadh
06:49 Talal Haidar LTV interview
07:11 Darbuka solo
07:36 Adhmadadhami7 – Playing Saidi rhythm
08:22 Mahmoud Afif – On sencop in Arabic drumming
09:25 Ernestovega_tabla – Kasoor improvisation
10:05 Darbuka solo
10:33 Hannaliterary reciting ‘Vocabulary’ by Safia Elhillo
11:31 Unknown drummer playing along to Fariuz's ‘Nasam Alayna el Hawa’
12:24 Magi Najjar cover ‘Batwanes Beek’ by Warda
13:52 Smilekeeplaughing – Sketch
14:46 Nai barghouti – Improvisation with voice and drum
15:21 Kemalgiderr – Darbuka solo
16:06 Etel Adnan reading an excerpt from The Arab Apocalypse
17:22 Unknown drummer Sabah remix play along
18:17 Unknown drummer play along to ‘Mahragan Yakhty 3al Ghamaza2’ by Abo Leyla
19:13 Itshalaawallaa reciting Majida El Roumi's ‘Lan Aaoud’
19:33 Unknown drummer – Darbuka solo
20:26 xiaoyue.zhang reciting Imru’ al-Qays
20:51 Drums recorded at the Abu Dhabi Hay Festival
22:43 Alsarah5000official reciting ‘I am from here’ by Mahmoud Darwish
23:17 Naota Ouatoko Marimba covers Fairuz’s ‘Kifak Inta’