Body Grooves
World Music & Dance Instruction/Performance
BodyGrooves, which has its roots in traditional world and classical music, represents a broad range of dance and percussion styles. We provide artistic and cultural awareness-teaching participants traditional and contemporary dance, various forms of rhythm (percussion), drum vocables (syllables) and songs. 
Exacting body alignment, breathing and posture, spatial awareness, stepping and clapping patterns, and precision drumming techniques, are incorporated into our learning sequences. An over-all body kinesthetic work-out is obtained throughout the musical journey of African, Latin and Indian world beats.
Examples of Dance and Music Principles
- Dance Sensibility:
- Participants will explore a broad range of dance technique, within world and classical music - African to ballet. Dancers will learn rhythms felt in 2/4 & 6/8 meter, "odd" and off-beat poly-rhythms.
- Drum Ensemble:
- Students will learn about the bells, shakers, and drums that comprise a traditional Ewe (Ghanaian) music ensemble.
- Off-beat Timing:
- Students will develop awareness and comfort with drum rhythms and songs that do not typically fall on strong beats
- Binary/Ternary Rhythm:
- Participants will experience rhythms and movement felt in a funky "2" feel, and rhythms felt in a polyrhythmic "3" feel.
- Drum Vocables:
- Using the "drum language," students will recite drum, bell & shaker patterns, while simultaneously clapping bell patterns and moving to the beat.
By combining the three aspects of dancing, drumming and singing, students will realize the complete context of traditional African and other "world" musical expression.
Artist
Jerry Leake is co-founder of the world-music ensemble Natraj. He also performs with Club d'Elf, R.A.R.E, Moksha, and the Agbekor Drum and Dance Society. Jerry graduated from the Berklee College of Music where he studied jazz vibraphone with Gary Burton and hand percussion with Pablo Landrum. He studied Ewe music with Godwin Agbeli, and balafon and djembe with the Coulibaly family in Burkina Faso. Jerry has written eight texts on West African, Latin American, North Indian percussion (Rhombus Publishing). He is on the faculty of the New England Conservatory and Tufts University, and teaches in the N.E. area.
Lisa Marie Leake studied high school ballet in Germany, then under Boston Ballet, Gene Murray, California Ballet, San Diego Ballet and Alonso King. Modern styles of Martha Graham, Paul Taylor, Lester Horton, and African training with Ghanaian Master Nani Agbeli and Senegalese Master Fatou N'Diaye. Vocal training and performance includes participation and award recipient at the Berlin Music Festival. Teaching experience in Boston, Los Angeles and San Diego community dance programs, the Cambridge and Boston Public Schools, North Shore Community College, Northern Essex Community College, University of Massachusetts, and national fitness centers.
Teaching/workshops are offered at colleges, in community arts organizations, or local theatres. We individualize "rhythm kinesthetics" for multi-cultural learners, and offer dancing and drumming circles-reaching special populations.
