Our Story

Summer of 2004

  • Before this, Miami (2003)
  • SEANet
  • Regular Practices
  • From Buckets to Drums
  • “Cakalak Drum Corps”
  • What were some of our first actions?

From Brasil, to Uruguay, to Sweden, to Greensboro

Will Ridenour introduces us to Brasilian Samba music and teaches us samba-inspired rhythms, forever changing our style of music to be a blend of traditional USA drum corps music with Brasilian Samba Batucada and Reggae Samba music.

We study with Eduardo. We study the history of Samba.

We address power dynamics and make a commitment to holding up our members who identified as women, people of color, and queer.

Our Gear

We start with buckets. We dumpster dive drums. We build drums.

Would be cool to have some sort of instructions to share for others to build drums.

Group Tensions

  • Open enrollment vs closed
  • Tense history between founding member and aspiring member
  • Racial tensions
  • Queers feeling alienated
  • Quality of music

Points of Unity

We write them.

Cakalak found around the web

Triad’s own radical street band, Cakalak Thunder, puts down the drums after 15 years

https://www.greensboro.com/blogs/jeri_rowes_gso/jeri-rowe-party-with-a-purpose/article_50fec394-ca71-11e3-b3f1-0017a43b2370.html

https://www.greensboro.com/life/go_triad/cakalak-thunder/article_7f998331-30dc-5bc0-b438-fef8cd9d536b.html

https://www.greensboro.com/news/jeri-rowe-group-offers-drumbeat-against–isms-and-injustice/article_e48d452c-ca99-11e3-a88e-0017a43b2370.html

Beating to their own rhythm at the SOA

http://fsu.digital.flvc.org/islandora/object/fsu%3A181243

http://www.alasbarricadas.org/noticias/node/3671

http://diginole.lib.fsu.edu/islandora/object/fsu%3A181243