ACD-arts are a World Music and Dance group that specializes in both contemporary and traditional African Music especially from East Africa.
We provide entertainment, performance and educational workshops accompanied with a creative blend of live African and Western instruments.
We specialise in African drumming, dancing, and story-telling workshops. We have worked with several partners in the education field for a long time and have valuable experience in how to provide an extracurricular component that leaves students excited and learning at the same time! Workshops are not box-standard, they are unique! We are happy to create and run with new ideas to suit the needs of the client such as specific song requests, performances before assembly, special music instruments or specific student groups.
Our workshops are delivered with the student in mind, and they explore various topics such as black history, world cultures, ancient music, and arts.
We also provide arts and crafts workshops and educational talks for older year groups. We are flexible and can work around different school needs and requirements whilst maintaining the authenticity of the culture we are exploring. Our artists are from Africa, and many have been top performing artists in their fields, even in their countries. they bring a wealth of experience that allows students to ask deeper questions about the arts they are learning.
Typical Workshop Process:
The students will be taken through a series of warm-up exercises to get them physically and mentally prepared for the dance session.
The children to learn some simple African Dance songs so they can get the feel of the music they are about to dance along to.
The introduction of the clapping then helps them to pick up the rhythm. We can provide pupils with African costumes as props and these help to compliment and accentuate the dance movements.
The workshops get students to learn the history of the dance and rhythms for their future reference during the session.
This gives them an understanding of traditional life and culture in Africa.
There is a positive contribution in the overall health, fitness and lifestyle campaign within the society, so through African dance school workshops this is achieved, hence a benefit.
As professionals with vast experience, the African dance workshops sessions will be beneficial to the children as they are uplifting and act as a motivation to enhance activity and participation. Therefore these definitive and generally high –intensity movements around the waist, shoulders, chest and foot that correspond to the sounds of African drums or music are unusual but are exhilarating especially for storytelling and ceremonies. Furthermore, this team-working of pupils as a group, means they take part in a dance routine incorporating elements of traditional African dance and movement.
