Sheila E. In this lecture at the Red Bull Music Academy in Paris, she talks about the rhythm of life on stage, in the studio, and on the road.
Can you give us a little bit of context about your upbringing, and how a bit of Creole church singing would come into this? Born and raised in Oakland, California, and my dad is a percussionist β Pete Escovedo, still plays.
It looked like you were feeling the rhythm, or imagining it β or were you just looking at the drums? They started building the patterns that were happening: it started very simple, and then another percussionist comes in β wait, I hear my snare talking, hold on. Then other patterns started happening.
There was conga, then there was shekere, and then there are bells and then someone was singing. It just started building, and then I started hearing it β and then, I started visualizing it. In order for meβ¦ I learn by watching and listening to people play.
What if I see the class doing the same thing, we could play that rhythm right now? He set up playing congas as a right-handed player. And so anything that his right hand would do, my left hand would do. Then when he got off the congas, I went to play, even though it was set up as right-handed. I was playing left-handed, because I was looking at a mirror. If you played something [to me], I would try to emulate what you played [but it] was going to look different. Listen to them.
