We’re hugely excited to announce our sixth residential drumming camp up North, with Hans and friends, including special guest teacher, Iya Sako!
This year's HansCamp North will see more recaps, more run-throughs, more rotation around the ensemble roles, and slightly fewer solos - all by popular demand. For more detail on how we have improved HansCamp in response to your feedback, see the HansCamp ReVamp info here.
If you haven’t experienced a workshop with Hans before, you'll be amazed by what you can learn with him. HansCamps are small, welcoming and friendly; you can come on your own and find yourself among friends, or bring your drumming friends to share the fun.
Here’s what we’re offering:
Friday evening session and two full days with Hans and Guest Teachers.
Dormitory accommodation in a modern centre with good facilities.
Fully catered: all meals (vegetarian, with vegan options), snacks, tea, coffee, etc. will be provided, from Friday dinner through to Sunday lunch.
Djembe, dundun and songs for all levels from Improver to Pro, working in a mix of small and whole-group classes.
Accompanying notation booklet and video demo so you can keep practising afterwards.
Above all, you’ll get a deep insight into some fantastic Malian repertoire from a teacher who really knows his stuff and how to communicate it.
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"Exhilarating!"
"Somehow he manages to get it in your head even without you realising. I think it may be witchcraft!"
"He has that thing of being able to make you play better than you really can"
“You just wouldn't believe how cool we all sound now.” -
We're delighted to be joined by special guest teacher Iya Sako, who will be leading two classes on the Saturday - one for improvers/intermediates and one for more advanced players. Iya is a supremely talented djembefola of international renown, probably known to you already for his warmth, energy, and the beauty of his soloing. Iya’s beautiful rhythms and his gentle and thorough teaching style make him a highly valued and popular teacher around the UK and in his native Guinea.
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FRIDAY
Arrivals from 5pm. Buffet dinner available all evening.
7.15pm to 10pm: Evening session with Hans.
SATURDAY
9.30am and 5.30pm: Sessions with Hans and Co, plus our fabulous special guest teacher, Iya Sako.
Evening: Recording session. Open mic and jamming, plus a fire pit outside, if there's good weather and popular demand.
SUNDAY
Classes throughout the day 10am to 5pm.
Help tidy up and departure by 6pm. -
Hans likes to teach one or two pieces in depth at his camps. Over the weekend, there’ll be time to play both djembe and dundun, including solo series, variations and breaks. There’ll also be songs, exercises to develop precision and feel, and plenty of cultural background to the music. This year Hans will also teach a session for teachers and group leaders who might want to work further with the pieces (see HansCamp Revamp details here).
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HansCamp North is NOT suitable for beginners, but everyone else from improver upwards is very welcome. You’ll find Hans is expert at providing fun and challenging material for players of all levels. In some sessions we’ll have the whole group working with Hans on core material together or supporting one another playing through what we’ve learned. But a lot of the time we’ll split the group along different level lines to provide 4 different strands of tuition, from Improvers to Pros. Everyone will get to work on material suitable to their level, including at least one solo series that’s a little easier and one that’s a little harder. If you’d rather get in some extra dundun playing to support one of the solos classes, that’s great too.
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Each HansCamper receives a comprehensive booklet containing all the notation and plenty of other information about the pieces, including history, connections with other repertoire, swing, song lyrics and suggested listening. Hans and his crew of dundun players demonstrate all the material in a separate evening session, for HansCampers to record with whatever gadgets they choose. Video recordings are shared amongst the group.
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Hans is widely considered to be the most skilled, thorough and patient teacher from the UK, renowned for his fiendishly logical brain and superhuman multi-tasking skills. His knowledge of djembe repertoire has been gleaned through numerous trips to West Africa - particularly to Mali. With over 25 years’ experience of performing and teaching West African rhythms, Hans is an outstanding musician who knows how to communicate his in-depth knowledge to students of all levels and learning styles.
Although his classes became known for being rigorous and demanding, they are also exhilarating and highly rewarding. Having listened to HansCampers’ feedback, Hans has adapted his approach to HansCamps, so you’ll enjoy the same levels of insight, but with more time spent on consolidation, for a richer, more satisfying experience. This is a superb opportunity for you to improve your djembe and dundun abilities, and further develop your knowledge and understanding of West African rhythms. -
“Less is more!”
“The reduced syllabus was a success. I was left with a deeper understanding of the smaller amount of material which feels good.”
“A little lighter on the brain and more accomplishable this time.” -
The Hub (http://tcrhub.co.uk/) is a modern centre on the outskirts of Barnard Castle. There is a spacious hall, a dance studio, dining area/atrium and great outdoor spaces including a lake and a fire pit. The event is fully catered by a friendly team providing vegetarian meals (plus vegan options), snacks and drinks from Friday evening to Sunday lunchtime.
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The main accommodation is across several bunk rooms, each with 6 to 8 beds. We ask all HansCampers to declare any dorm arrangement preferences on their booking form. Next to the centre is a level parking area for live-in vehicles. As it will be late autumn we assume no one will be camping (although there is plenty of space to do so...)
OFF-SITE ACCOMMODATION
For those who wish to book their own accommodation there are several options in the town and nearby. Check on AirbnB, TripAdvisor, etc. -
Please car share if possible and indicate on the booking form if you need a lift and from where, or if you can offer lifts, how many spaces and from where.
By Rail…
The nearest station is Darlington (20 miles) on the East Coast mainline. Advance tickets are released 12 weeks ahead of travel date and time from London is 2h 30 mins. The Hub offer us the hire of a minibus. If you might want a lift from Darlington train station on Friday evening or back to the station on Sunday evening please indicate on the booking form so we can calculate the viability and cost. -
We're delighted to be able to make our ticket prices slightly cheaper this year. The earlier you book, the cheaper your tickets… plus you can choose to pay a deposit followed by instalments, if that helps. You're also welcome to pay in one lump sum if you prefer. All payments are non-refundable.
TICKET PRICES
🏠 Staying Offsite / 🪱 Early Bird : £222 (inc. deposit of £45)
🏠 Staying Offsite / 🐿 Slightly Sprightly Squirrel : £232 (inc. deposit of £82)
🏠 Staying Offsite / 🐭 Full Price : £247 (inc. deposit of £130)
🚐 Campervan / 🪱 Early Bird : £242 (inc. deposit of £65)
🚐 Campervan / 🐿 Slightly Sprightly Squirrel : £252 (inc. deposit of £82)
🚐 Campervan / 🐭 Full Price : £267 (inc. deposit of £140)
🛌 Dormitory / 🪱 Early Bird : £252 (inc. deposit of £75)
🛌 Dormitory / 🐿 Slightly Sprightly Squirrel : £262 (inc. deposit of £82)
🛌 Dormitory / 🐭 Full Price : £277 (inc. deposit of £150)
TICKET TYPES
🏠 Staying Offsite tickets include: tuition, all meals.
🚐 Campervan tickets include: tuition, all meals, staying in own live-in vehicle on site.
🛌 Dormitory tickets include: tuition, meals and shared dorm accommodation (bring your own bedding).
🪱 Early Bird ticket prices are valid for bookings made ON or BEFORE 6th August 2025, which are accompanied by the required deposit, with 3 further instalments to follow.
🐿️ Slightly Sprightly Squirrel ticket prices are valid for bookings made ON or BEFORE 6th September 2025, which are accompanied by the required deposit, with two further instalments to follow.
🐭 Full Price tickets: All bookings made AFTER 6th September 2025 are for 🐭 Full Price tickets and must be accompanied by the required deposit, with payment of the remainder of the ticket price to follow.
We have done everything in our power to keep the prices down, and we’re sure you will find them to be excellent value. See full Prices and Payment Schedule, including instalment due dates, here. Our Terms, Conditions and Cancellation Policy are here.
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We know times are hard, so if you really want to drum but feel like you can't afford it, then please contact K☀️ via hanscampnorth@gmail.com to discuss a concession before completing the booking form. We don't want anyone to miss out!
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To book your place, please complete the Booking Form.
Upon receipt of your completed booking form, K☀️ will send you any necessary payment details.
In order to preserve the quality of teaching and learning that you expect from a HansCamp, places are strictly limited and are being allocated on a “first come, first served” basis. -
If you have any questions, please contact K☀️, our HansCamp Hostess, via hanscampnorth@gmail.com and she will get back to you as soon as she can.
Please do remember to add hanscampnorth@gmail.com to your list of safe senders, so our emails don’t end up in your junk folder! Thank you.
We look forward to hearing from you soon!!