My aim is to use this platform to share what I know about Middle Eastern percussion, to make it useful and enjoyable for those you might enrol in the courses listed here; get feedback from them, creating a community of drumming enthusiasts.

Laura Lilienthal
(SEN CHILDREN SPECIALIST | ARTIST)


I have been studying with Elizabeth for two years and I would highly recommend her online course. Elizabeth gives clear and thorough instructions which is essential for learning the basics and to build yourself a strong foundation which you can then build on.  

As a teacher Elizabeth is kind, patient and adaptable to your needs.

I highly recommend her courses!

Brita Reinmann
(MUSICIAN| PERCUSSIONIST)


(About my weekly group lessons)

I liked that I could learn both techniques on the frame drum and basic knowledge about Arabic music from scratch.

As a professional musician I enjoyed the simplicity of the course because I could learn what I needed to learn

(on a fairly new instrument for me) in a relaxed atmosphere with no pressure. 

Also, it's a great idea to send a video of a summary from the lesson

Hanna Banks


(About my Online Frame Drum

tutorial in Spanish)



Elizabeth's course gave me an incredibly valuable introduction to Middle Eastern style drumming. With a focus on mastering the fundamentals and many examples of rhythms, variations and songs it is a resource I continue to come back to. I found the final section on the history of the drum particularly engaging. I'd recommend the course to anyone interested in this style!

About Elizabeth



Elizabeth started learning Middle Eastern percussion in 2003 during her BA studies of Ethnomusicology at SOAS University, London. She focused on the music of the Middle East for 3 years, not only learning about its repertoire but also about its history, culture and about the composers and about the influence of other cultures and genres of music.

The main instruments she learnt were Darbuka (or doumbek), Tar/bendir/Duf (frame drum without cymblas) and Riqq (Egyptian tambourin also found in other parts of the Middle East, North Africa and Turkey). Later on, she also learnt the Kurdish Daf (a frame rum with chains/jingles hanging from the inside of the frame). She continued her studies ion percussion with workshops led by Glen Velez, Yshai Afterman, Rowan Storm and Zohar Fresco.

A two year course in Dalcroze Eurythmics with the Dalcroze Society in UK, plus workshop in circular music/body percussion, lead her to explore more about body music, voice exploration and movement.

Elizabeth's workshops and courses always integrate these embodied practices to help the learning of the instrument, of music, of rhythms... How we can connect to music and the instrumet through movement, body percussion, singing games and improvisation.

She features as percussionist in many albums: "Finding Home" by Maya Youssef; "View from Somewhere" by Amira Kheir; "The Divine Abstract" by Charlie Cawood; "Del Canto Gitano" by Ignacio Lusardi Monteverde; "Lanscapes" by Pocket Caravan and "Neva", by Olcay Bayir.

You can go to www.elizabethnott.co.uk to learn more about Elizabeth