A West Lothian Samba band have been creating a party atmosphere every Thursday night for people who are clapping on their doorstep to support key workers.
John Dirkie and wife Marcia, of Beats of Brazil, have been entertaining neighbours with their vibrant Samba music and online DJ sets from their West Calder garden for the past few weeks.
The pair are used to playing in front of large crowds and are a regular fixture at gala days around West Lothian and videos on their Facebook page have attracted over 20,000 views.
They had also been running drumming and dance classes up until the lockdown, which they are pleased to be able to offer online now.
And John and Marcia also stepped in at the weekend to provide a live stream disco for Parkhead Children’s Gala Day, one of many cancelled because of the pandemic.
John said it’s been great to see his neighbours get to know each other better every Thursday night.
He said: “We’ve been out on a Thursday for about the last six weeks, it’s been really well received and we absolutely love it.
“We’ve been DJing as well and it’s been great to see people sitting in their front garden enjoying it. They’ve been giving us requests too.”
John met Marcia while volunteering for a children’s charity in Brazil and they later got married and set up home in West Lothian.
They set up Beats of Brazil and the organisation is now a regular fixture at community events around West Lothian.
Most recently they have been offering online music and dance classes to groups including Musically Active Dudes (MUSAC), which provides music and dance therapy for adults with additional support
needs.
For more visit https://www.facebook.com/beatsobrazil/
