Drum Circle World

Tips On Sitting In With Bands & Travel Or Vacations With A Djembe

2012-01-01T23:56:00.000-08:00

As a musician, performer, or drum circle facilitator, I am being judged and critiqued all the time. Something many musicians are very sensitive about. People don’t like to be criticized especially when it comes to the way they are playing music. Your soul is wide open and out there for everyone to see. And you are at your most vulnerable.

As a musician, or a facilitator, I think you need to be as well rounded as you possibly can. If you want to work a lot, or even get work, you should be able to play any genre of music at all, any style of music, at any tempo, and, ideally, be able to figure out and play anything within a few measures of music. That’s the goal I think you should try and grow towards. This makes you a better all around musician, and facilitator.

One way to get better at this is to sit in, or play by ear, with different bands every chance you can get. If it’s a casual setting, and you ask politely, they will likely allow you to sit in for a number or three. Or go to a few “open mic’s” and sit in with whomever you can. Even if it’s just one guy on an acoustic guitar. Are you going to get it every time right away? No. But that’s how you grow faster. A true musician can play anything at all in the drop of a hat. Many times, when I sit in with a band, I have absolutely no idea what they are about to play. Because most of time, they don’t tell you. So if you start out softly with a simple all around basic pattern, that you can adjust it to within 10 or 15 seconds, then you can adjust it, build it from there. With most local bands, the songs, or jams, they are usually playing cover songs, so I have a general idea what’s going on musically even if they have their own version of it. I either start out with a 4/4 downbeat bass pulse, or I use a sort of Latin default beat that sounds sort of like, badum ba Slap, (pause) badum ba Slap, (and repeat).

That works in just about any song they throw at me, unless it is a swing, or blues tune, that’s in 6/8. Come up with a default start of your own for 6/8 and 4/4, and you can launch into it, and adjust to anything right away. Generally speaking, percussion follows, and the drummer leads, so it is a bit easier sitting in with a group. Almost every song or jam is in 4/4 time, or 6/8.

The important thing is not to throw them off by trying off beat things, solos, fancy things, or showboating. It will throw off the drummer, and then it’s a thank you please leave the stage nod after one song. I find that if I just stay on the rhythm and hold it steady, that’s when the band will love having you sit in. Possibly even the rest of the gig. If you keep it solid on the downbeat, and steady - then they will just start another song, and you find yourself playing an entire set of music with them Because my role in that setting is to enhance or reinforce their rhythm, thereby helping to make the band sound better. The band has been playing together for a long time, and they can feel the reinforcement, if you give it to them.

I don’t have hands of fire, nor am I an amazing percussionist. But I can hold a beat solid, and hear, feel, and see the musical cues that a change is coming, or that the song is about to end in 8 to 12 measures. It takes some practice to catch the cues, and feel the end of the song coming, but just doing that has gotten me a few guest gigs, and I was even asked to join up with a few bands, which I did. So you don’t have to be an amazing musician to get work. You just have to be steady, solid, and aware, to notice the band cues. Other than keeping solid time, the most important thing is to not play a beat past the end of the song. That obviously makes them look bad. (and me too!) So, 3 to 4 minutes into a song, I am completely focused, looking for an upcoming cue that the song is about to end. Then I am ready for it when it happens. Most of the time, jams are a lot of improvisation, so the band leader will just turn around and give a glance to the rest of the band. That is the cue that it is near the end, so I am waiting, and ready for it. Boom! Right at the end.

A few times I thought it was the end a bit prematurely, (premature undulation). So I never make my ending notes too enhanced, or loud. If it happens where I thought it was the ending and it is not, I can sneak a bass pulse back in right away and continue on like nothing went wrong. Often times, it is only me that noticed I messed up. So I quickly get back on tempo and be ready again.

Often during a set of music, they will play a song that I just can’t get solidly. It happens, too many time changes, or simply I can’t get the groove on that one. So I fake it as best as I can until the next song comes mercifully along. If I can get 7 out of 8 songs, the band is going to be happy with me sitting in. The point is, not to let it throw you off your stride. An example for me is the Allman brothers. I love their music, but some of it has so many changes in it, that it gives me trouble. Most bands tend to play their songs a bit differently, and for some reason some of them give me fits.

Most bands will not take advantage of you, but if you have sat in with them a few times, and they start asking you to show up at gigs with them, then maybe it’s time to ask for a little bit of pay.

When I see a band performing that I want to approach to sit in with, the first thing I do is watch and study them for a set, maybe half hour or so, then I can better familiarize myself with their sound and their style. Sometimes, it’s even for the next time I see them in a more casual relaxed setting, where sitting in isn’t such a big deal for the band. It depends on how high profile the venue is. I try to visualize in my mind what I would be playing on their songs. That seems to help me a lot.

When I do ask to sit in, I always make it a point to try and put them at ease. I say, “I’m a percussionist and have my djembe with me. Would it be okay if I sit in for a song? I promise nothing fancy. I’ll keep it steady, and just follow the beat.” When they hear something honest like that, it increases your chances. Most bands have had someone sit in at some point, and it was a disaster. It happens. So I try to give them confidence in me right away, that I’m not going to get up there and try to be a show off. I just want to fit in.

Sitting in with various bands over the years, really did help me a lot. Probably even more than my musical training did. It taught me to be able to play just about anything by ear. I learned to play things by feel, and how different musicians and bands communicate with non verbal musical cues. The more I sat in with, the better I got at playing anything they threw at me. During the middle of a song or jam, I can settle in a bit and not have to be too concerned about the ending coming up and catching me by surprise. It takes a little extra concentration and focus when a band does original music, because I have no idea whatsoever of the changes, or where the ending might come up. The whole thing is rather exciting.

When I first started doing it, honestly, I was terrified. I was worried I would mess up the band, not know what to play and when – all sorts of things would go through my head. I never liked to make eye contact with the crowd watching. If I did, I would be distracted thinking stupid things like are they are watching me to see when I screw up? Just learning to fit in and constantly watching all the band members out of the side of my eye, took some practice. I can’t just stand there and stare at my drum because I don’t want to see who is watching me. I have to focus on the band, so I can fit in with the band. That’s what I’m there for in the first place. If I am confident, having a good time, the band is having a good time, then the crowd is also. And they can tell how you are feeling.

I learned early on as an actor doing theatre, to look out just above the crowd, and not make eye contact. However, it looks to them like I am. And that seems to work for me. I also learned that being nervous or even scared, is just a hairs length away from being excited. All I had to do was say to myself, “I am excited to be doing this!” After all, everyone else is out there sitting and watching wishing they were up here playing and doing what I’m doing right now. So if you feel the nerves coming on, just tilt that fear a tad to excitement. The two emotions are so close to each other it’s surprising. Just remember, I am excited to be doing this. If you feel uncomfortable and the nerves are getting to you, the audience can sense that also, so this is really important.

I worked on The Tonight Show as a guest a number of times. I had been performing and acting for years, but standing there for the first time behind that wall about to go out on stage shook me to the core. After all this is live TV in front of a live audience. If I screw up out there, over 20 million people are going to see it, let alone never work on the show again. There are no second takes on live TV. I recalled the fear being so close to excitement. So I shook it off, and said to myself, “Hey I’m about to go out on live TV! How many people get to do this? Screw this, I’m excited!” I went out and did my best, and everything was fine. The skit was hilarious, and I was asked to come back and work for them over and over again. Confidence, focus, and excitement wins the day.

So if you have thought about sitting in with a band, I encourage you to give it a try. Just keep it basic, steady, and simple. They will love you for it, and the rush of having a band enjoy your work feels mighty good.

Drumming In Your Travels, And On Vacations

We make it a point to do a 7 day get away once a year. Usually it’s during the Thanksgiving Holiday. That seems to be when work is the slowest, and the prices are the lowest. As a performer, actor, and musician, my work life is pretty much day to day. I never know when the phone is going to ring with a gig or an audition, so I need to be available year round all the time. Or, they will start calling somebody else.

Even if it’s an extreme low budget camping trip, I have to give myself and my brain a complete rest from everything. It’s not a laptop, I can’t defrag my mind, or clean its registry errors. The phone calls, emails, social media, the news, everything. If we could, I would do it 4 times a year, but we make do with once. I turn off all the electronics that bind, and leave them off for one week. Years ago, I would say, “Well I have to check my answering machine or email! What if I’m missing a job?” Well, I’m away anyway, so what’s the point? So I would disrupt my relaxed state, and check it on the 3rd or 4th day. Doing that really didn’t help things very much, but it did take me completely out of the relax and enjoy mode, and then back into work mode. That’s the reason I needed a get away! So all my electronics are off, and they stay that way for one week. That’s not such a sacrifice really is it? The world can wait a week.

I need a mental break from everything. If somebody does contact me while we’re gone, I can always write them a note explaining why I couldn’t instantly get back to them, like we are expected to do these days. I contact my agents and so forth before we leave, and let them know I will be unavailable for a week. Most of them vacay at the same time anyway.

So, if I play music for a living, why would I want to do that when I’m away on holiday? Simple, I put my heart into music. It’s what I love to do, even in my spare time. The advantage of sitting in with bands is that even though I need to focus and concentrate, I can loosen up and have more fun because this is not an actual gig for me. I have no idea what is going to happen, and how things are going to go. I trust in myself, and let things unfold. I like to challenge myself musically and try new things out. Take a chance, even a risk or two. That’s why I still love sitting in, and improvising.

Over the years, I’ve seen lots of guitar players and other musicians bring along their instruments when traveling. Many of them have said to me, “I never travel anywhere without my axe!” For us, hauling along a drum can be a bit cumbersome, but the times I’ve done it, I was very happy I went to the trouble and did so.

Hey, you never know when you might stumble into some sort of a drumming emergency! Maybe it’s a band you can sit in with, a group of street musicians jamming, a drum circle, or event. When it happens and I don’t have a drum, I smack my forehead and have one of those “doh” moments. If only I had brought my dog-gone drum, I could have a little impromptu fun. It’s also a great way to meet people, mix with the locals, and even share in some culture. So now, I always travel with a doumbek, or my travel djembe. I don’t like to bring my best djembe drum in case of it getting damaged, or something else that might happen to it. My aluminum doumbek is light enough to carry over my shoulder in a gym bag, or if I can, I like to bring a lightweight fiberglass shell Toca djembe. It’s not too expensive of a drum, and it’s my “harsh conditions” beater drum. It’s pretty good sized, it has a 14 inch goatskin head on it, so it packs a good punch, and has reasonably authentic sound. It’s lug tuned, so even in high humidity, I can quickly tune it as needed.

The head that came on it new was rather thin, and it popped after a few months of playing. I had it re-headed with a very good quality skin. And now, it sounds about as good as a fiberglass / goatskin head drum can, and it’s pretty easy to transport in my djembe bag. I either just sling it over my shoulder, or I use a small rolling luggage rack, so I can easily roll it along with my other luggage. To protect it, I cut out a piece of thin paneling, (about ¼ thick), just big enough to cover the edges of the drum head, and place it under the drum, with the head facing down. On the drum, I have a djembe cover, (which I recommend for anyone).

And under that, I have a round piece of thick cardboard I place under the drum cover just in case I bump it against something. It gives it a little extra protection. An easy way to do it, is to find a good piece of thick cardboard, lay the drum down on it, and draw a circle around it with a magic marker. Remove the drum, and cut out the circle. I like to do two of them, and tape them together with that blue painters tape. Then it’s nice and thick. So the cardboard protector goes under the djembe hat, then the drum inside the case, then lay it upside down on the ¼ wood board on the luggage rack. A few bungee cords to keep it from falling off, and It makes it easy to move around, and I’m good to roll.

Admittedly, I don’t get to travel very much these days, let alone take a vacation, with the economy the way it has been the last few years. We wanted to take a 7 day Caribbean cruise really badly for our birthdays, and wedding anniversary combined this year. So, like a lot of people, we really tightened our belts all year long to save up for it. We stopped and thought a little harder before buying anything, stopped going out to dinner once a month, (like we used to do), and everything else we could cut back on, so we could save up. Generally speaking, it seems the most inexpensive time for cruises is right around the Thanksgiving holiday. We managed to find a last minute schmeal deal for $500 each. If you figure what a regular get-away would cost, the travel cost, dinners out, and entertainment, it actually is a very nice yet economical vacation with no driving, or responsibility. Another form of vacation can cost $100 a day easily, so cruises are a very good value for the money. The only thing you need to watch with these cruise ship prices, is sometimes they don’t mention the port charges, and taxes. That can hike the cost significantly, sometimes as much as $150 each or more. Be sure you have the total cost.

We always book the least expensive cabin, sometimes you get a room upgrade free, and how much time do you really spend in the cabin? We sleep there, and that’s about it. So the window or balcony thing is out for us, it jacks the price way too high. At first, I thought I would feel claustrophobic, but it’s not that big a deal. We sleep there, and are out having fun and doing things the rest of the time. These days the cruise lines just seem to want to fill the rooms, and then they figure they can make up the profits with the passengers gambling in the casino, buying drinks, and port tours. We don’t drink other than a glass of wine now and then. And we don’t gamble, so they probably don’t like us very much but, on the average, most passengers do. We do however like to take a tour or two in the ports, wander the towns, buy a few goodies and gifts, and so on.

Even on the lower end cruise lines, the dining is above average, and the entertainment in the show lounges is pretty good. You can spend the whole day eating if you want, and most of it is included. We just like being out on the ocean, and wandering in the ports. Seeing a show after a nice dinner together for 7 nights, is something fun to look forward to.

Anyway, I always bring my drum, and this past year was no exception. I was so happy I did, because as soon as we boarded, I noticed that the deck band was a smoking hot reggae hip hop group. I studied them a bit, and the next day at sea, they let me sit in once after I asked. It went so well, they let me finish the set, and afterwards said I could sit in with them when I felt like it. That was cool. (I attached a few photos.) Usually if you find the band leader, and ask nicely they will let you play a tune or two. Like I mentioned earlier, if I just keep it simple, and ride the downbeat of the rhythm, they like having a little percussion added to their sound. If I do well enough, and show that I’m an ensemble player, and not there to showboat or something like that, I might get an open invitation to sit in. This particular band had a very good front man, and he gave good musical cues for time changes, coming to the end of a song, and so on. So, it was pretty easy to stay on the rhythm, and not to mess up and play on after a song ended. After all, I don’t want to make them look bad, or myself either. I think I sat in with them during five days for a number of sets, and had a blast doing it.

There is also a main show band orchestra usually. Forget sitting in on their shows, but on most cruise lines, for two nights during the week, they have a jazz jam in one of the smaller lounges. It’s a more casual setting, and they are usually more open to it. That is some serious fun if you can get it. The first song is the critical one. If you do well, they might let you stay up there for a few sets. It’s almost a form of an audition. I treat every sit in situation like it’s an audition. Hey, you never know, it just might actually be one.

So I was having a ball playing with the bands on board pretty much every day, except when we were in the ports of call. The 1st one was Roatan in the Honduras. We had a tour scheduled, but I had an hour before it departed. At the dock was a group of 3 local drummers, and a few dancers. They were jamming and dancing away for the tourists. They had a tip bucket out in front of them, and obviously they were trying to earn a few bucks every time a ship came into port.

I love sitting in with the local drummers whenever I can. I get to know them a little bit, even though we don’t even speak the same language. We communicate through music. What a fun, honest way to get to know people this is. I always try to respect what they are doing, respect their culture, and their musical rhythms. After all, I am the visitor there. I watched them for 15 minutes, and noticed pretty much every rhythm they played was in 6/8 time, ie: like the Mother Rhythm. This was one tight group of drummers. One of them was an amazing soloist, he was just blazing good. The other two just held down the support rhythm, and the dancers did their thing, working the crowd.

At a break, I mentioned I was a drummer, (using hand drumming gestures, and pointed towards a drum). I then gestured could I play a little bit with them. They agreed and one of them handed me his drum. It is a rather unusual hand made drum. The drum rim is made from a piece of curved bamboo. Playing it took some getting used to, but it was a goatskin drum, and I was going to jam on it. (See photos)

Okay, cool. In this situation, I wanted to demonstrate that I respect their native drum rhythms, so I waited for them to start playing, and then join in. Again just like with sitting in with bands, I play the 6/8 support rhythm they are playing and hold it down. After a 10 minute or so jam, they all turned to me and smiled. That’s about the nicest feeling in the world. They gestured for me to start up a rhythm, so I did. I chose Fanga, figuring they may not have heard it before. It’s in 4/4 time, so it was a little different for them. They jumped on it, and we had one sweet sounding jam going. The soloist started doing his thing, and I have to tell you it was about as much fun drumming as one could ask for. Ten minutes on, and the tips were flying in for them. I was feeling good I could help them along a little bit, and share their culture with them. I got up to leave, and they all gestured for me to stay and play one more. Alright then, I gestured for them to please start one this time, and I would join in. We went on to our tour of a rescued animal island, did some swimming, and ate some lunch. What a good time that was.

The other port I found a group of drummers jamming was Belize. They were playing the same design of drum I saw in Roatan. It had the same 1” bamboo rim, wood shell, and double sided goatskin heads. It looks kind of like a home made djun dun. There were 3 of them jamming out some 6/8 grooving beats. There were no dancers, but these guys were even better drummers than the last port. Unfortunately for them, they were a short distance from the dock, in a craft market, and not next to the passengers leaving the ship. So they weren’t getting much traffic, or tips for that matter. In fact there was no tourists around them. Most were out on tours, or didn’t want to venture outside the pier area with the locals. But that’s what my wife and I want, is to see, and support the local artisans, and buy crafts from them. We bought a few gifts, and I made a B line to the drummers drumming. This group spoke a little broken English, so I was able to communicate a little easier. I asked if I could sit in, and they agreed. They were a very friendly group, and they were playing just for the sake of making music. Playing for their own enjoyment, because nobody else was around. But again, we did most of our talking through the music. Other than saying hello, and asking to play, the rest was though the rhythms. We took turns starting out rhythms and shared culture with each other. I felt so blessed. I had the best time, and I got to meet, and get to know a few of the locals like nobody else did. We bought a few craft items from them, and said goodbye. It was back on board for a day at sea. Not so bad, I love the days at sea the best, and the deck band awaits.

On one of the days at sea, they have an ice carving demonstration up on deck. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen this done, but they are true artisans. How anyone can chop these beautiful figures from a huge block of ice is beyond me. I’ve seen it done before a few times, as my wife and I like to take a cruise on the years we can afford it. The ice carver takes around 15 minutes to complete his sculpture, and I recalled that they chop with these various sized chisels at a very fast speed. But like most things in life, they are done to a rhythm. I asked the Staff member hosting the event if I could play djembe drum rhythms to the ice carving instead of the canned music they usually play for it. I explained that I would play to his rhythms, and keep the volume low if she needed to speak, I would play at his pace, and it would be an interesting blend of culture for the passengers to watch. Somehow I convinced them, and away he went, chopping like mad. But it had a nice steady rhythm to it. Within 5 seconds I was matching it with drum rhythms. He smiled once I was into it, and gave me an approving smile. I nodded thank you, and we did an ice chopping djembe rhythms duet. It was just him, and I. All the drumming was in 4/4 time, and I changed the rhythm slightly every 12 measures, so it wasn’t to repetitive. The tiny bits of ice chips were flying around in the air, and they were in unison with the drumming. This was one cool event. I always wanted to drum to the ice carving rhythm. (See the photo, you can see the tiny ice chips flying bottom left.) So sit it whenever, and wherever you can. It’s fun.

Keep on drumming!
Shannon
drumcircles.net

Holiday Drum Circles & Drumming Up Some Fun

2011-12-07T13:16:00.000-08:00

The holiday season is here, and I just wanted to pass along some possible drumming and/or drum circle ideas. My wife and I like to celebrate Christmas. However, we respect the beliefs of others. One of the beauties of group drumming, and drum circle gatherings is that it brings people from all paths together.

Having said that, often the drumming events this time of year are for a Christmas party, Chanukah, another holiday spiritual gathering, or even for New Year’s Eve.

For most gatherings or parties, other than the obvious suggestion to play “Little Drummer Boy”, and other various carols and poems, another option is drumming to some spoken word, like a story or a Bible reading for a Christmas gathering. Drumming to it can be inspiring, and a very moving experience. The only thing is to watch the volume as not to drown the speaker out.

But for the most part, what seems to have worked the best for me over the years is to just focus mostly on the basics...making music. Just help people to get rhythms started, step back & support the back beat of the rhythm. I find that if we just keep it simple - let people play the drums, and make some “in the moment” spontaneous music. Have fun & maybe add a little Santa flair into it. But add in a hint of Christmas spirit here and there. Generally speaking, I keep the rhythms pretty basic, and soft, like the heartbeat, mother rhythm, etc. Many people who do not celebrate Christmas as a religious holiday still enjoy the holiday atmosphere.

If there are some stories, spoken word, or even a Pastor speaking (with permission of course), add some crescendos when it gets exciting and vice versa. Just let the drumming follow the pace and volume of the speaking like in a Gospel church.

As for the atmosphere, perhaps add some holiday decorations around the perimeter. Jingle bells are pretty easy to find this time of year, and are always a good percussion item to have in your gig bag. After Christmas, they are very inexpensive. I got a huge jingle bell wreath last year for a couple bucks. I disassembled it, and made a bunch of cool instruments from it for later on.

One thing I always like to do is wear a Santa hat. They are inexpensive if you shop around, and maybe get enough to give out to everyone. Maybe have a few prizes to give out for people who get in the center and express themselves with dance or movement.

Or, gifts - prizes for the best costumes. Christmas decorations on a few drums is pretty easy, and looks festive. Prizes for the best decorated drums has always worked in the past. People always come up with fun ways of expressing themselves decorating their drums.

For some other great Christmas drumming ideas, last year, Kat Fulton (rhythmforgood.com) put together a fantastic resource of ideas, and suggestions in a recent blog post:

http://www.rhythmforgood.com/2010/12/4rhythma-tastic-holiday-goodies-for-facilitating/

Hope some of this helps to put the groove in your celebration.

Shannon

drumcircles.net

Finding a “Good” Doumbek Drum…(On a Budget!)

2011-09-19T22:00:00.000-07:00

Most of us have a djembe, but another fun, and very versatile drum to consider getting is a doumbek. The goblet shaped doumbek is a beautiful sounding drum, with lots of range, and delicate sound nuances to it. Even after playing one for over 20 years, I am still discovering new sounds in mine.

For those of you that might be new to this kind of drum, the body is usually made of ceramic pottery, machined aluminum, or copper. Some are even made of wood Aside from the sound, I like the portability of them. They are smaller than most djembes, pack a good punch for their size, and can easily fit in a gym bag.

Most of the drum heads are synthetic, so it can withstand all kinds of extreme weather conditions, and they are very durable. Even here in Florida’s heat and humidity, I can just leave my doumbek in the trunk of my car with no worries. You never know when you might run into a drum circle emergency! I hate it when I stumble onto a circle, and don’t have a drum with me to play. It’s even handy if a text goes out for flash drummers. It’s possible, right?

In my opinion, one of the best models that gives the most bang for the buck is the Alexandria doumbek. They are pretty easy to spot, they usually have it clearly marked in blue under the clear drum head. And they are usually rather plain looking – just a rough looking textured heavy cast aluminum. Most of them are a solid anodized color, or just unfinished aluminum. (Notice the bronze colored one in the photo.)

There are many fancier models out there that have beautiful etchings, designs, and so on. It costs a lot more for those, and practically speaking, you can’t see it when you are actually playing the drum. But they are so tempting because of their sheer beauty, and the artwork on them. They do look mighty good just sitting around on display in your home. Sound, quality, and performance are what really matters to me, so I tend to lean in that direction. If you look around, you can probably find a very good Alexandria doumbek for just over $80 brand new. Most new ones come with a carrying case, tuning wrench, and a spare drum head.

As far as tuning a doumbek is concerned, it’s really no big. Most of them have 8 lugs like a regular kit drum has. So they are very easy to tune, a couple turns with an allen wrench, and that’s it. When you are done, you just lightly tap your finger about an inch from each lug, and make sure they all have the same sound, (or are tuned to the same pitch). Once you tune the drum head to where you like it, you can pretty much just forget it, play on it, indoors or outside, and never need to tune it again.

Generally speaking, even with doumbeks, I like to play a drum first before I buy it. I want to hear it, feel it, and see if it talks to me before I buy it. The exception is buying one online, because you pretty much know what it’s going to sound like, but for a few important differences. The quality of the drum shell thickness, and construction. The older ones were made much more solidly. So, the older, the better. As the saying goes…”They don’t make them like they used to.” That applies to a lot of things these days doesn’t it?

For my “kit” of facilitating drum circle drums, I like to use the polymer/PVC/synthetic body drums, such as the Remo or Toca djembes, or the like, and lots of aluminum doumbeks with the groups I teach and work with for many reasons. If you plan to acquire a kit of drums and facilitate a group drum circle on a regular basis, you need good sounding, durable, and lightweight drums that are easy for non drummers to be able to play right away. They also need to stay in tune in our constantly changing climates. Aluminum drums, with synthetic drum heads are also easier to clean, and disinfect after use, with anti-bacterial wipes. An important consideration for at risk groups, children, elders, and special needs groups.

The weight issue is another big factor when hauling them around, so I don’t knock myself out before I start the drum circle. Most wooden body drums are heavy, especially if you have 45 of them to move. Add to that, the extra fuel usage during transporting them.

A pretty good way to get a first drum if you are a little short on cash, is buying a used drum that someone got tired of and/or traded in for something else. I’m a firm believer in buying used drums and giving them another musical life. Especially if you ever run across something that’s vintage. I like to support local business whenever possible, or at least in the state I live in.

If you ask them, most music stores will keep your name on file and give you a call when something that might be of interest to you comes in to be sold on consignment. Another alternative to check out is the pawn shops periodically, but you don't get the same kind of knowledge, service, and usually the person is anxious to talk you into buying a drum and a power chair. If you have any Arabic stores in your area, many of them have a few excellent quality Alexandria doumbeks. I’ve even bought a few nice ones in some Arabic convenience stores. Keep an eye out for those in your travels hidden high up on the shelves. I was shocked to find some imported beautifully constructed, great sounding doumbeks worth well over $150 for only 60 bucks each! And they were happy to sell them, and share some of their culture.

If you visit drum circles in your area regularly, you will probably run into a few people who might want to sell their drum for about half price of retail. I see that happen a lot. I’ve also gotten a few nice drums at local newsgroup online sites, like Craig’s List, for example.

If you look at the online auction sites like Ebay, and put in the keywords doumbek drum, you get 1000’s of results. Try going to the advanced search area, where there is a box to put in key words to be “excluded” from your search results. Put in words such as “new” or “free”, and your price range, etc, to exclude most of the dealers, and that narrows the results to mostly just individual people selling one nice doumbek. Sometimes you can find a real bargain, and get a really nice drum that way. Many drums just get lost in all the myriad of search results

Many consider the doumbek to be a bellydancing drum, and call it a doumbek. So if you search, try the different spellings of the drum when looking for one. Depending on the region or culture it can be called a Doumbek, Dumbek, or Dumbec, depending on who you talk to and where they are from. They might use a Dohbeck on The Simpsons. I just use the term Doumbek. I think it is the most common spelling of it over here. They come in a few different sizes. Try to get one with the drum head that is 8 – 10 inches across. Playable size, in other words, the actual size of the head, not the drum size from edge to edge. For me, the best head size is 8 inches or 8.5 inches.

Unfortunately with the ceramic ones, they tend to break pretty easily. Once it falls, and tips over, it’s over. I was at one drum circle where somebody was walking by, they accidentally bumped it, it fell, and shattered into dozens of pieces. Luckily, the portion near the drum head didn’t break, and later a buddy of mine gorilla glued it back together. It still played okay, but I was pretty heartbroken. But oh, those ceramic drums sound so clean and crisp, and some do have beautiful artwork on them.

I go with the aluminum, stainless steel, or copper tunable lug doumbeks mostly. Since they are metal, they also have a beautiful sort of metallic sound to them when you play them. I’ve gotten to where I love that sound, they are loads of fun, comfortable to jam on, and as I mentioned, much easier to just toss in a gym bag and carry it along with you. It’s the perfect “commuter” drum. And it’s easily cleanable, since it is all constructed of synthetic, and aluminum materials.

I used to play a doumbek during the early 1980’s with the break dancers on the streets of New York City. It was easy to transport, and got out pretty good for a smaller drum. Everyone seemed to be fascinated with this strange looking, and unique sounding silver metal drum. Since they are aluminum they usually weigh under 8 pounds. So, it’s very handy to take with you on vacation, or for letting other people to play it at drum circles.

The real good ones to look for are made of thicker cast aluminum - like 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. They are the professional sounding ones, that have the nice full resonant Doums (bass notes) and Teks (tones) I like the range of the 8 or 10 inch playable size drum head. A lot of them out there are 6 inch, and that’s a bit small. There is much more beautiful range of sound, and longer resonation in these drums if they are made of the thicker cast spun aluminum, or copper, and have a larger drum head.

One of the most beautiful and sought after goblet style drums is the GAWHARET EL FAN mosaic cast aluminum doumbek. (It deserves to be in caps.) These have superior sound, and intricate tile work that is unbelievably beautiful. Try a search and look at one, if you have never seen one before. The only problem with them is, they are around $300 or more, and heavy as heck because of all the inlaid tile work and mortar around them. I do see them at online auctions for around $200, but it’s hard to know if they are authentic. There are lots of knock-off copies and fakes of these drums out there, so finding a reputable dealer that has the genuine item is hard to do.

Some cheaper doumbeks are almost as thin as tin cans, and will dent very easily. I stay away from those. I have one that I was holding and I lightly bumped it against a kitchen counter, and it left a big dent in it. (See the photo of the drum with the dent.) I barely even bumped the thing! And, I also don’t want anything without lugs that isn’t tunable. Some of them have the drum heads that are just glued on. You can’t even tune those babies. Some have fish, or goat skin heads. Most doumbeks are usually 18 inches tall with 8 inch playable size clear synthetic drum heads. A related style of drum is an aluminum tunable Darbuka. Some even have tambourines mounted inside them underneath the drum head. Those with “jingles” in them are lots of fun, it adds another dimension of sound to your playing. Get a Darbuka with jingles. Two cool sounds for the price of one.

The best way to start looking for the best drum for you, is to first find out what kinds and sizes you like, either at a music store, or simply by trying somebody else’s drum out at a drum circle, and then buying it brand new at major music store, or an online retailer. Buying a drum is an important decision, and you want to get the one that’s best for you and your body. Most musicians are very supportive, and will let you play their drum if you treat it with respect. Remember that they are expensive, and to ask permission first before you touch anyone else’s drum at public drum circles.

With most drum retailers now, the drum market is so very competitive that all you have to do is locate the best online price, and most of them will match or beat it, to get your business and probably will ship it free, to boot. As a general rule of thumb, most of the bigger music stores and online music stores will negotiate on the list prices with you. They just don’t advertise that. I can often negotiate at least 10 - 15% off the list price. Even more if I offer to by a couple of drums.

Goblet drums go back 100’s of years and have a rich history in various cultures. Goblet drums are one of the broadest classes of drums. They’re played heavily across Asia, North Africa, The Middle East and Eastern Europe. They have many similar names, and similarities in use. Most of these names are derived from two names, the Pahlavi (The Middle Persian language used by Persians during the Sasanid period). Also the dombalak, and the Arabic name darbouka.

As near as I can tell, the doumbek originated in the Middle East. It's traditionally played by holding the drum in your lap under your left arm and striking it with the fingers of both hands. The heavy down beats in Middle Eastern, and bellydancing rhythms are usually played on the right (dominant) hand and the other hand is used for fill beats and other accents. If you've heard bellydancing music, you've heard a doumbek. Being smaller and lighter than the Djembe, this is the style of drum I travel around with the most.

I suspect that the modern classical Arabic style of playing the doumbek, (the under the arm, one hand dominant), is a direct descendant of frame drum technique. Classical frame drum technique relies heavily on the dominant hand. The second hand usually holds it, and adds a couple of fingers to add fill, snaps, pops, or muffle the back by pressing against it.

But at drum circles, I see a lot people playing a doumbek like a djembe, between their legs. If that’s more comfortable for you, try it. It is a comfortable drum to play, sort of ergonomically designed for the comfort of the hands with it‘s curved bearing edge. It’s your drum, and the beauty of drumming, is that you can play it however you want to. You might invent a new way to play it that’s better for you. You might create new sounds nobody else has before.

They even sell these “Commuter Doumbeks” now. It has a heavier padded carrying case, a long carrying strap for over the shoulder, and a zippered sleeve on top, of the other top to hold a spare head and tuning wrench. So now I’ve got a laptop on one shoulder, and a doumbek on the other. Many have simply beautiful carvings, inlaid mother of pearl tile work, or magnificent etchings on them. Some of the most beautiful drums I have are playable art doumbeks.

Many drummers at drum circles play a goat-skinned djembe drum which gives out great bass tones, and high slap tones. A doumbek may seem dwarfed by the size of a djembe, but played properly, it can cut right through and be heard in a sea of djembes. So it is a very versatile drum, and the good ones still yield a rich bass tone. The thinner models…not so much

Drum heads can get damaged, (which is not easy to do, but it happens.) One time, I had this outdoor firespinning gig, with 5 poi firespinners, and 2 other drummers. It was quite a dynamic and fun 4th of July show. But half way through it, a little bit of flaming fluid came flying over and landed right on the drum head. I was 15 feet away from it, but a small blob came flying my way. I wiped it off real quick as I was playing. It of course melted a big hole in it. Amazingly, the drum still did play even with a ½ hole in it. I continued playing it, and got through the job okay. Fortunately the heads are pretty easy to replace, and only cost about $12 if you need to buy one.

The critical thing when replacing a doumbek head, is that you put the drum rim back on EXACTLY the same way it came off. In other words, the drum should be reassembled the same way it came apart. Each lug hole back where it was, and each lug back in the hole it came from. This is really important, because aluminum screw holes can strip out very easily. Most of these drums have lots of machining defects or nuances, and are made such that they have to be reassembled the same way they come apart. You might say that I learned this one the hard way. And I’ve seen it happen to many other drums. You get a stripped lug hole, and it can’t ever be properly tuned again. Unless the hole is machined out, which costs more than a new drum.

When replacing the drum rim, take extra care to tighten the lugs equally. First, slide the rim back and forth to seat it properly, and locate the exact same place it came apart. Then equally hand tighten all the lugs. Then with the allen wrench, equally tighten all the lugs in a back and forth criss cross pattern, like you would a car rim. This will help you to avoid stripping a lug out. Take your time, and tighten them just a little bit at a time.

The best way to remember about how to put a rim back on exactly the same way it came off, is to put a piece of blue painters tape, above, and below one lug on the drum. Then you can see exactly how and where it goes back together. If you have to buy a drum head somewhere else, the chances are good that it won’t fit as snugly as it did before, and you will have a gap between the rim and body. It doesn’t really affect the performance of the drum, it just looks kind of crappy.

Check out the photos of the drums I posted to get an idea. The dark green one is an Alexandria model. It’s about 40 years old. Very solid, thick cast, beautiful sound. It was $35 on Ebay. It’s kind of beat up, but sounds brilliant. The plain aluminum one is an older model also. It’s very heavy thick machined aluminum like an aircraft part, but notice the gap under the rim. It still sounds fantastic. $50 from Craig’s list. Somebody put a lot of love into this drum. Notice the artwork on the inside, there's an ocean island, with the sun shining above it to the left.

The bronze one is an Alexandria model. It is about 2 years old, and cost about $80 new with a case and spare head. This is a good choice to buy new. It has Superior sound, very solid and thick casting. The other red dented one...well, that sort of speaks for itself. It is one of the cheap thinner ones, and it's covered with dents. The other models shown, have taken years of wear and tear, a few chips, but no dents. You would almost have to use a car, to dent them. In the photo showing the top of the drums, notice the blue Alexandria logo on the drum heads.

You can’t really tell how thick the drum is by just looking at the bottom of it. Most of them have a thicker base on them, and they thin out as you go up the sides. The cheap ones are easy to spot if you just knock on the upper side of it with your knuckle, like you would on a front door. If it goes clink, or clank, it’s a cheap one. If it goes thud, and it hurts a little, that’s a sign of a good one. Another way to test, is reach your hand up ¾ of the way up the inside, to where the drum body widens out. And with your other hand tap it in the same spot on the outside. Try to feel how thick the cast aluminum is where it matters, by holding one hand in, and the other hand out, in the same spot. You can get an idea how thick the metal is. Test it about 6 inches down from the top.

I have bought a few nice doumbeks at mid-east.com here in Florida. Their regular prices are pretty good, and their seconds, and blemished area on the site often has some very good deals, but they go fast, and quality does vary. They do sell the Alexandria models.

The cheaper doumbeks are generally in the $50 – 80 range, and the good ones with the thicker casting are $80 - $120. (Unless you get into the high end decorated tile ones, like the El Fal, etc. I mentioned). The one’s with all the decorative tile are magnificent works of art, the problem beyond the cost, is the practicality of them. With all the grout that holds the tile in place, comparatively speaking, they are very heavy drums. I’ve had a few, and liked to use them for high end stage gigs, because they look so beautiful under the stage lighting. But, if they happen to fall over, or get bumped against something, you can break some of the tiles out.

For the price difference, I would go for a better quality, plain, yet thick cast aluminum one. If it’s cared for, a good doumbek will last practically forever, and your grand kids can inherit it. The thicker the casting, the deeper and more rich the bass sound is with these. They tend to have a thicker gauge drum head on them also, which gives you fuller sound, and even more range. Look for the ones that have the “Alexandria” name on the drum head. (Like in the photo) Those tend to be real nice drums that are imported from Egypt. And with everything that’s been going on over there in the last year, Alexandria doumbeks are getting a lot harder to get, and much more expensive. That tell tale blue logo is something to look for.

Another quality of construction indicator to look for is how snugly the drum rim, (or bearing edge) fits against the drum body. If it is tight, with little or no gap, that’s a good sign. Some have as much as a ¼ inch gap between them. If you see a gap, it’s a sign that it’s not as well made, or somebody put a new drum head on it. With most doumbeks they are not made to particular specs. A lot of the older ones were made one at a time, so the tolerances are different from drum to drum. They might be the correct diameter, but where it seats often varies in height. So a new drum head might be too shallow, or worse, not deep enough to fit and tune properly. Fortunately, most new doumbeks come with a spare head that was made for that particular drum, and it fits properly.

I have also bought a few new doumbeks, and even djembe drums from music123.com and musiciansfriend.com and been pleased. Although both are out of state companies, they will usually meet any advertised price, and I believe still ship free if you spend over $100. They both also have a clearance area like mid-east does with some good deals.

I hope some of this helps to get a good drum, at a good price, and that you find the drum you love!

If you are new to doumbek drums, check some of my other blog posts. There are a few with lists of drum rhythm notations, as well as various ways to read, understand, and play them.

Shannon
drumcircles.net

Drumming Can Hurt

2011-08-03T19:42:00.000-07:00

Something to keep in mind if you are hosting / facilitating a regular drum circle group, or working as a drummer in a band, is getting injuries. You do get hurt sometimes, and you are still expected to play. You may have two prior commitments already booked this week and then you injure your wrist or something. Or you accidentally get a nice cut on a finger tip carving up an apple. You come down with a sporty bad cold, or the flu. You still are expected to show up and play. Like the old saying goes, “The show must go on!” Well, it’s true and that’s what happens, it does. You have to be there, anything short of a broken arm. You can try to get a replacement, if you know of somebody you can have confidence in. But you will probably never work for them again. And worse, the word might get around about it.

The fact is that sometimes you get injuries to parts of your body, and you have to suck it up and play through them. It gets harder and harder as your body gets older. You have to decide what your physical boundaries are as far as playing injured is concerned. I’ve had to do it with a couple of broken ribs. If you have the flu, do you play? Usually, it’s a yes. If it is, just tell the truth to everyone that you have a cold, and don’t shake hands with anybody.

Since you are interacting with a bunch of people, sometimes complete strangers, it’s a lot easier to catch a bad cold. You’ve got to remember to wash up right away afterwards. When I do errands, or projects around the house, I have to think for an extra few seconds before I start to hammer a nail, or when I’m cutting up some carrots for dinner. I have to be extra diligent, and careful not to injure myself in the process, all the time. Because let me tell you, playing injured is a bitch.

I’ve had to coast it a little bit a number of times, because of getting hurt doing something around the house. Sometimes even by not playing properly for my body, or too hard. You can bruise a hand very easily. I made the mistake of playing somebody else’s drum once, and forgetting to keep in mind, my hands and my body had been in tune to my same drum for years. Its curves, shapes, and nuances. So I got into it, and jammed out on this guy’s drum all night, and really bruised my dominant wrist and upper arm. It didn’t hurt that much until the next day. But it took months to heal up. More often than not, I get hurt around the house doing something stupid.

Another thing I do is try to never schedule drum circles two days in a row. I try to schedule gigs every other day, at the most. I need to give my hands and body at least a day to recover and heal up a little bit. Two jobs in a row like that can be very demanding on you physically. If you are in a band it can be four nights in a row, or more. Working Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in a row is very common.

Here is some priceless advice for you, and your participants. I learned it from a Djembe master. Before and after you play, wash your hands in cold water. It cools them down a little bit, and the odds are you shook a lot of hands today, and could catch somebody’s cold. So there’s the hygiene thing there also. For you, and more importantly for them. But mostly, you have just finished what amounts to beating on something like drywall with your hands all night. So a nice cool down of your palms will help you out between sets. Washing them just before you play, gives them lots of grab on the drum head, so you can get cleaner, and crisper sounding notes anyway.

If I can remember, when I get home, I use a hand lotion that has lanolin in it. That helps heal them up quickly. Some friends of mine use shea butter, use whatever works for you. But anything with lanolin helps to heal them. Or at least soothes them a little.

If you’re feeling a little bruised and banged up, a bath with Epsom salts takes it down a little. Especially if you are a hard core drum circle lover that plays outdoors 3 or 4 times a week.

As a musician, performer, or drum circle facilitator, I am being judged and critiqued all the time. Something many musicians are very sensitive about. People don’t like to be criticized, especially when it comes to the way they are playing music. Your soul is wide open for everyone to see. And you are at your most vulnerable. Having some more skilled musician ask you to play quieter or something can really hurt a person’s feelings.

Our American drum circle culture is much different than the drumming cultures in some other countries. For some of them, it is considered completely appropriate to come up and tell a person what to play. Or that they are not playing correctly. Or to play this, or that part. You sure don’t want to try that at a modern drum circle here in the USA. A lot of people who visit us from other cultures don’t know that. So there can be some vast cultural differences to consider if you run into drummers from other countries. Sitting down with them at some point, and discussing the differences is what works for me when I encounter this. (At a break in the action, or after the drum circle of course.) Most of the time, nobody has explained to them that our drum circle culture is a little different than theirs might be.

Some drum circle facilitators are very critical of musicians or people with good musical backgrounds, or street performers who work as drum circle facilitators. They criticize some of us and deem us as more of a performer, or entertainer. I guess they think of us as performers acting out, and showing our talents to gain some sort of acceptance and attention from an audience, because we are coming from some sort of place of need. Yeah right.

I don’t think that‘s it at all. I like bringing joy to people. I am grateful this day. I am discovering my own way. My own sense of style. It's a beautiful thing. Criticism is often presented in the light of not wanting to be supportive of another’s dysfunctional attitudes in life or something. The assumption is that many of us musician based facilitators fit in to that category.

If you are able to get groups of strangers together and help them to entertain themselves, then they are having fun, and not thinking about all the problems and issues of their mortal lives. They are not even thinking about drumming. They are just living in the now. What’s important is guiding them to be able to live in the moment, so they can heal, and begin the self discovery of who they really are. Without them even knowing it is happening to them.

Having a musical background, or any experience in performing, or bringing any of your life’s experiences into it helps you a great deal, and gives you the edge. It makes the whole process more enjoyable for people. If you have public speaking experience, or anything like that, it makes your facilitation identity all that more unique, different, and effective.

That’s a good way to be criticized, by coming up with an innovative approach to doing things that works. Oh my! You know what that means. I think in reality, the critical ones just want to better market their way of teaching in their own facilitating method template, and be able to market it better to anyone who can afford to pay for their intensive workshop, or classes. They might be the ones that need the acceptance of others.

I think if you want to facilitate drum circles you basically need to become a musician, an actor, a performer, a decent public speaker, and a little bit of a comedian. Because being a good facilitator requires all that. And it can be very rewarding (personally, not financially) But, it is an easier way to make a living then just trying to make it as a musician in a band. In a band, you can really have group dynamic problems. The personalities rarely mesh together like they should. You end up on the road a lot, and even working locally, you end up getting home at 3 AM in the morning. It’s a struggle just to pay the rent sometimes, unless your band has some good original music.

As a musician, or a facilitator, I think you need to be as well rounded as you possibly can. You should be able to play any genre of music at all, any style of music, at any tempo, and, ideally, be able to figure out and play anything within a measure or two of music. That’s the goal I think you should try and grow towards. This makes you a better all around musician, and facilitator.

One way to get better at this is to sit in with bands every chance you can get. If it’s a casual setting, and you ask politely, they will likely allow you to sit in for a number or three. Or go to a few “open mic’s” and sit in with whomever you can. Even if it’s just one guy on an acoustic guitar. Are you going to get it every time right away? No. But that’s how you grow faster. A true musician can play anything at all in the drop of a hat. Many times, when I sit in with a band, I have absolutely no idea what they are about to play. Because most of time, they don’t tell you. So you start out softly with a simple all around basic pattern, that you can adjust it to within 10 or 15 seconds, and build it from there. With most songs, or jams, I use a sort of Latin default beat that sounds sort of like, ba dum ba Slap, (pause) ba dum ba Slap, (repeat).

That works in just about any song they throw at me, unless it is a swing, or blues tune, that’s in 6/8. Come up with a default start for 6/8 and 4/4, and you can launch into it, and adjust to anything right away.

You can be a drum circle facilitator if you have no musical background, it is just going to take some more work to be decent at it. You should study music a little bit, and be able to keep solid time. As I mentioned before, you can get a metronome to help you to learn how to keep time if you need one. They’re inexpensive now. And you need to be comfortable, or at least appear confident, with public speaking. Being able to speak clearly, project, and annunciate in pubic, and being able to engage people is an important part of facilitating.

I think one of the most important things of all is having a good sense of humor. It lightens the mood, and puts the uneasy at ease. Watch a few comedians on TV if you have to. Comedy helps people relax with you, if you joke a little bit or can get a few laughs with a clever line or gag. They know right away you don’t take yourself too seriously. I always try to get a laugh or two in the first ten minutes. I think about it beforehand, and have a few lines in mind ready to go. Most of the time, you can think of something spontaneous that’s funnier. Wear something funny, like silly hats, or pull out funny percussion instruments for them to try out. It’s just important to get people laughing, any way you can do it.

Keep a keen eye out for anything that might be funny in the room, ala Robin Williams. Try your hand at writing a joke or two for each week. I recommend that you keep a note pad with you, and when you think of something funny, jot it down. I learned that one the hard way, because I would always think of funny lines, jokes in the middle of the night and then forget them in the morning. I would think to myself, I can remember that in the morning…nope, I forgot it completely. You can reuse a joke like Milton Berle used to do, or just pull a few dumb drummer jokes off my website. Humor is a key element in setting people at ease, and having a fun drum circle.

Public Speaking. It’s a good idea to get comfortable doing it. It will help you as a performer, and a drum circle facilitator. I think there is a group called “Toastmasters” that teaches it, as well as other methods.

Rejection is a big part of trying to make a living as a drum circle facilitator, actor, performer, or as a musician. I have a hard time with it myself. It just gets a little easier if it happens a lot. Rejection is rough, and it happens all the time in this line of work. I think all the entertainment fields are related in this way.

On a typical day of concocting hair-brained schemes to try and get work, I heard on my favorite FM radio morning show they were having a Valentines Day mass wedding ceremony for 45 couples. They explained they needed a wedding day band for the event made up of crazy musical instruments from the listeners. In school I played percussion in the school marching band, orchestra, and later worked with the Philharmonic Symphony for a while. I felt uniquely qualified for the job. But at that time I had no musical equipment, heck, I sold all my drums to get out to LA. But when I heard the musicians to be used would be paid $300 each to play for an hour at this mass wedding, I started scrambling around the house looking for some kind of junk percussion instrument I could audition with.

People were auditioning over the phone with the strangest instruments and being hired! Some guy with a bunch of power drills, another guy with arm farts in different pitches, and other oddities that didn't belong in a band. So, I thought about it a little and lined up a row of 12 water glasses to the diatonic scale, each corresponding to musical notes. Then I called into the show and auditioned by playing "Here Comes the Bride" on my glass xylophone. That was easy enough, having played timpani and the chimes in the past. They laughed a little, then the DJ says, "Come on man, really Impress us". Somehow I managed to clang out "Stairway To Heaven" on my water glasses. It was pretty funny, and they hired me on the spot. Cool. I knew all those music lessons would pay off for me some day.

Try to incorporate whatever your life skills are into your style of drum circle facilitation, or hosting drum circles. I hope that some of this was helpful to you. I go into a lot more detail on this subject, and much more in my 300 page book, “A Practical Guide To Hand drumming And Drum Circles”. Physical copies are $18. During the month of August, I’m including 2 drum circle jam CD’s free with it, if it’s purchased from my website. It’s also available on Kindle for $8.

drumcircles.net

Are Musicians Also Actors?

2011-06-30T18:27:00.000-07:00

Musicians and artists already possess many of the skill sets to cross over into acting, especially when it comes to acting in TV commercials. All that’s needed is a little realistic information about how the industry works, for example what tools are needed. And that's the intent of my 240 page working actor book. I priced it at 5 dollars. July is my virtual book launch. If you buy my Kindle book for $5, read it, and leave a short review on the Amazon Kindle site, I will send you 2 of my drum circle jam CD’s free, and cover the shipping to anywhere in the world.

With the economy the way it is, and the lack of jobs, a lot of people are hurting out there. I hope I can help a few people out, and possibly even help a few realize their dream. You can explore whether the acting field is something that might be right for you. If nothing else, you get 2 jamming CD’s shipped for five bucks.

In my book, I share my 20 years of experience as an actor, the realities of the business, the ups and downs, and things I learned. (Most of them the hard way!) Intertwined are a lot of auditioning, and acting anecdotes. Most of them I have never shared with anyone, including my friends. A lot of it is deeply personal, but putting ourselves out there to be judged, is part of what we do as artists. Johnny Depp went out to LA to work as a musician, and look how that worked out.

On Kindle, the book is translated in almost every language. This promo is good anytime during the month of July. After you leave a review, I will contact you.

Just go to my actor page website: ShannonRatigan.com. No registering or signing up for anything is required, other than what Amazon requires in order to buy Kindle books. The title is: "An Actor's Face, Audition, Casting Advice, And Anecdotes From A Working Actor".

Thanks,
Shannon
drumcircles.net

Can You Get Free Drum Circle Facilitating Training?

2011-04-14T15:23:00.000-07:00

These days, not everyone can afford to spend the money for drum circle facilitation training. Some others aren’t able to leave the area they live in to travel somewhere to take a training program, intensive weekend workshop, or ect. It’s just the reality of how things are in the real world right now.

Let’s say you want to learn to facilitate drum circles for a group, or even for a living. Maybe you just want to get a community drum circle started somewhere. That’s the intent of my article. Please keep in mind, these are just my opinions based on my experiences.

Is taking classes, or training a good idea? Of course it is. Just like with most other art forms, some training is good, but the best way to learn, is to do. To get experience go out and do it. That is a viable way to go about this.

If you have some musical background, the odds are you can keep basic time, and that is the foundation of a fun drum circle in my opinion. But, let’s say you have never touched a hand drum before, and you want to learn to facilitate drum circles, or host one. If you are not a musician, start by just listening to some of your favorite music that has a strong beat. Try keeping time with both of your hands tapping on your thighs or on a table. Keep at it until you can stay on the beat. Try some different songs out and follow them along. When you are on beat, you are keeping good time.

You can do this, and be out there organizing a drum circle in a month or two. Are you going to make mistakes? Yes. Are you also going to get some things right? Yes. You will remember the things you did right, and the ones you did wrong. This helps you on the next one, and it’s how you get better and better. Like with any other craft, you have to put the work in.

So where to start right now for free? YouTube is a good place to see clips of other facilitators. How they start a rhythm, end one, do a rumble, or even a few rhythm examples, and games. Do a search on the keywords drum circle + Facilitator, or facilitating. Lots of stuff will come up. Check a few out. There are many different styles, methods, and approaches to facilitation. Learn as many as you can, and develop your own style. You don’t want to just copy somebody. It’s like a band that just plays cover tunes. You probably aren’t going very far unless you have some original material.

So what about being “certified” as a drum circle facilitator?

I have had people tell me that they are under the impression that drum circle facilitators have to be certified. Okay, doctors, dentists, lawyers, yes. I wouldn't want to use one that hadn't gone through the process of accreditation and/or licensing. But, facilitators don't have any kind of official governing body. Anyone can decide to teach, hold workshops, etc. and then give out a certificate. But, all it means is that the person spent some money on training in one style of facilitation. Like in any other field, some are better than others. Is certification necessary to facilitate drum circles? No. Does it help? Yes. Their logo looks good on your resume, and it adds some credibility to you. Most of them cost a bit also. Do you need certification by someone in order to work and earn a living? No. Many individuals and companies offer their own brand of facilitation. One isn't necessarily better than another, some are promoted more, and widely known than others.

Practically speaking, even if you are a newcomer you can buy a few books on the subject, watch a few videos, and get out there and host a drum circle just fine. But you need to be able to hold a beat. Like I mentioned, I think you learn the most by doing. Go to some drum circles in your area, participate and observe other facilitators if you get the chance. Check out my drum circle finder page, and see if there is anything going on around you within a couple of hours driving distance. It is worth the drive to attend a few and see what works, and also what doesn’t. There might be a few facilitators that you can go participate with, and observe.

Would you only want to know one style of cooking to prepare dinners? Many good books on facilitating approaches have been written. Look for used ones in places like Ebay and Amazon. There are also some good DVD’s on this also. Look in the same places for those. Forty bucks will buy you a lot of reference material, and give you a lot more understanding and insight into this art form.

I think to a certain extent, a good drum circle is an extension of the old Bluegrass days of 100 years ago. There were no cars, so people couldn't travel long distances. There was nothing to do for entertainment but get together and get out the fiddles, washboards, spoons, jugs, drums, and sing and dance and make music. For years, it was about the group ensemble, and the musicality. Any facilitating that needed to be done, was done through the music, not by someone playing conductor. That concept still works. And, it brings out the improvisational skills of the participants. The better things sound, the more fun it is for the group. Almost every culture has a rich history of group drumming, so you are about to do something that has transcended the test of time, and more importantly, brings people together.

Under most circumstances, I like to begin a drumming session by letting everyone just choose something, sit down in the circle, and start playing. This approach helps everyone to relax before the welcome, introductions, and then into some more organized rhythms. The reason I encourage everyone to play first is the nerves. The barriers just begin to melt away. After the first jam, I offer a few pointers about hand technique, and volume, so nobody gets injured, or is uncomfortable. I let people know that a support rhythm is just a starting place. You don’t need to play what I play. You can if you want, but I encourage you to improvise and experiment. Have fun! We get to be kids again, and make up our own rules. You may invent a new way to play, or a new sound from your drum, that’s what good musicians do. They find new ways to do things, not just copy others.

When suggesting a drum circle rhythm, I like to vocalize the first few measures before we play it. I think the logical analytical side of the brain can process it quicker, which then frees up the creative intuitive side. People can then play what they feel, rather than over thinking it.

Plus, I start it out very slowly, then I can gradually bring it up to the desired tempo (speed) once they are comfortable with it. I always mention that this is just a starting point, and you don't have to play this support rhythm, play whatever you feel fits.

Interestingly, I've found that most people can wrap their heads around a rhythm quicker if I vocalize out sounds with a "K" in them. ie: Heartbeat rhythm: Boom Boom chicka-chicka Boom Boom. (pause, & repeat). Or, Doum Doum, tekka-tekka Doum Doum. Or, I just "scat" them out jazz style any way I can think of. My goal is to get them out of their heads and playing as quickly as possible. Drumming uses the brain in a different pattern than the linear thought process that’s usually needed in everyday life, and even the work environment.

Playing a drum brings you to a more open mental and psychological thought process. Once you vocalize out a rhythm, the creative side of the brain is quickly freed up to improvise. And most importantly, they are not thinking about remembering, or trying to figure out what to play. Help start them out, and let it go. Boom.

Another idea is drumming to common word phrases, rhymes or well known commercial jingles, or songs to get things rolling. For example: "Yum, Yum, tastes like chic-ken" (D, D, t k t-k) or try "pep-per-oni-Piz-Za" (t-k-t-k D D) An easy way to start a Clave rhythm is to remind them of the beat in the song, “Hand Jive“.

There's a variety of different ways I like to use to notate a drum rhythm. There are 5 examples in an earlier post of mine, as well as a list of notated support rhythms from around the world to help get you going. The list is also a free download in a word doc on my website. No registering, or signing up for anything is required.

Later as the rhythms join together, everyone joins together. We join together musically. The result is there is no distinction between you or me. We just all sense the feeling of the one song we are creating in the moment. This was the tried and true approach of the elders who would begin their gatherings, and ceremonies this way. The babbling came later.

So, you have done some research, read up, watched some stuff, now what? In my opinion, you need to be a musician first. You don’t need to be a great one, just good enough to be able to start a rhythm out, and keep time. If you can’t keep time, often what ends up happening is something that sounds like a bunch of dog paddling, or a pile of rocks rolling down a hill. It’s not a very satisfying experience for everyone. Sure people will still have a good time noodling around for an hour, but if you can help guide them into some good sounding music, people will have a great time, and then they can’t wait for the next drum circle.

Some disagree with me on this, and think it creates a dependency on you. Well, guess what, sometimes that’s exactly what’s needed to get them jamming. Sometimes they are dependent on you, or the circle sounds like crap. Not always, but sometimes you need to be there to hold things steady until the group finds it’s groove. Usually after a rhythm or two, you can back off a little and let the group go with a given rhythm, but I like to participate, playing my drum all the time. I want to set the tone that I just want to jam with everyone, not be a control freak. This way, others will likely start up a rhythm, and you can go with that. This is how to create a good group dynamic.

I prefer to facilitate from the edge of the drum circle, leaving the middle open for self expression. People will get in there and dance if the groove is right, and they are feeling it. One thing I bring along is a few hula hoops, and a couple of belly dancing wraps. Hoops are 5 bucks, and belly dancing wrap skirts are fifteen. These entice people to get in the center and do their thing. The drumming elevates to a whole new level when this happens. Sometimes the dancers, or hoopdancers will drive a rhythm a bit longer than you had planned, but I never stop a good groove from going on. You can sense when it’s over, or, they leave the center. That’s your cue to “wrap” it up, and start another one.

I approach a drum circle like a band set. 45 minutes to an hour long. Sometimes two 45 minute sessions with a “let’s take 5” brake in between. I bring along a “set list” just like most bands have. Usually it gets changed, or goes right out the window, but you are prepared to introduce rhythms for an hour if you need to. I like to vary the rhythms a little. Some up tempo, some slower and grooving, some even meditative. Sometimes it’s a jam out, but I like to end things that way. Always leave them wanting more. When the hour is up I say, “Okay time’s up, thanks everyone…wait a minute…should we do one more?” Everyone will say yes, so do one more and make em’ happy.

I like to play different rhythms from different cultures. The variety makes it more fun. Play some Latin, African, Bellydancing, Funky, Hip Hop, Soul, whatever feels right. An hour is usually enough time for 7 or 8 rhythms. So you don’t need to have a huge list, but you don’t want to play the same things next circle either. It makes sense to have a good body of reference rhythms to draw from, so you can put together a good set list each week, or each month. At least vary the tempos if you don’t want to try cultural rhythms.

I offer a 2 hour DVD of djembe drum rhythms called 101 Drum Circle Rhythms. It is ideally suited for this purpose. It’s $15 and includes a drum circle jam CD. I priced it low so it is affordable to everyone. I also have a long list of notated drum circle rhythms in a word doc. format. You can download it free on my website drum circles.net There are also drum circle mp3’s to check out, and lots more. This will also give you a visual aid to help you learn rhythms, and to keep time. With that, and a little experience, you can be out there rockin’ in no time.

You’re going to need a fairly decent drum to play. Somewhere in the $100 - $200 range is good enough to get you started. If you do end up not liking this, the good news is that most drums have a pretty decent resale value. But I do hope you don’t go there. If you need some advice on what kind of drum to get, read a few of my prior blog posts about choosing a first djembe drum. You need something durable that will allow you to play louder than the group if you need to. Sometimes it’s necessary, but most of the time if you feel a rhythm heading for a train wreck, let it go. Laugh it off and move on. It sets the tone that you aren’t a control freak, and willing to take risks with everyone else.

Another thing you will need to slowly invest a few bucks in is a few drums for other people to play. A dozen or so, and some smaller percussion instruments to fill it out, is enough to get you started. 30 body drums is a good target number. I suggest getting aluminum doumbeks (that have synthetic heads), rather than wood shell djembe drums with goatskin heads. They are much less expensive, yet still pack a decent punch musically. Djembe heads break easily, and the drums are heavier. I can get 30 doumbeks in my Yugo, no problem. And still have room for a couple of plastic bins full of tambourines, frog rasps, maracas, shakers, etc.

The doumbeks are easier to move, transport, carry, and people enjoy playing them. Plus they take up less space, and are more durable. They are lug tuned with an allen wrench, and you can change a $10 head yourself if it breaks. (Which isn’t easy to do with a rope tuned djembe). With a kit of djembes, if one kid whacks it with a stick, it’s pop, bye bye 60 bucks. Bongos are very durable, small, and inexpensive also. You need some variety, and frame drums played with a mallet are good to have, because some people have physical limitations and can only play with one hand. The idea of a good drum circle is including everyone.

I bought most of my drums second hand, one at a time, in places like Craig’s, and Ebay. Many were $35 - $50 each. You can round out your kit with some frame drums, or sound shapes. Not everyone wants to, or can, play a body drum, so having a few choices is a good idea. Frame drums are as low as $20. Last time I bought a pack of soundshapes they were in the $80 range for 6. (new) They store flat easily, and people like playing them.

Okay so you are ready to start up a drum circle, or get out there and try your chops at facilitating one. Unless you are in it for the love of it, you might need to do it for next to nothing for awhile, or even for nothing, but that’s a good place to start and get that valuable experience.

You can start one in a café, new age shop, park, community center, art center, or even at the beach. A regular meeting drum circle gives you an important thing, a home base to operate from, and a place to build up a community, as well as get leads for future work.

Around the country right now many places like night clubs, bars, and coffee shops are struggling to find working formulas for weeknights. I’ve started them at a micro brewery, even a comedy club. Both of those went very well, despite the serving of alcoholic beverages. Fortunately most people that know each other at a local drum circle see each other a lot, so they don’t want to get too hammered and make a fool out of themselves. But drum circles at places that serve alcohol, that’s an important factor to consider. Wherever you do it, having a drum circle night quickly builds up a community around it with a loyal following that grows very quickly. You are also bringing lots of people together, and these days, it’s needed more than ever.

The cost to do this is minimal, I've been doing it successfully for years at various venues. All that’s needed is you the facilitator, or organizer to help keep things running smoothly, and promote the drum circle. If you do this at a business establishment, keep in mind that it isn't the drummers, musicians, or dancers that do the majority of buying their products. They will help support the venue and buy one or two, but it's the onlookers that are attracted, who will be doing most of that. They are after all a business and in business to make money. A following will grow very quickly if people have a good time. That’s your job, and it takes some time to hone your skills. Each time you will get better at it.

Try it on a trial basis for a few weeks, and when it takes off, ask for a small percentage of sales to cover your costs, damage, etc. You will be dealing with a lot of different personalities, so issues and problems will arise from time to time. You may need to make some tough calls on the spot. Some may be wrong, but you will learn from them as they occur. For the most part, things seem to run smoothly.

The reason for a home base, is that eventually better paying jobs will come to you. After the circle is established, people will want you for birthday parties, city events and festivals, gatherings, schools, even weddings and churches. So start putting together press materials as soon as possible, photos, videos, newspaper articles they write about your drum circle, and get some good looking business cards made, to leave out prominently on a table by the door. I’ve been very pleased with Vista Print.

Try to get the website, and social networking thing happening as quickly as you can. It is very effective in getting things rolling. If you want to get more in depth with all of this, please consider picking up my book. It is 300 pages of scintillating drum circle information for eighteen bucks. I include a facilitated drum circle CD along with it free. If you do choose to purchase my book or DVD, thanks in advance for helping out. I really do appreciate it.

Drum some, and have fun. I am here if you need to ask a question, or need an opinion on something drumming related.

Check out my website: drumcircles.net & my blog: drumcircleworld.blogspot.com/for lots more resources and ideas.

Junk Percussion Treasure - The Grandpa Guiro

2011-04-05T17:40:00.002-07:00

About 10 years ago I was going through our local thrift shop hunting for junk percussion, (unusual sounding household items). I always check the knick knack and kitchen area out for anything that might have musical potential. So here I am clanking and clunking on things, scraping them, shaking them, etc. People see me doing this, and think I have a bolt loose. But hey, it’s okay, I’ll suffer for percussion.

I spotted this old grandpa’s thermos. One of those old aluminum ones with the ribbed sides. I ran a spoon along it, and I smiled with delight at the Santana groove that was waiting there to jump out. The price was three bucks, what a bargain. To them it was barely saleable junk, to me, it was a treasure. These are REALLY hard to find in thrift shops, because they are vintage. You can’t imagine how fun one of these are to play, but more importantly, it sounds fantastic. It gets a lot of laughs when you start jamming on one at a drum circle. I mean, think about it, you’re sitting there playing a djembe, and then you pull out a thermos. People think you are getting a drink or something, and then you start jamming out on it. It is hilarious.

To prepare it for public mayhem, I suggest that you first break the glass out of the inside. I do that by putting a few rocks inside it, put the cap back on. Shake it a few times, or whack it on the ground, and you will hear it break. Then you carefully dump it in the dumpster, whack it a few times to get all the glass out. Then I rinse it out with some water and let it dry out. Put the lid back on, even the cup! All you need then, is to make a scraper for it, or go buy one at a music store, (but it costs more than the thermos!), and you are good to go.

Not only does it make a great sounding guiro, but it also makes a nifty shaker. You can add some plastic beads, rice, popcorn, whatever you can find inside there, and screw the lid back on tight. (I put a piece of tape over it so that people don’t try to open it. Plus, you don’t want that crap all over the floor or something.

My preference for the shaker material is a mixture of stuff, and then you get a nice warm shaker sound. Metal BB’s or something like that is a little bit loud against the aluminum. But if you want a vicious shaker, that will do it.

If you choose not to add shaker materials, you can change the pitch by adding various levels of sand, or some other powered material inside of it. Experiment a little until you get the sound you like.

I had two sizes of these as part of my percussion kit in my gig bag when I played in a few bands back in the day, before back in the day. Now I play them all the time at drum circles, and people are always asking to try it. It looks like fun, and it is. I get a kick out of seeing people playing one. I usually set out baskets of percussion items, and this old thermos guiro is probably the most popular item. Be sure to keep an eye out for other junk percussion treasures. Objects like old brass candlestick holders sometimes have beautiful chime tones, or a thick brass bell can make a great singing bowl. Keep an eye out for washboards. Those are a blast to play with thimbles.

So where to find one of those old thermoses? Thrift stores, yard sales? Sometimes if you are lucky. In places like Ebay, I’ve seen a few for under five bucks. Both the large and small thermoses. What’s plural for that anyway? Thermi? Anyway, try a search with the keywords vintage thermos, or aluminum thermos, and you should be able to find your own Grandpa Guiro.

15 Free Drum Circle Ring Tones & Mp3's + Drum Circle Finder

2011-03-22T17:12:00.000-07:00

Prices are going up, and not everyone can afford even minor music purchases these days. So I wanted to put some drum circle mp3's and ringtones out there free of charge so people can have a little FREE fun. No registering, or signing up for anything is required. You can listen to them, or download them if you want. There are also some full length drum circle mp3's. Check them all out at my drumcircles.net website.

My wife kept asking me to make her a drum circle ringtone, so I finally got around to it. I made 8 different ones from my drum circle CD's. She liked 2 of them, the bellydance jam ringtone, and the hip hop drum circle ringtone, (me to). But, there are 8 uploaded there for you to choose from. Some are a little whacky, but there might be one you like.

I also made 7 single djembe drum rhythm ringtones. Those ain't bad either. Please feel free to give them a listen, pick one out, or snag all of them, then your phone can be Jammin' when you get a call. Or people will think you are a little nuts. But hey, you saved a buck.

Find a drum circle near you: drumcircles.net/circlelist.html

Promote yours: facebook.com/DrumCircleFinder

Drum circle mp3's and ringtones: drumcircles.net (They are located near the bottom of the home page.)

Choosing An Inexpensive But Good Sounding Drum For Your Child

2011-03-08T18:26:00.000-08:00

When I was 10 years old, my dad got me an old marching snare drum. I was happy. Many others…were not. I was a hyperactive kid, and it calmed me down a bit. Little did I know that drumming would be the thread that held my brain together for 40 some years.

When I was old enough, I was able to be a high school band geek. (Fortunately it’s more fashionable with the popularity of TV shows like “Glee”). Anyway, music always gave me a place to have a good time and be entertained. A chance to play in fun places, and even earn a few bucks here and there. Sitting in with bands, jamming at drum circles, or just by myself. Sometimes I just want to be comfortably “away”. A drum is good for that, as well as building social skills.

Lots of parents bring kids to family friendly facilitated and public drum circles. For the most part, those kind of drum circles are a safe comfortable place for your child to be able to interact socially with others in a non threatening environment. Keeping in mind that with any public group you are likely to have a few oddballs in there, so it makes sense to supervise them. If it were my children, I would want to visit the drum circle alone just to see the general vibe of it first.

Kids are welcome at most drum circles if they are supervised. Here’s something cool where you can connect, and do something positive with your kids. When you’re at a drum circle just remind them to respect other people’s space while they are playing, and not to run wild, or touch anyone else’s drums without asking first.

You might consider getting a drum for yourself also, that way you can learn how to play together. For about $300 you can get a pretty decent drum for both of you. Learning how to play is easier than you may think. With all the great YouTube videos out there, it’s at your fingertips.

Check out my drum circle finder page and see what’s going on nearby, and perhaps consider visiting one for the first time, or practice and learn a little first. No big deal either way. Drum circles are pretty organic and, for the most part, welcome everybody, regardless of skill level. Most musicians are very supportive, and are happy to offer a few pointers once you have played in the group with them a few times.

So you want to buy your kid a drum. These days, there is an amazing selection of low cost hand drums available. Most music stores have a world percussion section where a kid can just go bang a bongo or two and see what “talks to them”. A first drum is an important choice even for kids. I think buying a full size drum rather than a so called “kids” drum is a better idea, because the price difference is like 20 bucks. Plus it gives your child something to grow into, rather than out of, or needing to upgrade at some point.

Most of the drums designed with kids in mind are not tunable – just a drum head glued on with some decorative ribbon around it or something. A grown up drum that is tunable, teaches them more, and they will get a lot more enjoyment from it. They can learn to customize the pitch to their liking. Kids like personalizing their phones, and designing levels for video games, so I think teaching a kid to tie Mali weave knots and how to tune a drum is great. Tuning a roped djembe is hard, and not easy to do.

You can get a great sounding drum for around $60 - $100 depending on what kind and brand. As far as the head size, I suggest a drum with a 10” or even 12” playable size drum head. They have a better range of bass to tones.

A couple of video games cost $80, and a drum will last practically forever if you take minimal care of it. I suggest getting a drum with a synthetic head on it, rather than a goatskin one because they are harder to break. A djembe drum is the most popular, or a goblet drum, (doumbek). I think bongos are a very good choice also, because it gives them two drums to play. Most of them have thick cowhide heads and are hard to break. Plus, they can be played with hands or drumsticks. Most bongos have 5” and 6” heads on them. There are also 4” and 5” head size sets, I suggest getting them the big ol’ drums.

With bongos, there are two kinds of rims, one is straight down vertical, and the other has a more comfortable curved edge rim. Some call it the comfort curve. It’s a good name, because the fingers can get beat up after a little while on a straight rim. These days, the curved rim can be found on some djembes and now on most conga drums as well. The bearing edge can be a bit rough on the hands without one. A nice comfortable curved bearing edge on a wood shell djembe is particularity important as well.

Recently I wrote an article about buying a drum for adults, but a lot of it does apply to kids, so you might give it a read. It is one of my older posts. I always suggest buying as much drum as possible so your child can grow into it, but still enjoy having fun playing and being a kid.

You can get a very decent synthetic djembe drum, where both the drum body, and head are synthetic for under $100 these days. Get them a grown up drum with an 8, 10”, or 12” head. (Playable size.) Again I stress getting a lug tuned drum because they can easily learn about tuning and pitch. With these kinds of drums, most have synthetic heads. Once they are tuned up, that’s pretty much it. All you need to do, boom. The rope tuned goatskin djembes are more fragile, and higher maintenance. There’s nothing wrong with learning about and respecting a good djembe though.

I mean, don’t get me wrong here. If you have the money to buy your child a really good drum, I suggest doing it. In my opinion, a rope tuned authentic Ivory Coast djembe is the sweetest sounding drum ever. I also like the LP Giovanni, and Meinl Floatune djembes. Both of those are lug tuned. Most of the high end drums cost in the $350 range. The Gio and Float have goatskin heads, yet are lug tunable. And at least with one of these from a major manufacturer, you can buy it new and be assured that it’s not a knock off drum.

Most of these drums are 12” heads, usually solid wood bodies, and they are a bit heavy after awhile. They can weigh about 15 to 18 pounds. So getting a djembe strap might be a good idea, they can stand and play if they want. Otherwise they are stuck playing seated. Most people prefer to stand and play, it feels better. A djembe strap that criss crosses over the back is best, because it distributes the weight better. Get the one that clips on in front to the drum. They cost around 20 bucks. A tie on style becomes a bit more tedious. A shoulder strap tends to hurt after awhile.

You might as well spring for a djembe hat to protect the head, and a padded drum bag to store and transport it in. Might want to consider springing for a djembe drum stand also. That frees up the weight issue, so you can play comfortable standing or seated. Check to see how well made and sturdy it is. Some of them look pretty solid, but when you try to play a drum on it they bounce around like bobble heads. A good one runs in the $80 range. Having fun yet?

The two main problems with getting an expensive djembe is finding one that really is authentic. There are a lot of knock offs out there. For example, the last time I checked, I don’t think the djembe is indigenous to Indonesia. So you need to find someone knowledgeable to get the real deal here. Some of these drums have magnificent carvings and/or artwork on them. The sound is unmatched by any other drum in my opinion. Wood body drums have a warmer, fuller tone to me. The synthetic are lighter, but have a synthetic sound, for obvious reasons. But they are fine for a good all around playable drum that will last.

The other thing is that a goatskin drum head can be damaged pretty easily. One good drop, bump on a door jam, or hit with a drum stick, bye bye drum head. A head replacement can run $60 - $80. Most of it is the labor tying all the Mail weave knots. We’re talking a few hour job here, minimum.

So, drums with synthetic heads that are lug tunable are better suited for kids in my opinion. They’re a little more costly but worth it. Try to get a good brand name drum. ie: Latin Percussion, Toca, Meinl, Remo, Pearl etc. There’s a bunch out there now. Most of the ones with synthetic heads hold up very well. The wooden shell drums tend to be a bit heavy for kids, and now they not only have synthetic drum shells, but lighter polymer, and PVC ones also. Perfect drums for kids.

A goblet shaped doumbek drum is a good choice also. They have a naturally curved rim and are comfortable on the hands. They are easy to hold and play. I like the ergonomic design of them, they are made to fit the natural curve of your hands. I recommend that you get a professional size tunable doumbek. Look for an 8” playable size drum head, and thick cast aluminum on the drum body. Some of them are very thin and the sound sucks. What I mean is, it doesn’t resonate as much, or have the range of pitch. And of course 6 - 8 allen wrench tuning lugs. Cheap drums give you cheap sounds.

The majority of kids seem to like the bongos. They look like more fun to play, and they are what most of the kids I work with gravitate to because there are two drums to play. Two for the price of one. I suggest getting a decent grown up set, as the kids ones are pretty toy like. A drum that is a genuine musical instrument will serve much better, and a pretty decent set of bongos is in the $60 range. The child can set them on their lap and play, or put them on a chair, stool, or table in front of them and jam away. If you are handy, you can build a bongo stand, or buy a collapsible one for about $40. A stand is going to encourage them to play more. Plus hey, it looks cool set up in the corner of the room.

Many drum manufacturers now offer wide selections of drums designed for kids, They are low priced, sound pretty good, but many are not tunable. They are after all, kids drums. They also make grown up drums with 6 and 8 inch heads that are tunable and better suited in my opinion. A little more costly but worth the extra amount in the long run.

The drum selling businesses is so crazy competitive right now, that once you determine what you want, you locate the lowest online price, bookmark it, and most music stores will meet or beat the price. Maybe even ship it free. Most of them do if you spend $100. When I’m looking for a new brand name drum, I research for the lowest price, print it out and go visit my local music store. Most of the time they will match it or come close. I like to support local if I can.

I guess you can also get an old marching snare drum like I did. The schools sell them off from time to time, and I see them on sites like Ebay pretty reasonably priced with the shoulder strap and everything. These days, you can get a rubber practice pad for the kids to drum away on, (it sits right over the drum head, or on a table) for $20. Had they been around at the time, I’m sure my neighbors would have gladly bought me one.

Two sites I have bought from that seem to have the lowest prices, and have matched prices are music123.com and musiciansfriend.com Both also have outlet store pages with some good deals, but they come and go fast. They both carry bongos, doumbeks, and smaller djembes. There are lots of online retailers out there, check for buyer reviews on them before you buy. A simple search on the brand or dealer name + the word “review” will give you plenty of opinions from owners. I like to shop at our local music store for two reasons. Supporting local businesses, and I like to try a drum out before I buy it.

A good drum will bring years of fun and entertainment. It will last a very long time if you take care of it. Playing music is very satisfying alone or with friends.

If you would like to get much more in depth with teaching your children to drum, please consider picking up my 300 page book on hand drumming and drum circles. It’s $10 on Kindle, or physical copies for $18. Purchase it from my website and I include a 75 minute facilitated drum circle CD you can just enjoy, or even play along with. If you do choose to buy it, thanks in advance for helping me out a little bit. With the price of gas going up 35 cents in the last two weeks, entertainment money is a lot tighter. I have 5 full length drum circle mp3’s you can listen to, or download free at my website: drumcircles.net - No registering or signing up for anything is required.

With so many changes going on in the world today, I think that the arts can contribute to our coming together on a global scale. And drumming and dancing are both things that everyone can be a part of with minimal training or skill. They transcend barriers of language, religion, and countries. What better reason to introduce your child to the joy of drumming. You might have a lot of fun together along the way.

Shannon - drumcircles.net

Tuning A Lug Tunable Djembe, Marking It, & Head Replacement

2011-02-02T10:55:00.000-08:00

Lug tuned djembes, doumbeks, ashikos, and congas. My favorite drum is a lug tuned LP Giovanni djembe with a goatskin head. Here's a few thoughts on tuning up a lug tunable hand drum, a little about replacing a drum head, and some different ways to put an identifying mark on your drum.

For the most part, lug tuned djembes are less expensive, and more readily available at music stores, and online, so they are becoming more popular, especially with those that are newer to drumming. With a synthetic head, once it’s tuned, it’s basically tuned for life. You can pretty much forget about it, once you have it sounding the way you like.

Goatskin drum heads are a completely different matter, lug tuned or roped. Going from the heat, into air conditioning can pop a drum head if it’s tuned a little too high. Very cold air has less moisture, and the drum heads get dryer and tighten up. I make it a habit to detune a half crank or two each lug after a gig. I go from outdoors to inside a lot. 5 years ago I discovered a broken head when I took it out of the bag for a gig. lol, not good, so I make it a point to take the time, even though I am too tired to do it…before it goes back into the djembe bag, I detune each lug a little after each use. ¾ of a full crank seems to work fine in most cases. The advantage with this kind of djembe, is you can quickly tune, or detune it in minutes, unlike with a rope tuned drum.

Having said that, to me, there is nothing that really compares to an authentic handcrafted djembe. The sound is unmatched, but they are also very expensive. Another problem is that there is a lot of “knock offs” being sold out there as “an authentic indigenous drum”, and many of them are not. You almost need to know someone reliable, or travel.

When I do have to unfortunately replace a drum head, at least I can do so quickly. I do it like the crisscross change a tire lug pattern: 12 0’clock – then 6. then 3 & 9. Equally all around, from one side to the other. After I slide the head back and forth to get it seated nicely, I hand tighten all the lugs equally first. Then it’s a few tuning wrench cranks at a time, in the back and forth pattern. I hold my finger on the one I just tightened, so I can go across the head and remember the one I just did, and my pattern. Back and forth, crisscross, equal cranks all around as best as I can. An important thing to do afterward is look across the flat plane edge of the drum head, and see if it looks nice and even around the rim. Sometimes I didn’t seat the drum head properly, or over tightened on one side, and it may be a tiny bit higher than the other, so I correct for that. (Do it over again! lol)

Another tip I learned was that when I do replace a goatskin djembe head, or a cow skin conga head, I take a little bit of powdered flour, rub some on my hands and lightly rub a very thin coat along the bearing edge, (top) of the drum body before I place the drum head back on it. I slide it around a little, and this allows it to “seat” better on the drum.

The most important thing for correctly tuning my djembe, is after I have it as even and tight as I want, I tap my finger on the drum head about an inch from each lug, and do so for each lug as I go around the drum in a circular pattern. That’s how I can tell if the drum is equally tuned near each lug. Or just a light flick of your fingernail near each lug. If any one sounds higher or lower in pitch, I correct it so that they all sound the same. This not only lengthens drum head life, but it sounds better. It reduces unwanted ringing, and unwanted off pitch sounding notes. Different sounding tones on different lugs can lead to a dissonant combination. This is more important with djembe heads, because they have thinner goatskin heads than cow skin conga heads. So the djembe head is much more sensitive to tension and evenness, both with goatskin and with some synthetic heads.

For those of you that have drum sets, you probably know most of this stuff already, so please bear with me for those that are new to tuning drums. Many of my suggestions are from others who taught me, band gigs in sleazy bars, and the rest from trial and error. These may not be the “best” way, or the only way to do things, I am a musician sharing information. If you have a few helpful tips to add, that would be much appreciated.

An easy way to quick tune my quinta and conga, or bongos, is to recall the song, “Here comes The Bride”. I tune them to sound like the notes in it. It makes it very simple to do, even in a dimly lit situation. (If it’s just my djembe I’m tuning, it’s to the “Bride” pitched note. Maybe just a tad higher.

Some lug tuned goatskin and synthetic drum heads can have ringing, or a ping like sound. Many joke about it, and call it the “twang”. Trying to dampen that overtone a little with synthetic heads is a real consideration for many of us. Especially at studio recording sessions. To reduce it, I hang a blue painter’s tape tail in the center underside of the head. (The blue tape doesn't leave a sticky residue like regular masking tape, or duct tape can do over time.) I use a long single piece - so it has about a 6 inch tail that is hanging down in the center, and stretching about 6 " in both directions across the drum head. ( ----V----) The V is to help illustrate, I close the V section to it is stuck together and hanging down in the middle. The tape I use is 1" wide blue painter’s tape.

I set the drum on the floor upside down on carpet, and try to place it in there with one arm, because that’s all that will fit. It can be tricky getting it in there, sometimes I have to try 3 or 4 times to get it in there nice and even and flat, so the 6 inch tail can be hanging down in the center. I’ve seen other ways to do this, using just a flat straight piece of tape across the underside of the head, a flat “X” pattern, a square, or a circle, or even a sqiggley. Experiment, because that’s part of the fun of drumming, and see what works best for your drum. However you get to it, hopefully it’s bye-bye ping.

One other thing about placing in the blue tape, on the underside of some drum heads is that it will not stick at first. With some newer heads, the bottom surface of the head can have a light coat of powder on it. The solution is to take several dry paper towels and gently wipe the powder off until it is clean enough so the tape would stick on any part of it. I guess the blue painter’s tape is designed like that so it is easy to come off. Another similar simple quick fix, or test idea is to try putting a few Post-It notes hanging under there.

I make it a habit to replace the tape every 4 months or so just to avoid any possibility of sticky tape residue on the underside of my drum head.

If you have to replace or remove the drum rim for any reason, be sure to put it back exactly the same way it came apart. Otherwise it may not fit quite properly when you put it back on, or a lug might get stripped. This is especially true with aluminum doumbeks, I make sure the head is seated properly, and tighten the lugs up again in a crisscross pattern, a little bit at a time. What I do to mark the spot is put a small piece of painter’s tape on the rim and just below it on the drum shell near a lug, so I can mark the spot.

Then I can put it back exactly as it came from the factory. When I remove the lugs, I line them up in a row the way they came off, so I can put them back exactly where they were. Cleaning and twisting them on an old towel, and oiling them is a good idea when you do this. There’s a special lug oil you can get at most drum shops.

Identifying and/or Marking Your Drum(s)

If you have just one prized djembe, or a kit of 50, marking them, or identifying them is a good idea, just in case. Early on, I used a permanent magic marker and would write my name inside the drum body. Later, I painted a bright line across the bottom, or mid-shell. Then when I had a whole bunch of drums, I went to some paper stickers I made on my PC. They left a glue residue, and looked sloppy after a year or so. But it was better than nothing. About 8 years ago I started to use those 4 x 5” vinyl bumper stickers you tend to see many bands use for promoting, publicity, etc. At many of the drum circles I facilitated or hosted, the public was welcome and some would bring their own drums, so things could get a little confusing as people would come and go, and at the end of the gig.

I needed to be able to identify my drums and percussion quickly and easily, sometimes at night in very dim light. I also wanted to deter them from walking away a little bit, that having unfortunately happened one time, but months later, the drum was anonymously returned to me. So I was glad it had that sticker, and/or my name written inside it. The stickers were inexpensive, easy to see, good for promotion, and they looked pretty cool.

If you get the 4” x 5" size stickers with black and white text only. They are about 10 – 50 cents each depending on how many you order. As a bonus you can also hand them out to clients, participants, add to your press pack, etc. But if you start adding logos, colors, or pics, the price goes up on them pretty quickly.

Most all of my kit is synthetic body drums like Remo, Toca, assorted aluminum doumbeks, etc. so slapping a sticker on the side of them was not really a big deal. For groups I prefer synthetic drums because they are easily washable, and can be sanitized. Add to that, they can take more of a beating than goatskin, they do better in humidity, and they cost less to buy. If I needed to remove one of my bumper stickers for some reason, (after a few years there would be a glue residue on there). A product like De-Solv-It takes it off easily. It’s made for removing wallpaper glue.

Obviously you don’t want to put a band sticker on a nice carved wood djembe, but for most of my drums it was fine, and I could easily see from a distance which ones belonged to me. With wood djembes a few ideas are to paint some sort of bright marking on them, or hang those price tags, or luggage tags with a string on them on the ring with a name written on it. Some even carve, or wood burn a name at the bottom of the shell. At least consider writing your name with a permanent marker inside the drum shell. If you have some aluminum, stainless, or nickel doumbeks, carving, or wood burning obviously won’t do, so a sticker or colorful marking of some sort might be the way to go.

About 10 years ago my drum circle facilitating kit was all wood shell djembes. After you schlep 50 drums in and out for an event, (even with some help) they were too heavy to keep track of, let alone haul around. As I mentioned, I prefer the sound and feel of goatskin heads on a wood drum shell, but after a while, it just wasn’t practical. But at least with some kind of bright looking, or obvious mark on them, they’re easier to identify as being yours, especially if you work in public places. As I mentioned, some people bring their own drums. It can get confusing without it.

If you go with that white vinyl band sticker idea, as far as your design is concerned, most of the sticker companies make it pretty easy to do. Most of them will let you design your sticker in a Word doc, you can use most common fonts and sizes, and you email it to them. Make your sticker short and sweet. For my text, I chose my website DRUMSOME.com I made the .com very tiny, (and away at the lower right), so promotion wasn’t so blatantly obvious, and people are less likely to toss them. It’s kind of cool looking, and the .com was so tiny, people would still put them on car bumpers and so on. People would even ask for a sticker to take home all the time, so it was effective publicity for me in the community, and I could easily identify my drums on a budget.

I hope some of this helps you!

Shannon

drumcircles.net (Got a regular meeting drum circle, or looking for one? Please check out the website. Thanks)

Drum Circles, Drumming In Cold Weather & The Elements

2011-01-14T15:19:00.000-08:00

If you are a hard core drum circle lover, sometimes we play in very cold weather, and even outdoors in the snow. I’ve done it, and lots of circles go on up north during the winter. It’s easy to pick up a bruise in the cold. The drum head is a lot harder. When I play my Djembe outdoors in extreme cold, it’s usually in a remote location, and often its dark outside as well. Most of the suggestions below are common knowledge, so please bear with me for those that are newer to drumming.

My drum of choice is a goatskin djembe. When I do choose to take it outdoors and play, to protect it a bit more, I take some precautions. The sub-freezing, cold air has less moisture. If you play a goatskin head drum, the drum head will be very dry. Moisten it with whatever oil or butter you would normally use on it, but do so at least a day ahead. Personally, I don’t like to use any oils or anything on my drum head, just the natural oil build up from my hands. It’s a personal preference. Some people put oil on the wood drum body also, I choose not to do that either.

More often than not, I leave my expensive goatskin djembe at home, and use my “beater” drum. When I’m outside I use a synthetic drum like a Remo djembe or something. They sound pretty good even in frigid weather, and even pretty good when you're wearing gloves or mittens while playing them. The cold even makes them sound a little better. I don't like the feeling of synthetic drum heads. They are not kind on the hands, and I don’t care for the sound that is created as much as goatskin. I don’t endorse Remo or any other manufacturer, I am just giving you my opinion on what I like to use, and why.

That Remo djembe of mine is the 12” head size model. Not too heavy to play for hours, yet still has decent range for bass, tones and slaps. I’ve had it for over 15 years and never had to replace a head or anything to it. Of course it has a few signs of wear, some dings, dents, and scrapes, but hey, so do I. I can’t say the same for my goatskin drum, I’ve replaced the head 4 times in 8 years, but that is my drum of choice for session recordings, facilitating drum circles, important gigs, etc. So my beater is my drum of choice to play in hot humidity, dampness, or very cold weather.

The Remo was like $125 to my door used from an online auction site. As far as I know, they still sell new for just under $200. Picking up a used one isn’t really a problem, because you pretty much know what it’s going to sound like. Considering how long it has lasted, it’s a pretty good value for the money. I’ve played the crap out of that drum in all kinds of conditions. On the beach in hot humidity, gotten sand all up in it, in the rain, snow, extreme cold, and it sounds pretty good all around. You could probably play that thing on another planet with no atmosphere and it would sound okay. It’s a decent all purpose drum, and I don’t really need to worry if I let others play it for awhile. But the ping sound of a synthetic drum bugs me a little. A piece of blue painters tape with a 4 inch tail hanging under the head tames it down a bit.

On the up side, that drum has taken a real beating over the years, and I’m told it is made of all recycled materials. (Not exactly sure what that is, it could be soylent green for all I know, but I think it is recycled wood.) They seem to hold their value, rarely need a repair, so in my opinion, they make a fine all weather condition beater drum, that I don’t need to worry about. It’s just my preference.

When I’m out in very cold weather, obviously, you want to avoid gloves entirely if you can, but you'll do a little better using the thinnest gloves you can find. Be sure to check your gloves for any metal clips or plastic clips on them, and take a look at the cuffs of your sleeves of the coat you'll be wearing. Remember to try and not get to hammering away outside in the cold. It’s easy to get caught up in the moment, and do some real damage to yourself. Remember to pace yourself, and try to play a little softer than you normally would. Don't expect to be getting all these extreme slaps from your drum, and hurt your hands. Take a break now and then, and let your hands warm up. I keep a few of those heat packs in my coat pockets to warm them up with. Plus it keeps my body warmer. For a coat, I like to stay warm and toasty, but have as much freedom of movement for my arms as well. A snowmobile suit doesn’t quite cut it. I have one of what is called a squall or stadium coat. It has a thin windproof nylon outer shell, and warm micro-fleece inside. It’s not real heavy, yet keeps me warm, and allows freedom of movement.

Outdoor drum circles sometimes can get a bit sloppy sounding because everyone is cold, so an ideal thing to have, or for someone to have, is a decent bottom drum. Even an old floor tom from a drum set works great for this with a soft mallet. Sticks are too piercing and loud. Plus with a bottom drum, that’s all it needs to do is help hold the bottom, or downbeat. It holds the support rhythm to be more solid, and everyone knows that the better the circle sounds, the more fun it is. One common problem is that everyone wants a turn on the bottom drum. That’s fine of course, but many people will overplay a bottom drum, get to whaling away, and leave no space for the other drums to be heard. Less is more, that’s why when I bring one, I bring only one mallet for it. Problem solved.

One guy had a 55 galloon barrel with a thick Taiko style cow head on top. As odd as it sounds, the thing sounded great, and was a blast to play. He had used a hole saw and put 3 two inch holes spread out around the base so the sound could get out, or resonate more. Pretty clever idea. I’ve also seen the big blue plastic water barrels that are like 22 gallons done up like that. A little easier to move, the big barrel guy had to use a hand truck to move that thing from his van to the circle. But it was fun, great sounding, and really held the grooves together.

If you are facilitating a drum circle, or even just a rhythm, musical non-verbal cues become much more important, because all the hats and scarves tend to cover our ears, and muffle things a little bit.

For my hands out in the cold, I've had a fair amount of luck using fingerless knit gloves. The tones lose a little bit but the slaps are intact, since the fingertips are exposed. On a synthetic drum head, the difference isn’t all that much. I want to jam, but don’t want my fingertips to fall off.

When you are jamming outside in the cold, do whatever you can to keep your whole body warm. There is less chance of you damaging your hands through poor circulation in the fingers. Wear thermal, or silk underwear, even that “wicking” material is a good idea, because we do get to sweatin’ sometimes. I wear thick socks, boots, and lots of layers of clothing. This new underarmor stuff seems pretty nice for this. Don’t forget the lid, like a wool hat, we lose a lot of heat through the top of our heads when they are uncovered. Huddle close together if you have to, in order to save some heat.

Bring a thermos full of something warm, like hot chocolate. It’s a good idea to avoid alcohol outdoors while drumming. It dilates the capillaries and makes you feel warm, but in reality, you just losing heat quicker. Instead, eat plenty of good food beforehand, to generate some heat internally. Have some of that soft cloth first aid tape ready just in case anyone gets a cut or a bruise on their finger.

You can get some of those new high tech warm gloves. (The furry ones look the best) I’ve seen some people cut out the palms and finger pads, or just the finger pads. Not only will you still be able to hit all notes, but your hands will stay a little warmer too. One of the bellydancers has some sort of black thin arm length silk material that ended in fingerless glove, it sort of hooked around her thumb. She would dance, and take breaks to drum out in them, I’m not quite sure what it’s called, I think it was “arm warmers”. A search under bellydancing gloves should bring it up. She said it kept her arms and hands pretty warm while dancing or drumming. Pretty clever idea.

After the drum circle is over, consider getting a few people together afterwards, and go to a restaurant, eat some warm food, drink, and hang out a little. Get to know a few new people that might just turn out to be new good friends. It’s a great way to wrap up a fun drum circle. A drum circle wrap party.

If you are playing in the opposite conditions, with high heat and humidity, you need to adjust to that as well. Try to make sure that you and everyone else are in the shade if possible. Ask people in advance to bring bottled water and keep hydrated. Or provide it yourself for everyone if you can. Sunscreen is a good idea, except for the palms of your hands. This is particularly important if you are playing near water, as the sun’s rays can bounce and give you a nasty burn, even if you are in the shade. Wearing a hat, or headband keeps the sweat out of your eyes.

Your drums will also need some extra attention. Goatskin heads, especially, stretch in heat and/or humidity. They quickly become out of tune. This is one situation again where a synthetic head might be a better choice. I don’t want the sand or dirt getting all up in my nice djembe. Even the wood in the body of the drum can be affected over time, and possibly split along the wood grain. Those synthetic djembes, or aluminum Doumbeks can be a much better choice than your expensive wooden djembe in this kind of hot humid weather condition.

My hands sometimes get a bit bruised when I get home, so what I like to do is use a hand lotion that has some lanolin in it. That helps heal them up quickly. Some friends of mine use shea butter, use whatever works for you. But anything with lanolin helps to heal them. Or at least soothes them a little. A nice soothing soak in a hot bath tub with Epsom salts takes it down a little also. Treat your body right. At least when you get home.

This is more for indoor or hot weather drumming, but before and after I play, I wash my hands in cold water. It cools them down a little bit, and the odds are you shook a lot of hands today, and could catch somebody’s cold. So there’s the hygiene thing there also. Bring some of that portable hand sanitizer, for you, and more importantly for them. But mostly, you have just finished what amounts to beating on something like drywall with your hands for hours. So a nice cool down of your palms will help you take care of them. Washing them just before you play, gives them lots more “grab” on the drum head, so you can get cleaner, and crisper sounding notes as well. I hope some of this helps you to say warm, and in the groove!

Shannon
drumcircles.net

Various Drum Circle Rhythm Notations

2010-12-04T19:08:00.000-08:00

This is a list of various drum circle rhythms I enjoy playing. It's my interpretation of them. There are a few different ways I like to notate, and/or and vocalize the start of a drum circle rhythm. Print it out if you want to. I like to help people enjoy drumming more. The list might make a good guideline, set list, or just some fun stuff for you and your friends to try out. Here they are:

KC & The Sunshine Band inspired drum circle rhythm:
"That's The way, Uh Huh, Uh Huh, I like It, Uh Huh Uh Huh"
♫♫ Doum ka-tek, ka-DoumDoum Tek, KaDoum ka-tek, ka-DoumDoum Tek ♫♫♫
(I guess that disco era helped me out after all!)

Good start up drum circle rhythm: ♫♫ "Yum Yum Tastes Like Ckic-Ken" ♫♫ (Just like it sounds) - doum doum tek-ka tekka, doum doum tek-ka tekka ♫♫

♫♫ An easy way to get a Clave drum rhythm jamming is to remind people of the beat to songs like "Mockingbird" or "Hand Jive" ♫♫♫

Sly & The Family Stone inspired beat. Boom sha-ka la ka, Boom sha-ka-la-ka

Word association is a great way to get a 6/8 drum circle rhythm going.
♫♫♫ Fol-low-the-yel-low-brick-road-go-do-pa-ta-pa ♫♫♫

The "conga line" rhythm usually turns into a good drum jam. On the Doumbek:
♫♫ doum-ka, doum-ka, tek--tek. ♫♫ Or on the Djembe: gun-pa, gun-pa, go--do ♫♫
or just feel the rhythm vamp to MJ's “Thriller".

Variation of an African drum rhythm Gunazi. ♫♫ Boom sha-ka Boom Boom, shakala, Slap!, Boom sha-ka Boom Boom, shakala, Slap! (or some accented tone at the end) ♫♫

♫♫ Cuckoo! ♫♫ Common commercial jingles make fun drum circle rhythms:
Cuckoo for cocoa Puffs - Shaka-sha-lakaBoom, Shaka-sha-lakaBoom

Drum circle rhythm with a Brazilian flair to it:
♫♫♫ Doum--ka-tekka--Doum--ka-tek-ka,- Doum--ka-tekka--Doum--ka-tek-ka ♫♫

♫ Boom-Boom chakachaka ping ping ping! ♫♫ (gun dun patapata slap slap Slap)

Masmuudii 316 - A fun drum circle rhythm that rolls like a freight train
♫♫ D---D---t-k-T-k-D-tktkt-TktkT-t (repeat 4/4 time) ♫♫

Idol inspired Balloon Boy Drum Circle Rhythm ♫ oom-pah---oom-pah---oom-pahpah__oom-pah---oom-pah---oom-pah-barf ♫ (start with dominant hand, RL,RL,RLR__LR,LR,LRL) Bass, tones, and etc. (Alternate to balance both sides of the body.)

"Bambii" A cool drum circle rhythm -
Doum-tekka-katek-tekka-kaDoum-Doum__Doum-tekka-katek-tekka-kaDoum-Doum Doum ♫♫♫ (It's in 4/4 time, the 3 Doums at the end is what makes this one really groove.)

(Or, try it filled: Dk kT kk Tk kT kk D D)

Nice support rhythm to start at the drum circle:
♫♫ Boom sha La-ka Boom Boom-Cha__Boom sha La-ka Boom Boom-Cha ♫♫

♫♫ Cool drum circle rhythm Karsilama 3, it has a triplet at the end:
D-kkT-kkD-kkT-T-T (2+2+2+3) (Shorthand notation on this one.) ♫♫♫

Addictive drum rhythm that's similar to the rhythm Ayyub ( D k-D t )
On the Doumbek: ♫♫ Doum tek-keh Doum tek (repeats and builds) Or on the Djembe: Gun go-do Gun go ♫

Tootie Fruitie Drum Circle Jam - ♫ Wop-baba-lou-bop__a-wop-Bam-Boom, Wop-baba-lou-bop__a-wop-Bam-Boom ♫♫ (I think Little Richard might dig us drumming to this.)

Sweet drum circle rhythm: ♫♫ Boom - che-boom_che-boom-a-choc_o_late__choc_o_late, (dramatic pause) Boom - che-boom_che-boom-a-choc_o_late__choc_o_late ♫♫♫

Drum to rhymes or phrases to start a 6/8 drum circle rhythm rolling:
♫ You-huff-and-you-puff-and-you-blow-the-Gun-Dun-go-do ♫

♫♫ Saiidi Drum Circle Rhythm - Doum tekka tekka doum doum tekka-Tek ♫♫

Beledi - Zaffah variation, Boom chick-a chick, Boom Boom _ chick-a-chick-a boom.

Gawazi - a great drum circle rhythm for dancers
♫♫ D tkD D tkt tktk, D tkD D tkt tktk ♫

Slower grooving drum rhythm. Usually a hit with beginners & pros -
♫ Boom, sha-La-Ka-Boom-Boom (pause) Boom, sha-La-Ka-Boom-Boom ♫

♫♫ A fun variation of the Chifitelli rhythm (played nice and slow)
Doum, tek-ka tek-ka doum doum Tek (pause) Doum, tek-ka tek-ka doum doum Doum. ♫

Zaffah drum rhythm (As far as I know it's an Egyptian wedding processional in 4/4 time.) D-tkt-t-D-t-t-tt (repeat)

One of my favorite drum rhythms:
Doum tek a tek tek-ka, Doum tek a tek tek-ka, Doum tek a tek tek-ka, Doum Doum Tek. (pause, and repeat)

This drum circle rhythm has kind of a hip hop feel to it. (4/4 time) ♫♪ Doum Doum, kaTek-doum, kaDoum Tek, ♫♪ Doum Doum, kaTek-doum, kaDoum Tek (fun!)

♫♫ Boom ShaLa-Ka BoomBoom (pause) Boom ShaLa-Ka BoomBoom (pause) ♫♫ This drum circle rhythm played nice and slow has a spiritual vibe, it’s good one to get the group in sync. Great for 3 djun djuns.

♪♫♪ A good warm up rhythm, or drum circle starter is the basic drum circle standard Doum Ka-Tek Ka, Doum Ka-Tek Ka, (or) Boom Sha-La Ka, Boom Sha-La Ka in 4/4 time. If played softly at a slow tempo, you can speak to the rhythm and welcome people, etc. It's also great for someone who does spoken word, or even a budding rapper. Makes for some great improvised fun. We had this guy who used to bust out some great rhythms and stories to this one.

An intriging drum circle rhythm in a count of "7" (1-2, 1-2, 1-2-3) Triplet at the end. Sounds like this: Doum(rest) Doum(rest) tek-ka-tek or Doum_Doum_tek-ka-tek, Doum_Doum_tek-ka-tek ♪♪♪ Interesting stuff happens, or you get a train wreck. But that's half the fun, taking a risk.

♫ One of many Native American heartbeat drum rhythms in 4/4 time, mellow bass notes: Boom__boom__boom,boom,boom, - (1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &) Boom__boom__boom,boom,boom - ♫♫

♫♫ Doum-Tek-Ka Doum-Tek-Ka Doum__Tek, Doum-Tek-Ka Doum-Tek-Ka Doum__Tek, ♫♫ Start with a real slow tempo and it's a trance rhythm. Speed it up and it rocks! ♫♫

A Tabla rhythm, but fun to try on a djembe or doumbek: ♫ da-di ki na doum, da-di ki na doum. ♫

This drum circle rhythm the bellydancers request a lot. It's a Greek line dance in 2/4
♫ Doum-tekkatek-tek, Doum-tekkaDoum-tek. ♫♫ It has a nice groove once it gets going.

Here's a basic Irish beat that sounds like this: Boom-ba-da-ba, Boom-ba-da-ba Boom, Notated in Bodhran speak, it looks like this: 0 \/ /\ \/, 0 \/ /\ \/ 0, - Have fun and add some more beats to it: - Boom-ba-da-ba-da-ba-da, Boom-ba-da-ba-da-ba-da Boom.

Just a little to the North of us is Tarpon Springs, which has a large Greek population. This drum circle rhythm is the same one the Greek national hymn goes to: ♫ Doum-tekkaTek-tek-Doum-tek-, Doum-tekkaTek-tek-Doum-tek ♫

♪♫ This 4/4 drum circle rhythm has a "hand clap" in it, which adds to the fun & creates a new dimension. Doum Tek-Ka, Doum Tek-Ka, Doum Tek Clap, (pause, repeat phrase) I suggest playing it at a slow tempo, and it gets people laughing if you make the hand clap a high five to the person on their right. ♪♫

Speaking of clapping, the clapping beat at the beginning of the song "Car Wash" makes a jovial drum circle rhythm. ♫ doum, doum, doum ka-tek ka tek! (pause) ♫ doum, doum, doum ka-tek ka tek!

♫♫♫♫ Bolero Drum Circle Rhythm in 4/4 time, the accents are in caps:
Doum tekkaTek ka tek ka tek ka, Doum tekkaTek ka tek ka tek ka ♫♫♫♫

♫ Word association is a great way to get a drum circle rhythm going especially with kids: "The people on the train go round and round" ("The" is a whole note, "people on the train" all quarter notes, "go round and round" half notes, and there is a pause at the end. ♫

♪♫♪ ♪♪♪ Another "sweet" drum circle rhythm Agilablanca in 4/4: I-like-to-eat__choc-late-cake, (pause, repeat) ♪♪♪ (the 1st half is all tones, the last half is all bass notes)

A variation of an Egyptian drum rhythm called ♫ Karaatshi ♫ in 2/4 time:
Doum-tekkatek-tekkaDoum-tekkatek-tekkaDoum

Less sometimes really is more. A simple beat can make a great drum circle rhythm starter, (and really please the “players”) : ♫ Doum-Doum (pause) Doum-Doum (pause, repeat) ♫ Or, Gun-Dun (pause) Dun-Gun (pause) ♫
Kind of like the rhythm Ayyub (D k-D t, D k-D t) it leaves plenty of space to add fills, solos, and to improvise.

A good party drum circle rhythm we played at the last Mardi Gras: ♫♫ The roof, the roof...the roof is on Fire! ♫♫ Say it then play it. doum Doum, doum Doum...ka tek-ka Ka Tek! ♫♫

♫♫♫ Interesting yet challenging drum circle rhythm in 6/8 sometimes known as Darj:
D-TkT-D-T
1-+-2-+-3-+-

An Egyptian drumming rhythm called ♫♫♫ Jaark ♫♫♫ in 4/4 time:
D-kkT-tkDDtkT-tk, D-kkT-tkDDtkT-tk

Occasionally after a couple of hours of drumming, people run out of good group drum circle rhythms to start out with. People will look around and say, “Anyone got a rhythm to start out with?” This djembe support rhythm always turns into a good drum jam. It’s in 4/4 time:
Go Do pata padaTa, Go Do pata padaTa (Go and Do are 1 & 2, the Ta is a slap tone)
(I use "da" as a closed tone note, or as a different softer lower pitched sound between "pa" and "ta".)
1, 2, 3, 4, Try tapping your foot on the 4 counts as you play it. Or here is 2 measures, count to 4 twice, D D tk ktT, D D tk ktT

Here’s another djembe support rhythm to try, the gun and dun are all bass and the rest tone notes, in 4.4 time:
Gun pa gun-dun, Gun pa da-pa, (half beat pause and repeat the phrase) Gun pa gun-dun, Gun pa da-pa. If there’s any good soloists, or even djembe cowboys in the house, they will love you for it. lol

Drum circle rhythm WaaHida in 4/4: 1+2+3+4+
♫♫ Doum-tekkatekkaTek-tekkatekkaTek-ka-, Doum-tekkatekkaTek-tekkatekkaTek-ka-,

Drumming out a waltz? It may sound like a bit of a yawner, but honestly, I think the drum circle waltz is a great way to balance the mind, body, and help get people firmly grounded. Once it gets rolling, it can always easily transition to a snappy 6/8 rhythm. It's an especially good rhythm for groups of beginners. Try to get them to alternate hands, R-L-R, L-R-L (Gun-do-go, Dun-go-do) Accent on the 1st bass note. The key to this one is to keep it at a slow tempo for awhile.

Try drumming out "Morse Code" rhythms. Ask someone to suggest 2 letters, or numbers, and put them together to make a new drum circle rhythm. ♫♫ _ _...._ _ ♫♫ A dot is a tone, and a dash, is a bass note. Sometimes they work, & sometimes they don't, that's part of the fun. There’s a Morse Code alphabet chart on my site drumcircles.net

An interesting drum rhythm known in some cultures as Sabamaa. Played in 4/4 time.
♫♫ D-TkTkT-D-TkT-Tk, D-TkTkT-D-TkT-Tk ♫
Again, try tapping your foot as you play. 1-2-3-4
D-TkTkT-D-TkT-Tk
1e+a2e+a3e+a4e+a

I dig this drum circle rhythm because of the long pauses. It gives the bass a chance to resonate a little bit. It’s in 4/4 time - ♪♫ Doum---tekkatek-tek-Doum---tek-, Doum---tekkatek-tek-Doum---tek-, ♫♪♫♪

♪♪♪♪♪ A basic yet fun drum circle rhythm sometimes called the Turkish 5. Plenty of room for fills. It's in 5/4 time, all the beats are on the numbers:
1+2+3+4+5+
D k t k t

Fun djembe support rhythm for the drum circle: ♫ Gun Dun godo pa-ta-pa, Gun Dun godo pa-ta-pa ♫♫ (or) Doum Doum tekka ka-tek-ka, Doum Doum tekka ka-tek-ka ♫

"A Drum Circle Rhythm You Can't Refuse" ♫♫ Ba-da Bing, Ba-da Boom, Ba-da Bing_Bang_Boom, ♫♫ (or) Go-do Pa, Pa-ta Go, Go-do Pa_Ta_Pa ♫♫

"Little Drummer Boy" Christmas drum rhythm, if you can hum it, you can drum it!
♫♫♫ Let's All Play Our Drum...Pa - Rum Pa PumPum...Rum Pa PumPum ♫♫♫

Sort of a trance drum circle rhythm. ♫♫ Doum-tek-ka-Doum-tek-ka-Doum-tek, Doum-tek-ka-Doum-tek-ka-Doum-tek ♫♫♫♫

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Sometimes to have a great drum circle rhythm jam, it needs a great ending. Rather than the usual fade out, or rumble ending, try this out. I usually mention the idea to the group, and we quickly practice it in advance before we start, so everyone is ready. Like about a 30 second rehearsal. Then get right to the rhythm you had planned to play. For me, 4/4 time works the best. The end is 9 tones then 2 bass notes. Repeat 6 times with a pause between each rep. As we are still playing, I will holler out, “Okay, here comes the ending! And count them down out loud. “ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 boom boom, (pause) “5 more” 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 boom boom, (pause) “4 more times” etc. ♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪♪_♪_♪_

Another fun ending is 5 tones followed by 3 bass notes. A 1 beat pause and repeat them whole thing 6 times. After the rhythm has run it's course, get everyone's attention & say, "ok here comes the ending", and go right into it. 12345_1_2_3 (Again, I count the reps down out loud), "5 more times" and we play, tek ka tek ka tek, doum_doum_doum. “4 more times” etc. ♪♪♪♪♪_♪_♪_♪_

The fun thing about these drum rhythm endings is that they all catch on after the 2nd or 3rd rep. and all end together. On the last one, everyone usually stops in unison, then a big whoosh of silence, followed by smiles claps and pride. It's very cool, and a good confidence builder. To help this work smoother, I usually I quickly practice the ending in advance with the group before we start, and then go right into it, so they are prepared when the time comes.

Bring along a hula hoop to ramp up the fun at your drum circle. It gives people a rhythmic motion to groove to. I was surpised when I saw people of all different ages wanting to get in there and try it. The drum rhythm Beledi is a good one to use. D D tkT D tkT(pause)D D tkT D tkT ♫♫. 4/4 time, it sounds like: Doum Doum tek-ka-Tek, Doum tek-ka-Tek. {One of my dancer friends said the Beledi rhythm is the "Catnip Rhythm" for belly dancers. lol. I like that.)

I hope this list helps you and your friends to enjoy drumming more. I also have this rhythm list in Word.doc format at my website. You can download and print it free. If you are new to drumming, and would like some more in depth info on reading, understanding, and playing transcribed drum circle rhythm notations, please read a few of my older my blog posts for 2010. I put my older blog post list of rhythms together, and added a few more so they are all in one place, and this is it.

If you would consider picking up my drum circle rhythms DVD, I would appreciate that, and it would help out a little bit. Thanks in advance if you do. The 2 hour DVD will show you how to play over 100 diffferent rhythms for $15. Please visit drumcircles.net for the DVD and more.

Shannon

Including Everyone At The Drum Circle

2010-11-04T13:35:00.000-07:00

It’s often the case that a drum circle will draw people who have never drummed before. But, there may also be some very advanced drummers, as well as everything in between. Keeping the circle interesting for the advanced without intimidating the beginners requires a bit of a different approach than one often finds. Many drum circle facilitators tailor their programs purely for the beginners. Most people have music in their backgrounds, so it makes sense to not only include and welcome them, but to create an environment where they are free to share their gift with everyone.

I try to keep the drum circle accessible to all skill levels, because many times people will be transitioning in and out of the circle as it’s going on. So my approach to it needs to be a bit different. Most of the time when I’m introducing a new rhythm, I will make up words to go with the beat. For example, “I like chocolate cake.” for doum-doum-teka-tek. People seem to find the combination of words and hearing the beat makes it easier to follow, and the brain can process it faster. I also start the beat very slowly, vocalizing the words as I do. This also makes it easier for me to hear whether everyone is able to follow along.

Once the group is in sync, I can start to slowly speed it up to tempo if people are feeling it. Then we can then add in more complex variations. And I always encourage people to improvise from the beginning. It is, after all, just the support rhythm – it’s just a starting place. Volume is something I address early on. If it’s too loud it’s unpleasant for most people. So during the first few rhythms after it is locked in, I will decrescendo gradually but keep the tempo up. People will have to play softer to hear what’s going on, and this sends the message without having to actually say it. Now they are listening to you play, and everyone else as well.

Somebody has to hold that bottom beat, or support rhythm or you can end up with banging noise chaos, or the rhythm speeding up out of control. People trying to out drum the others. End result – not much fun. It’s true that holding the support rhythm does create a dependency, but until the rhythm is locked in, you kind of need to be there for that. Or somebody does. Train wrecks do happen. Laugh it off, and move on to a slower tempo rhythm to reenergize the fun.

I prefer to facilitate from the side of the drum circle rather than in the center. To me the center is a place for people to explore, and for self expression. Dancing, hooping, etc. By facilitating from the side, I am just a part of the circle, part of the group, rather than an obvious leader in the center conducting something. Plus, I want to enjoy the experience as well, so by going back to my place in the side of the circle I can be a participant, as well as a facilitator. (If that is my role.)

If I have some good drummers whom I know show up, I can count on at least one of them to just hold the bottom beat. This helps newbies to return to the beat if they get a tad lost. Once I sense that the rhythm is solid, once or twice during the evening’s circle I will slowly walk around the interior of the drum circle playing the rhythm near each of the drummers. Not too close, or for too long to make them uncomfortable or get in their space, but just enough so they can hear my saying “hello, welcome, glad you are here”, with my drum. As I do, I listen to skill levels, and watch to see who might be experiencing drum confusion. I’m also enjoying the solid drummers, and/or soloists.

My experience has taught me there is always somebody out there who is a better drummer than me. Often more than one at any given drum circle I might me hosting or facilitating. Rather than being competitive, I would rather have them as an ally, so they can share their gift with the group. I want them on my side. At some point, I welcome them to come stand next to me and let them know I welcome their ability and their talent. I vibe them that it’s cool if they are a better player – hey lets just have some fun making music together. A simple smile as we are playing can send that message clearly.

I’m cool that they can solo, or play better than me. That sets things at ease right away, and that possible alpha male – djembe cowboy thing is never an issue. I will usually just hold a solid support rhythm so they can feel free to solo, or get down on a beat. More often than not, the entire group enjoys it, and the excitement level is ramped up a notch. Offer to let them start out the next rhythm if they wish. Some will want to, some won’t. Let them know it’s cool either way. Offer to let anyone start out a rhythm. It’s taking a risk, but that’s part of the fun, taking chances. It is after all, a drum circle, not brain surgery. After that, the serious players drift back into being an ensemble player, and a solid part of the group.

Another key thing I try to do after a rhythms ends, is acknowledge anyone who stepped up and took a risk. Did some outstanding drumming, some hula hoping, bellydancing, or whatever. It takes some stones to get out there and do that. So at the rhythm’s end after the applause, I make it a point to say, “How about a nice hand for that amazing soloing, or fantastic dancing! By…” etc. I mention their name if I can remember it, or simply ask them what their first name is so I can do it proper. They deserve it, and again the message to the group is hey it’s not all about me, it’s about the group.

When I am making my interior stroll around the interior of the circle, there is a few things for me to consider, and honestly, it comes with experience. The more you do it, the easier it is. It takes time to assess if a person is confused, or if they are just kicking back enjoying things for a bit. It’s important to remember that all those who may be wandering, are not always lost. If I do find someone obviously trying to figure things out, I don’t say anything, but just stand next to them for a few measures, so that they can feel and hear the beat and also see my hands if they want to. I will usually smile or offer a wink hello, but contact is made more with the sound of my drum. I don’t want people to feel uncomfortable, I’m just playing next to you for a few moments to say hello, and help them get a handle on the beat. But I’m also accessing skill levels and offering that basic rhythm if someone needs it.

I rarely make much eye contact, because that tends to make it more obvious that I might be helping someone along. If the person is really struggling, I will do this with just the basic beat, sometimes even just the bottom beat. Once they get comfortable with that, I move on to the next one in the group. I try to stop and play a bit even next to the really good drummers also, so that those who are struggling do not feel singled out, and it seems I am just welcoming everyone the same way. The entire process of my circle wander may take 5 minutes at the most. But this is one of the mechanical things I do at every drum circle I facilitate. Once or twice during the evening at most. The most I will ever say, (Quietly with a smile of course) is “Hey, how’s it going, nice to see you. That sort of thing. But I continue playing, all the time. I want to be a part of the group, and not put anyone on the spot. But if someone wants the spotlight, I offer it to them.

I also want to encourage those people who are in the back perimeter standing around and listening to the music. I like to put a few wicker baskets of percussion “toys” around the space. Some pieces are actual, real percussion instruments. But, a lot are throw away, homemade items. For example, large painted vitamin bottles with macaroni inside (uncooked, LOL) and taped shut makes a decent shaker. I also include inexpensive tambourines, guiros, and maracas. None of these are very loud, so that people can just pick one up and play along without being afraid of messing up the rhythm or drawing attention to themselves. It really increases the fun factor for people when they participate, on whatever level they are comfortable with. It encourages the onlookers, and possibly timid to join in when they feel ready.

I make it a point during the circle to let them know the toys are out there, and to join in whenever you wish. If you are trying to start an ongoing drum circle, you want them to leave wanting to come back for more. They will tell their friends how much fun they had at that drum circle last night, it creates a buzz of talk about it in your area. That’s a key to creating a solid community happening. Word of mouth. Of course Face Book helps to. LOL.

My opinion is that getting people to relax and have fun is what brings the true magic into a drum circle. Most people get something special from it and I feel that this is the true value on the community. Music making that is the essence of drum circles. To me, it is more about the people, rather than the quality of the music. But generally the more fun people are having, the better the musicality is. Check out my book on hand drumming and drum circles. It’s 300 pages jammed with ideas, tips, and suggestions. Pick it up on Kindle for $10. Or a physical copy at my website for $18. I include a free drum circle jam CD if you pick it up from me direct. Thanks in advance for helping an independent musician.

Shannon
drumcircles.net

Drum Circle Benefits – Social, Physical, & Mental?

2010-09-30T16:39:00.000-07:00

There have been some recent studies indicating that drumming may be equivalent to some medications. When we are inactive, the hippocampus, the part of the brain that regulates mood, gets smaller. Dancing and drumming actually spurs new nerve growing in this area and relieves and prevents depression. I’ve seen it happen with my own eyes in people that had supposedly incurable nerve damage. So what makes dance different from other exercise? Playing or dancing to drum rhythms increases neural transmissions. Drumming also helps to rebuild neuro-receptors. The repetitive physical activity of drumming and dance is soothing to the soul and human body, and the simple repetitiveness of the drum beat pattern has a lot to do with it.

A newer friend of mine spoke with me after a few months of attending a weekly drum circle I facilitated. She had a number of physical and health limitations that were obvious, like nerve damage, and It looked like she was just slowly getting better. I noticed her improving dramatically in both her health and state of mind. Please keep in mind I’m not a doctor, or am I recommending a treatment. This is just what I observed, and what was shared with me.

It seems she became paralyzed from the neck down six years ago following a botched surgery. A blood clot formed in her spinal cord and as it traveled toward the brain, it did extensive nerve damage. She had spent six months in a wheelchair, and another year in a walker. She was also a migraine sufferer, having them as frequently as three times a week. When she was 13, her doctor suggested relaxation therapy, in an effort to try and avert the migraines. So it was then that she first employed music for its healthful benefits, and not just something pretty to listen to. She learned to listen to it differently. To breathe the music.

Then she found our little drum circle. She was seated in the back, and I just held out and offered a drum I brought over to her. She was so surprised, and flustered, that she accepted it and said “I don’t know what to do!” I said, just play whatever you want, whatever you feel like playing, and don‘t worry about it. Just have some fun, and play when you feel like playing. Nobody cares how good you are here, and you are not going to mess anyone else up. Everyone is here just to have fun.

It was one of those light aluminum doumbeks by the way. Those are ideal for beginners I think, because they are light, very comfortable to hold and play, plus most of them are just intriguing looking drums to people. It’s like an immediate, “yeah that looks like fun, I wanna try that”. She kept coming back to the drum circle for weeks after that.

She said it opened up a whole new channel into her inner core. And that the drum casts a spell on anyone who hears it, and more so, on those who play one. Although other music can be equally entrancing, it only has that power if you listen to it, but the drum finds its way into your soul without you even knowing it. Before long, you find the rhythm so familiar, and so comforting, much like the rhythm of the human heart. This, to me, is just the spiritual power of drumming.

Now the more scientific stuff. She been coming to the drum circle for about six months, and when she first started coming, most of her fingers had little to no feeling in them. She felt that when she struck the drum with her hands, the vibrations carried up into her arms. The thinking was that nerves need to be stimulated in order to heal. Over the course of the last two months, she’s actually noticed more increased sensation in her fingers. I can't say for certain if drumming is responsible for the new found sensation, but it's the only thing in her lifestyle she said she had changed over the past several months that could possibly have made a difference. I might add that, according to what her doctor had told her, is that her nerves were "permanently" damaged. They started to improve.

Finally, she added that over the course of many years she had been treated for severe depression. Although she became healthy enough to stop taking medication two years ago, she had continued to suffer periodic short bouts of the depression. Before finding the drum, she would simply "wait it out" and let the spell pass. Sadly, it was usually at the expense of family and friends dragging around for days until something changed and lifted her spirits up. She eventually bought her own djembe drum.

Now, when she feels low, she picks up her drum and begins to play with the mother rhythm or some other rhythms she now knows, just letting the drum and her heart become one. She said once she achieves that, she simply lets her heart take over, and allows her hands to play whatever her heart tells her to play. At the end of the drumming session, she found herself not only deeply relaxed, but, by the same token, reenergized and happy to be alive. It takes her back to a place where she has the deepest appreciation for the smallest of things. It's much more than "just" a drum. It's magical, and that makes you look at everything else with a different perspective.

Aside from that, drumming studies have been done and the results indicate it can help out people that have/had breast cancer. Apparently, that the exercise involved with drumming or dancing, can lower the risk of estrogen related tumors. Just thirty minutes of it a day can dramatically decrease the odds of another tumor occurring. I can believe it after seeing the nerve damage healing in her, and in others.

For those who undergo chemotherapy, aromatase inhibitors decrease estrogen. Estrogen loss speeds up bone loss. Dancing and movement helps slow that loss. Newer studies also indicated that exercise can reduce the symptoms of lymph-edema if it is approached gradually. Belly dancing is particularly beneficial style. All those arm extensions and playing the Zills (little finger cymbals) is a natural way to aid in lymph drainage. And it may even help reduce the effects of carpal tunnel syndrome. And it entices us guys to play better.

Drumming even helps to make you smarter. Doh! Improved IQ scores can now officially be added to the growing list of benefits from playing at the drum circle. A recent study showed that playing the drums improved the IQ scores of some children. I mean, if you think about it, drum rhythms are mathematic in their natural form. (4/4 time, 6/8, etc.) They are drumming, and learning some basic math in the process of having fun.

While many various studies have indicated that musical training can improve a person's literacy and math skills, this is particularly interesting, because it is the first time that a study has shown that just drumming alone, can improve your intelligence level. Playing the drums is unique in that it makes the brain think in such a way that very few other activities can do. Being able to learn and understand drum beats, and figure out how the various drum rhythms go together is actually a very complicated thought process. This kind of thinking exercises your brain, and actually helps make you smarter.

For every hour you are dancing or drumming you can possibly add an extra hour to your life. What a nice added bonus. It was explained to me by a belly dancer one time that the different parts of the body represent different natural elements of the earth in their expression. That the movements in the base and pelvic areas represent earth and grounding. Movements in the belly represent the flow of water. Movements in the upper parts of the body represent the fire. The hand movement represents the air.

Over the course of the years I have seen some fascinating things happen with people. In a regular weekly drum circle, people with all sorts of personal problems and issues. Social difficulties, self consciousness, physical limitations, and numerous other things would slowly start to heal themselves. Relationships slowly developed, people fell in love and found life partners. The introverted slowly started to come out of their shells.

The drum circle is a non threatening environment, so people begin to relax about their social feelings and limitations. We are just there to play music together, the most honest way of getting to know someone there is. People have a real life, and a musical life. I got to know so many of these people so very intimately musically, yet I knew nothing about their real lives. What they did, where they are from, what hobbies they have, and on and on. Many of them were professional people from all walks of life, and all different ethnic backgrounds. I knew nothing about them, but I had been playing music with them for so very long, I had this feeling I had known them my entire life. I felt like I knew them better than any of my best friends. It sounds strange even to write it, but it is true. Of course there were many that I became close personal friends with, but for the most part, I didn’t know a lot of them, except musically. After all, I was busy playing all night, and never got to actually talk to them, except with our drumming. The most honest form of communication is music.

People that had just experienced some recent sadness, or even a tragedy in there life would go there, because they could be around a supportive group of friends who cared about them as a friend, and they would not to have to grieve alone at home. They had a community of friends they could go to. We would all help them deal with it through the drumming. And they knew that people genuinely cared about them. Even the ones who only knew them musically. This kind of thing happens at a regularly meeting drum circle. Happy things got celebrated as well. Birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays.

After about a year, this drum circle had become so popular that the media eventually started to wander in and asked me to do interviews about this particular drum circle, and drum circles in general. It was quite a nice article, and lots of credit goes to a wonderful writer. There is a link to it on the main page of my website:

drumcircles.net
Shannon

Drumming Up The Golden Ratio & The Center Of The Drum Circle

2010-08-30T13:08:00.000-07:00

It’s not about gold plating your djembe to increase the value of your portfolio. The Golden Ratio can apply to drumming. It dates back at least to the ancient Greeks, who noticed that certain proportions in architecture resulted in a more visually appealing construction. Since then, it has become a standard of design for art as well. The mathematics are complex, but not necessarily required. The interesting thing is that it applies to music, also. There it refers to relationships of chord progressions and harmonics. Many of the great classical composers, as well as current ones, utilize this.

For percussion, in drum circles, and even in bands, the application is more subtle. Combinations of rhythms produce a more powerful impact than others. Since a drum circle is, by its very nature, highly improvisational, this is not something that can be planned. But, it can be perceived, as the combination of individual drummers' beats will suddenly produce a solid, powerful unity of music. This is just the random occurrence of everything coming together and locking in…to an extent that everyone can feel it happening. Sometime for only a few moments, sometimes for much longer. It’s hard to describe the feeling and sensation in mere words. I think that in some ways, analyzing it is just an attempt to make scientific sense out of what is truly and inherently pure magic.

I’ve experienced the golden ratio playing songs in bands, and in drum circles. Here we are, doing the same old routine song, and all of a sudden we start to improvise, and suddenly it morphs and changes into this amazing moment. You can feel this sort of glow.

But more often I have seen, and experienced it during open freestyle drum circles. It just magically comes along and happens. Some facilitators are critical of what they might term as a thunder drum circle, but I think they are missing out on the free and open willingness to be creative and let this kind of thing to happen naturally. As hard as you might try, it’s almost impossible to create the musical Golden Ratio. But you can create an environment where it might occur.

One way I try to encourage this is by leaving the center of the drum circle open. To me, this is a place for the participants to express themselves and be creative. I saw this at my first drum circle in the mid 70’s. To me, the center is a place for expression, not a place to play teacher. If you are a drum circle facilitator, I’ve seen a few that spend most of the time in the center giving out instructions. With beginner groups I may get in the center to introduce a rhythm, or bring one to an end so we can move on to something else, but I do 95% of my facilitating from the side of the circle as a participant, and mostly use the music to do it. That way, it doesn’t seem like such obvious facilitation, and the group is more empowered to be creative. It all just comes together. Even what may be perceived as a train wreck, can be laughed off, and a kickin’ new rhythm can then emerge.

Spontaneous things are less likely to happen unless there is an open space for people to get up in there and dance. I never ask people to dance, they will do it if they are feeling it. The onlookers who might not be ready to drum yet, can wander in there and dance, wave scarves, wander around to the beat, or whatever they are feeling. People that are drumming might want to take a break from drumming and dance.

Depending on the group, if nobody is in there, perhaps suggest that they are welcome to lay down in the center and feel the rhythm soak into their bodies for a few minutes. I suggest that they try it two at a time and close their eyes. I bring along two beach towels for this purpose. It is a remarkable, and very moving experience.

Another idea is to get a couple of inexpensive hula hoops, and suggest that people can give that a try in the center. It ramps up the fun, and jump starts the dancing. I keep them off to the side and mention they are there if anyone “wants to have a go at it”.

I personally love open drum circles, things don’t always go smoothly, but that’s half of the fun. I don’t know what’s going to happen. Neither does anyone else. I love it when people are "finding" their inner rhythms. I see them taking risks in a place where they feel safe. It’s the safety net, the bottom beat, that they can rely on and fall back to if they need to. I try to guide them on how to listen to what the entire group is doing, using their peripheral hearing. And that it’s ok, to look with your ears. You can see a lot more than can with your eyes. So even if my role there is as a facilitator, I try to create the open drum circle vibe. Let the music flow and evolve, magical things can happen like The Golden Ratio.

Shannon
drumcircles.net

Drumming Via Webcam And With Special Needs Kids

2010-07-31T16:17:00.000-07:00

I’ve been asked a few times about long distance drumming over the web with video camera programs like Skype. My experience, despite some of the technical issues, that it’s a very effective way to teach drumming across the country from the comfort of your home.

A family contacted me some time ago that had an 8 year old child with Cerebral Palsy. They had spoken with numerous doctors and specialists about finding ways to help strengthen his weak arm and hand. Because if he could begin using it more at this young age it might help him to work through it a little, or even help it to heal a little bit.

Please keep in mind that this should be okayed by the person’s doctor. This case was actually a referral from the child’s neurologist. While I have seen multiple people improve through drumming, it is certainly not a cure and every one is unique, so the outcomes do vary. I am just sharing an experience here.

I started by speaking via webcam with the parents about it, and they explained that they wanted to try drumming as a possible solution. I explained that I only teach drumming. I’m not a therapist, and I have no medical degrees. I’m a musician, and I will help to teach him music. Obviously each child, and medical condition has to be approached differently, and that we have to find the right style of drum to suit each individual’s needs.

I suggested that we try a couple of drumming lessons and see how things go. If it works out for him, that we could do a webcam drumming lesson once a week, or twice a month. They could continue as long as they felt he was benefiting from it. I’ve worked a lot drumming with special needs children and adults, both individually and in groups, so finding the right approach and style of drum unique to each person is very important. Most of the time I would just let them choose a drum or percussion item and, later on, suggest they try a different one out.

With this particular child the wish of the parents was to teach him drumming to strengthen the weaker arm. At the time he couldn’t really do anything with it, and didn’t really want to.

I suggested one of those smaller very lightweight aluminum doumbeks. The reason was he would need to grasp the body of the drum with his weak arm to play it, and he could play with his stronger arm. I figured when it got stronger that maybe a set of bongos on a stand might be the ideal drum. I’ve seen people at some of the drum circles I hosted with Cerebral Palsy strengthen their weak hand over the course of just a couple of months by playing the bongos. One person in particular was in a wheelchair and he would just set it on his lap and play. I was rather surprised how quickly the weak arm improved and he could begin to tap out rhythms on the bongos with both hands. It happened so quickly that he could play a rhythm as good as anyone else in the group. One of the keys to it was suggesting a basic foundation drum rhythm, and encouraging them to improvise whenever they felt comfortable. This gets them out of their head, and frees them up to not think, and just have fun playing and improvising.

So that was my thinking looking forward going into this. My approach needed to be different than drumming in the room with someone, because they are in New Jersey looking at me on a computer screen, and I’m down here in Florida. With any 8 year old child there is an attention span issue, so my approach was just to encourage him to have fun drumming. I used very basic drum rhythms with word association. I just wanted to make it fun for him so he would enjoy playing and not think about his condition. I gave him a few hand technique suggestions so he wouldn’t hurt his hand. I chatted with him a little and found out what his hobbies and interests were so I had something to work with. He liked rock music, and the NY Jets. So examples I used were: “We Will Rock You’, “J-E-T-S Jets, Jets, Jets” And we played to those. Just bass and tones. He loved this one: “I like choc-late cake”, - (bass-bass, tone tone tone)

With the long distance thing, and attention span, I felt that a 5 minute drum rhythm jam was plenty, unless he wanted to play it a bit longer, but I tried to keep them short so he wouldn’t get bored. After each rhythm we would talk for a few minutes, so he could rest, and then try another one out. An hour is a long time to drum with one child, but this ended up working very well. After a half hour he was suggesting jingles, sayings, songs, names, phrases, and raps to play, so that’s what we did. We ended up taking turns suggesting them. Again I encouraged him to improvise and play whatever he felt like playing as I held the support rhythm. That first lesson went very well. At the end I asked to speak with the mother for a quick review, and we continued with a 1 hour drum lesson for 4 weeks.

One thing that came up was at times he would get frustrated, and that’s when hobby talk, or things he was interested in would be worked in. Then we could get right back to drumming. It takes a little more extra patience than normal, because kids get aggravated, especially when they have physical limitations. Life is harder, school is harder, and keeping that in mind is important.

At the end of the forth drumming session the mom got on the cam and was delighted to tell me that he was now doing tasks around the house with his weak arm. Simple things like opening the refrigerator door, etc. but is was a progress they hadn’t seen from all the therapies they had tried previously. Keep in mind, he never actually played the drum with his weak arm, he just held onto it while he played with the other one. But this helped to strengthen his arm without him having to do a deliberate task to do it. And that seemed to be the block holding him back.

From there I suggested we upgrade to a set of bongos with a stand. That worked out great. He was excited to play full rhythms with both hands. At first it was barely a curled hand tap, but after a couple of more lessons he was playing some decent beats and now actually playing with the weak hand. I have to say, I was thrilled to see such quick progress with his condition in less than 2 months.

I hoped that he would take such a liking to playing music that eventually he might join the school band like I did. I was a hyperactive child and my parents got me a drum instead of Ritalin. I loved drumming and went on to join the school band as soon as I was old enough.

We continued on for a year or so, with 1 to 3 lessons a month, as the parent’s time allowed. They had 3 other children so being flexible and trying to accommodate their busy schedule was a factor. Slowly during the lessons I would work in a bit of music theory, how to read music, meter, some different time signatures, musical terms and what they meant, tempo, crescendo, decrescendo, etc. It continued on as long as it did because he loved drumming.

After that first year, they were planning a Florida vacation to our area, and wanted to meet me to say hello in person. I suggested that we all go to an open drum circle at the beach. They loved the idea, and it worked out great. I piled up the van with drums and my percussion gig bag, we all went down there and had a blast. It was a very pleasing experience for me. Plus, they bought me dinner at a snazzy restaurant I can’t afford to even go to. We all said goodbye, and the online drumming lessons continued once or twice a month. He was playing on his own now in-between, but still wanted to hang out and jam now and then.

My goal evolved to the point where he wouldn’t need me anymore, as much as it saddened me to think of it. I explained to the mom that’s where I wanted him to get to. Coincidentally, soon after that he joined the school band. I was absolutely thrilled. We had reached that point, where they really didn’t need me for lessons anymore. He was the percussionist in the band, and was musically way ahead of the other kids.

So it was goodbye. I was happy but also sad. A month later they contacted me because he was going to do a school performance in the school band. They gave them a pretty heavy duty scored piece of instrumental music they had to perform live. The mom faxed it to me and I was surprised how advanced it was for a 10 year old group of kids to play. I didn’t see anything like that until I was in high school. I was pleased they were teaching advanced music at such a young age.

But he was stressing over performing it because it was really complicated looking at it from a kids point of view. So we sat down on the computer and went back to the basics. I used word association for musical phrases, we broke it all down measure by measure and slowly put it all back together. It took about 3 lessons to where it all made sense for him, but he got it.

Then I added a little of my experiences with live performances. Things do go wrong, about playing with confidence, and working past mistakes if he made one. To just act like he meant to play that measure that way. His block was that he would want to stop altogether if he got lost, or thought he might have played something wrong. There was a lot of pressure on these kids. But I think it was good for the musical director to challenge them like this. And he was reasonably confident to go perform that in front of a crowd.

I have to admit, I was stressing a little at this point, waiting to hear how it went for him. I so wanted him to do well. Look how far he had come in less than 18 months. From not even being able to move his arm, to playing written music with both hands…Live in front of people. Two longs days went by, and the mom emailed me a short video of the school band performance. That was one of the happiest moments of my life.

How I Like To Read & Play A Notated Drum Circle Rhythm

2010-06-18T21:35:00.000-07:00

Most of the rhythms at the drum circle are in 4/4 time, or in 6/8 time. Using the rhythm below in 4/4 time, that means there is 4 counts in each measure. A quarter note gets one beat.

One way to get the rhythm is to tap your foot 4 times, starting on the "1". Tap on the 1, 2, 3, 4, and play it. Start out with a very slow tempo, you can always speed it up later.

Another way is tapping your foot steadily 8 times during the measure, (twice for each count) So it's like this: 1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &, tap once for each one, 8 times as you play the rhythm. I can't get it to format quite correctly on here, but at least it gives you an idea.

1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &
D-TkTkT-D-TkT-Tk

1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +
D-TkTkT-D-TkT-Tk, D-TkTkT-D-TkT-Tk, D-TkTkT-D-TkT-Tk, And away it flows.

Or try it this way, there is 16 counts in one 4/4 measure. I like to tap on just the number, and the & (+). Some people like to count them all out loud, some tap to all of them etc. It looks like this for 2 measures:

1e+a2e+a3e+a4e+a][1e+a2e+a3e+a4e+a,
D-TkTkT-D-TkT-Tk][D-TkTkT-D-TkT-Tk,

Written out it looks, and sounds like this:
Doum-TekkaTekkaTek-Doum-TekkaTek-Tekka,

Try saying this out loud, and then play along.
1 E & A, 2 E & A, 3 E & A, 4 E & A

The "D" in the rhythm notation is a bass note or Doum. The "T" and "K" are tone notes, right and left hand. The letters in Caps are accented, or louder. I like to play the "T" or "Tek" with my dominant hand. The t and k are softer notes. I hope some of this helps you to play some of the notated drum rhythms in my older blog posts below.

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Here's another rhythm example written slightly differently with the rhythm Beledi: Timing is in 4/4, 1e&a2e&a3e&a4e&a
Try it out, the rhythm phrase below is 2 measures.
I like to count on just the 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4

Rhythm Notation: D D tkT, D tkT - 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4
(The last 4 is a pause, or rest, then the phrase begins again) Sounds like: Doum Doum tekka-tek, Doum tekka-Tek(pause)Doum Doum tekka-tek, Doum tekka-Tek

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An example of a 6/8 rhythm is if you play to the saying: "Fol-low-the-yel-low-brick-road-go-do-pa-ta-pa" or say, "cab-bage-and-broc-o-li, cab-bage-and-broc-o-li". It flows like the rhythm of a shuffle in 6.

So What’s A Good Choice For A First Djembe Drum?

2010-05-24T21:01:00.000-07:00

The short answer in my opinion is something like a Remo djembe with a 12” head size. I don't endorse any drum manufacturers or companies, so I can be straight up with you and share with you what I think. Plus they have all rejected me already anyway. LoL. I can also mention the places I have bought mine from with an unbiased position.

Picking a drum is an important choice, and the following is just my point of view. Finding the one that’s best for your hands, your body, and your soul. One that really “speaks” to you, and has the sound and range you can really enjoy playing. I started out getting the wrong ones for me and ended up constantly upgrading over the years. So I think its best to buy up in quality as much as possible, so you can grow into it. But, hey money’s tight right now, and if you only have a 100 bucks or two, here’s what I suggest.

If you’re on a budget, I think a Toca or a Remo 12" or 14" head djembe is a good head size for a first drum. It’s best to see what size you like first. I think the best thing to do is go to your local music store like Sam Ash or Guitar Center, then and try a few drums and different brands out. Most all the big chain stores have impressive world percussion selections now to choose from now. Talk with the drum guy, ask him to show you around, and try a few out. Then you have a better idea what feels right and talks to you. I think it’s important to support local business in your community, especially the smaller ones, so check them out if you can.

I usually suggest a 12” Remo for a first djembe drum. A 12" head gives you plenty of range and isn't too big or too small. The last time I checked they ran about $200 new. Go to the music store and try playing one, or ask to try one at your local drum circle. If you get a chance, talk with a few other drummers while you are there. They are pretty easy to spot with the big logo on them. They have synthetic drum shells, and synthetic heads, are lug tunable, so they need little maintenance unlike traditional rope tied goatskin drums. Plus they can take a serious beating, and they hold up real well in the humidity like we have here, as well as in the cold. And they have pretty good resale value if you end up needing to sell it. I think they are made from all recycled materials, so that's cool. I use one as a beater drum for the beach, it works great, and sounds halfway decent to me even on the sand.

For a little less cash you can go with a lug tuned Toca “Freestyle” djembe. A little bit lighter drum shell, (It’s a PVC material) and it has a goatskin drum head on it, which I prefer over the synthetic heads. So while it is less durable, it doesn’t have that Remo ping sound, and is more responsive to me. Plus my hands tend to hurt less on goatskin as opposed to synthetic if I get to jamming at a drum circle for a few hours on it. And believe me, that is easy to do.

If you’re short on dough, once you figure out what brand you want, (Toca, Meinl, Remo, etc), you pretty much know what you’re going to get with one of those, so buying one used isn’t really that big of a deal. I’ve bought a lot of them at places like Ebay and Craig’s. If you are patient, you can get one for a lot less than retail. Not bad.

For a wood shell djembe with a goatskin head, a decent one can easily run over $400. Some of them are matched by nothing else in sound and quality, and have gorgeous hand carved art on them. The hand carved wood shell goatskin head djembes sound the best, but are more fragile, more expensive, and you need to learn how to tie the Mali weave knots in order to keep it in tune. Or have a good friend, or pay somebody. There is a lot of cost if your drum head splits. Most of the expense is the time and labor involved. The problem with goatskin is that the pitch changes when you go outdoors. The wood can split over time also. Most all the high quality djembes are rope tuned. I prefer lug tuned goatskin in our Florida humidity. The Latin Percussion Classic or Giovanni djembe is my drum of choice for gigs or performances. To me it brings together the best of both worlds.

As far as buying new drums, I buy a lot from music123.com They also have an outlet store with some pretty good deals, but they come and go fast. I’ve bought quite a few from them in the past because they would usually match the lowest online price I could find, and they also shipped free if I spent over $100. musiciansfriend.com did that for me also. I don’t know if their policy has changed or not. My experiences with both companies has been very positive, customer service and everything. The online retail drum world is very competitive now, so many of them will negotiate with you. I always call them and talk to a sales person, sometimes get a percentage off. Especially if I am buying a few drums.

Please feel free to ask me any questions, I’m always happy to share my experience, and help a fellow musician or artist. As to the what size djembe head size thing, I've come to prefer the 12" (playable size) because it has good range, decent bass, but yet still has the crisp tones I want. It isn't quite so bulky and heavy either. If I get into playing for hours, even with a Slider djembe strap, my back starts to ache. LoL. To me, the 14" is too much bass and reduced tone, and the 10" is the opposite. I like to stand and play, so that my body is straight and energy can flow smoothly through me. If I’m sitting I feel scrunched up. I think Remo makes the Slider djembe strap. It’s a criss cross clip on strap that distributes the weight evenly across my back, and it just clips right on the drum. I swear by those. So does my back.

I've bought and then sold a number of djembe styles and brands over the years, and ended up very happy with the Latin Percussion Giovanni. There is also the LP Classic, but for the price difference, the Gio is only a little bit more money. Plus it looks and sounds just plain beautiful. I love the fact that I can still get the responsiveness of goatskin, and tune it up quickly with a few twists of the wrench. Some have sneered at me for playing a lug tuned djembe, but I'm up and playing while they are on the ground struggling to tie knots and tune up their drum. Plus here in FL the humidity is a problem and drums need tuning indoors or out. I went to lug tunable for most of my djembes for that reason. I like doumbeks because of that also. But if you do end up going with a rope tuned djembe, I do have djembe tuning instructions with photos (pdf.file) on my website. drumcircles.net

So about that synthetic Remo ping sound. Some like it, some don’t. It drives me nuts. Recording sessions, even worse. But for the price, I think it’s a very durable, and a decent sounding drum. One quick fix for the ringing sound is to get some of that blue painter’s tape and stick it under the drum head, Get like a 12” piece, and stick the middle part of it together, kind of like this, “\/” so a 4 inch tail is hanging underneath the drum head in the center. That absorbs it a little, and takes that sound you might hear down a notch.

So is the Latin Percussion or Meinl Floatune lug tuned high priced djembe worth the cost? To me absolutely. A good quality djembe will last you forever if you take care of it, and you can pass it on to your kids. I’ve seen the high end LP’s and Meinl’s used now and then for around $300 on Ebay. I own the Meinl model also by the way, it pretty much sounds the same to me, and weighs a bit less. I just love the Giovanni a little bit more. I suggest to stay away from the low end entry level LP djembe. I forgot what they call it now, the aspire or something newer now. As I'm sure you know, with the big name brands, you get what you pay for. I got my Gio new at music123.com They did match the lowest online price I could find, and took $10 off that. They shipped it free also, so I was pretty happy. I got mine for around $400. Once you play one of those djembes, it’s over, you have to have it imho. I love the Meinl Floatune also because to me it is very similar in sound and quality, yet it has a fiberglass body, so obviously it weighs a bit less than the LP wood shell.

There is tons of online retailers that claim to sell “authentic” roped djembes. Honestly, with a drum like that, I need to see it, play it, and hear how it sounds before I buy it.

I ‘ve heard many things about using lotions on djembe and conga heads. Shea butter, and lots of other stuff. Most all my friends over the years whose experience I really respect say to use nothing at all. Just the natural oils that come from playing when with your hands that builds up. So that's what I do.

A thought about what pitch to tune your congas to, and an easy way to do it. This wise old beatnik dude years ago said to me when I asked him, tune them both to the notes in "Here comes the bride". Simple eh?

For more info on this and other hand drumming and drum circle topics, please consider buying my book, “A Practical Guide To Hand Drumming And Drum Circles” It’s $18. Thanks.

Improving Drum Circle Hosting & Facilitating Skills On Little Or No Money

2010-05-07T21:03:00.000-07:00

I’m often asked how to improve drum circle hosting and facilitating skills with little or no money.

I started with pretty much whatever I could get to come my way. I made up a press pack with some photos, resume, and a generic “what a drum circle is like, the benefits of one, etc.” flier, and I approached the senior centers, special needs facilities, city groups, schools, small businesses, arts centers, cafés pubs, comedy clubs, even at small events. Pretty much anything I could think of. I carried copies of them around in my car, so when I saw something with potential, I would stop and talk with them, leave my press pack, and follow up in a week.

Many of them didn't pay very much, if at all, but they led to other gigs when people could see how worthwhile the activity it was, and what a profound impact it had on the participants. Once people see a drum circle in action, they want to hire you.

Working with children can be brutally honest. They don't pull any punches and can see right through your confidence if it isn’t there. I would say working with kids is probably the best experience, because they have shorter attention spans. They will tell you right away what they think, so you know if something works or not very quickly. Looking ahead, my goal was to be the most well rounded working with all ages and skill levels so I could be prepared for anything at the drop of a hat. That's the goal of most musicians, is to be able to play any song in any genre after hearing a few measures. The ability to work and make adjustments on the fly was what kept people wanting more.

Many are adamantly against the idea of mixing alcohol and drum circles, but the opportunity presented itself at wedding receptions, and steady weekly gigs at night clubs, so I tried it. Obviously it was challenging because you have people drinking, and things can get out of control very easily. But the experience was invaluable. If you can host a drum circle and keep things running smoothly under those circumstances, I think you can work with just about any group, and in any situation. That’s a real training ground.

Looking back, I think working with church groups helped a lot also, because it is more casual and I could try more rhythm ideas out. After years of experimentation, I still say that allowing any group you work with to just make music is the most satisfying for them and for me. I just start them out with different rhythms, step back, participate, and let the group go. A drum circle is more about the people than the actual music. But the better it sounds, the more fun they have. After 5 or10 minutes depending on the groove, if it doesn’t end on it’s own, I will end it usually through the music, and move onto another rhythm. An hour goes by like it’s 10 minutes.

Observing and participating in local open drum circles was also a very good training ground. I could really see what worked and what didn't. Taking lessons or training is useful, especially if you are a new to this, but in my opinion you learn more just by doing. Just get out there and work for whoever you can regardless of the pay. You will have to make lots of on the spot choices and decisions. Some will be right, some will be wrong and flop. Learn to laugh at your mistakes, and everyone else will laugh with you. But your confidence will grow, you will learn from it, and add more things to your mixed bag of rhythms and ideas for future gigs. This is a constant learning process.

I think bringing your own life experiences into your style of hosting or facilitating drum circles is a key also. You are unique just like your fingerprints. I worked for years as a musician, and also as an actor. I couldn’t afford acting classes early on because it was too expensive. It was either that, or pay the rent. To build up my confidence I started trying out at open mic’s at comedy clubs. I would write up a different routine each week, and perform live usually in front of other comedians who were not in the mood to laugh. Sure I bombed at first…A Lot. Then I started getting better. For me, it was like free acting classes. My timing improved very quickly. I didn’t want to go on tour as a comic anyway, I had a family. But after performing in front of hostile audiences, going to an audition for a national commercial in front of a bunch of ad execs, directors, and clients, seemed like nothing compared to that. As a result, my confidence was there, I could improvise, and I worked a lot. It also helped my drum circle skills as well. I hope some of this helps you.

More Notated Drum Circle Rhythms

2010-05-05T14:02:00.000-07:00

An Egyptian drumming rhythm called ♫♫ Jaark ♫♫♫ in 4/4 time (shorthand):
D-kkT-tkDDtkT-tk, D-kkT-tkDDtkT-tk
*note* (Various notation methods shown in older posts.)

Drum circle rhythm WaaHida in 4/4: 1+2+3+4+ ♫♫ Doum-tekkatekkaTek-tekkatekkaTek-ka-, Doum-tekkatekkaTek-tekkatekkaTek-ka-, ♫♫

♫♫♫ Bolero Drum Circle Rhythm in 4/4 time, accents in caps:
Doum tekkaTek ka tek ka tek ka, Doum tekkaTek ka tek ka tek ka ♫♫♫♫

A variation of an Egyptian drum rhythm called
♫♫ Karaatshi ♫♫ in 2/4 time: Doum-tekkatek-tekkaDoum-tekkatek-tekkaDoum

♫♫ One of many Native American heartbeat drum rhythms in 4/4 time: Boom__boom__boom,boom,boom, - (1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &) Boom__boom__boom,boom,boom - ♫♫

A fun drum circle rhythm the bellydancers request a lot. It's a Greek line dance in 2/4 ♫♫ Doum-tekkatek-tek, Doum-tekkaDoum-tek. ♫♫

Here's a basic Irish beat that sounds like this: Boom-ba-da-ba, Boom-ba-da-ba Boom, Notated in Bodhran speak, it looks like this: 0 \/ /\ \/, 0 \/ /\ \/ 0, - Have fun and add some more beats to it: - Boom-ba-da-ba-da-ba-da, Boom-ba-da-ba-da-ba-da Boom, - In Doumbek speak: Doum-tek-ka-tek-ka-tek-...ka, Doum-tek-ka-tek-ka-tek-ka Doum - Djembe speak: Gun-pa-ta-pa-ta-pa-ta, Dun-pa-ta-pa-ta-pa-ta Gun ♫

♫ Djembe speak...B/S...SSTTS.....SS..TTTT....B....STTS...This is a fun rhythm with the base/slap flam thrown in...a bit of a jig

This drum circle rhythm is the same one the Greek national hymn goes to: ♫ Doum-tekkaTek-tek-Doum-tek-, Doum-tekkaTek-tek-Doum-tek ♫

tekka Doum, tekka Doum, tekka tekka tekka Doum, tekka Doum, tekka tekka Tek, tekka tekka Tek, tekka Doum, tekka Doum, tekka tekka tekka Doum, tekka Doum, tekka tekka Tek, tekka tekka Tek

Cool djembe support rhythm for the drum circle: ♫ Gun Dun godo pa-ta-pa, Gun Dun godo pa-ta-pa ♫♫ (or) Doum Doum tekka ka-tek-ka, Doum Doum tekka ka-tek-ka ♫

"A Drum Circle Rhythm You Can't Refuse" ♫♫ Ba-da Bing, Ba-da Boom, Ba-da Bing_Bang_Boom, ♫♫ (or) Go-do Pa, Pa-ta Go, Go-do Pa_Ta_Pa ♫♫

Sort of a trance drum circle rhythm.
♫♫ Doum-tek-ka-Doum-tek-ka-Doum-tek, Doum-tek-ka-Doum-tek-ka-Doum-tek ♫♫♫

♫♫ Tek tek-ka-Tek doum, Tek-ka-tek-ka-Tek doum, ♫♫ Tek tek-ka-Tek doum, Tek-ka-tek-ka-Tek doum, ♫♫ (I heard it in a movie, and thought it was a cool drum rhythm.)

4/4 time: Pum Ba-da Bum Ba-da Pum Ba-da-Ba-da Bum ♫♫ Pum Ba-da Bum Ba-da Pum Ba-da-Ba-da Bum ♫♫

The default universal drum circle beat! Boom boom bhap pa boomba boom bhap. LoL

Da-di ki na doum. Da-di ki na doum.

Publicizing & Promoting Your Drum Circle – Getting The Word Out

2010-03-03T08:39:00.000-08:00

Back in the day before the day without the internet, it was harder to do. I still have my vinyl LP records too. But now, there’s numerous free ways to get the word out about your drum circle. Years ago, it was pretty much just spreading it by word of mouth, posting flyers around, and that was about all I could do. But in reality, word of mouth is still how most drum circles take off and become a really happening scene.

If people had a great time at your drum circle last night, they go to work the next day, and tell their friends and co-workers how much fun they had last night, and word gets spread around very fast. So, just try to make sure it is a positive, fun scene, and it will create lots of talk in your community. In a matter of months the circle will be kickin’ and people will seek it out.

There are some other things you can try, you just have to find the time to do be able to do the work to get the word out there about your circle. Here are a few ideas I’ve tried that have worked pretty well, since the electronic age has taken off. Now, it’s a cinch, if you have the time. And you need to stay on top of the emerging technical breakthroughs that could help you promote things even more effectively. New ways to promote events for free are popping up all the time.

One thing I did that helped, was send a very short press release to all the local papers. Especially the smaller ones, like the weekly free ones you tend see all over the place. They are mostly music, local event, and entertainment oriented, so most are actually eager to post your drum circle event listing for you for free. The big papers also, at least some of them, will print notices for free. Don’t forget the tiny free ones that show up in your yard either.

Most newspapers have a place on the front inside page to send an email, fax, or letter to. Try to contact an editorial person. Try Public TV – Public Access TV – And the college and Public FM Radio stations also. See if they will possibly come by, and run a story on the circle, or at least see if they let you promote a local event, on their site. Most of them will. Drum circles are not just some hippie fad anymore, and they know it.

A very good idea is to make some flyers up to hand out to your friends to give out for you. Try to post them in local music stores, (Say you will send them new customers, because you will.) Look for good old fashioned bulletin boards and put up a flyer there. It’s easy to create a nice looking flyer these days yourself, or at a copy store. Put them in stores, drycleaners, condos, apartments, churches, at work, etc. are all great places to spread the word out about your drum circle. Try other institutions, anything you can think of. Visit any local drum circles, music stores, music teachers, concerts, or any music related events, and give out flyers at a break, or at the end. Approach Tai-Chi and Yoga studios and see if they might like to attend, perform, or at least let you leave some flyers there.

Try to get a few five minute video clips from your drum circle, to post out on the video sharing sites, like YouTube, and there are a bunch more video sharing sites out there now. If you have a video clip, or two, that’s a great way to promote your circle. Keep the excitement going in your community with some good sounding video. Now you can put them on places like GoogleBuzz, FaceBook, MySpace, etc Make sure they sound good, and that people are smiling.

Some try to get email lists of drummers to contact them later to promote circles. My experience is that most people come there to have fun, and drum, not to be asked to sign up on some email list. It’s a bit less intrusive if you can give them a card, or flyer that has your email on it, so they can contact you instead. That way, you aren’t putting people on the spot to give out an email address. This is the method I used, and it worked just fine.

You can post notices for events on drumming newsgroups like Yahoo, Usenet, and Google. And all the other social networking websites like MySpace, FaceBook, MeetUp, Ning, Twitter, and any other social meeting boards you’re on. Or take the initiative and start one up. New sites are constantly popping up all the time. Try to stay up on the ones that seem promising. Join them, and set up a profile. Easy free networking if you have the time. They come and go. Look for local event websites in your area. Most news channels have one. They are always happy to have new content.

You just need to find the time to create a profile for each social site, and that can be pretty time consuming. But once it’s set up and running with one, you can just plug the new information in to the other ones. You can post photos from your drum circle on places like Picasso and Flickr. Do things like putting up the videos I talked about, create a drum circle blog, and do event postings. Try to put some new information out there each few weeks if you can to keep them fresh and interesting. Once you get this publicity “machine” going, it gets a lot easier to maintain, and rolls bigger and bigger like a snowball rolling down a hill. There are dozens of these sites out there now. It just takes some time to set up profiles on all these things.

Once you do, you need to add friends as fast as possible. Just do a search on the key words, drum circle, drummer, belly dancer, fire spinner, or Djembe, etc. and you will find lots of like minded people to send friend invites to. You can build it up quickly if you sit down once a week and do it. Mention your social websites on your flyers that you give out also, so they can find you.

Also try lists like CraigsList, other local event, and online musician’s lists, where you can bulletin your events. There are loads of musician boards and groups out there. You should want to attract local musicians and artists, so you have a strong core group.Many of these social sites have specific drumming, or drum circle groups you can join, and then can post an event on. With some, you can post the event, and then bulletin it out to your friends. You just have to have time, and the willingness to do all the work behind the scenes. It can be a bit tedious, but it’s the way to create a buzz about your drum circle in the area. Create your own group for it if you need to.

About 6 years ago with this one circle, after a couple of weeks, I started this drum circle blog up, describing the happenings of the evening each week. It worked better than I thought it would. It helps to promote it just a little bit more, and you can add it to the social networking sites. The search engines do pick blog entries up sometimes.

I made up these colorful flyers, a money saver is to print them yourself. I put two 5 x 7” ones on each page and cut them in half. Then I went out and asked the local music stores if I could leave stacks of them there for people that might be buying a new drum. I spoke to the managers about it first, and explained to them if they would let me leave them there, I would recommend them to drum circle participants who might want to buy a new drum. After all, it’s better to try one out in person rather than buy a drum blindly online. Plus you are helping to support the businesses in your local community. So they sent me drummers, I sent them customers. That was a huge help. You want the younger crowd there, to create a real happening scene for everyone, and to help spread the word. We had like 5 generations of people all together having fun drumming and dancing. Be sure to have a few stacks of your flyers at your drum circle, and ask people to hand a few of them out to their friends.

I then took the flyers around to all the other drum circles, and at a break, passed a few out to people during breaks in the action, that I was friendly with. Word of mouth about it spread around very quickly, that this was a cool place to come and have a good time drumming in A/C comfort! And this new drum circle took off immediately. We were packing the place every week. The owners were in a state of shock at the success of it. They loved the fact that it was so interactive, and that people that just walked in, could be a part of the band, instead of just sitting somewhere and watching one. I think secretly everyone wants to be in the band at one time or another in their lives. You just have to be a bit tactful passing out flyers at another drum circle. If you participate there it’s a bit easier.

I had no idea that this would actually work, but I think the single biggest help in getting people in there was making some “Drum Circle Now” signs up and hanging them outside in conspicuous places, like nearby telephone poles. Make them about the size of the politician signs you see around elections. I made one that said “Drum Circle” “Belly Dancers Welcome” and put them all up on telephone poles where people just driving by would see them, and be curious enough to want to come in and check it out. I can’t tell you how many people told me “I saw the sign and decided to come in, and I love it!” So these drive by drummers started coming in, and bellydancers too. I couldn’t believe how effective that was. Something so simple, like a stupid hand painted 18” sign. Lots of curious first times came in also from those. Just remember to retrieve them at the end of the night. I'd be tired and forget that a lot.

So you’ve got the social meeting, and networking websites, news groups, and drum circle flyers. All of those all very useful tools to get the word out at no cost, when you are trying to promote your drum circle. The only part that costs anything, is getting some flyers made up. Get some printer ink and make something up. All the rest is free. (For now, anyway.) But as I mentioned, the word of mouth is what works the best.

At some point consider getting some of those band size 4 x 5 vinyl bumper stickers made you see everywhere. It’s is a good idea, and you can stick them on all your drums so you can easily identify them because people are bringing their own drums in. This happens a lot if you get into it, and it‘s an easy way to spot what is yours, and deters any from walking off a little bit. It’s not too expensive to have a 100 made. It’s a fun way for people help to spread the word about your drum circle, website, etc. Hand out those stickers.

One really good idea for promotion, or for building up your press pack, is to try and document your events, whenever you can. Photos are powerful tools, snap pictures whenever it‘s possible, or ask a friend to do so for you. Without annoying people too much of course. Be sure to ask permission, it‘s the right thing to do. And photos of kids are a no - no. The other photo’s are great for your social website profiles, and your press pack. The same thing with videos. Mostly it’s the other people who take the photos, and email them to me. I’m busy playing.

Drum circles at events, clubs, and most paying gigs love to have good press and free publicity. Later you can make up a nice flyer, poster, a letter, card, pictures, and maybe a brochure. A letter of recommendation from the owners is a very useful tool also, later down the road.

But at any gathering or event, make sure it is appropriate to video or take pictures before the event, some groups are very sensitive to their images being released into the public. (Especially special needs groups.) But if the event is in public, it is a lot easier to get permission. Be sure to get it in written form, just an email will do. The rules with video are somewhat more relaxed.

Making that blog about your drum circle helps a lot to promote it. It can be tedious to do it week after week, but it gets the word out there, and people really seemed to respond to it. They couldn’t wait to read what happened last week, or what was coming up this next week.

Odds are that if you live near a metropolitan area, there are some dance teachers, even belly dancing teachers, near you. Take the time to invite them out to dance at the circle. A few of our local dance teachers started to bring their students out for a “field trip” once or twice a month to the circle. They will enjoy it, and it will make your scene all the more “talked about” around town, and at the water cooler. Some entire dance troupes would come in, hula hoopers, various object spinners, tapestry wavers, all kinds of creative types will start coming out once they hear about it.

Also, keep an eye out for openings and events, like the movie, “The Visitor”, which had a little about drum circles in it. We arranged with the theater to have a drum circle inside the lobby before the opening of the movie, then got free passes to go watch it. Approach big cultural events, art fairs, or store openings. Anything where the owners want to create some buzz and draw attention to their business can be an ideal opportunity for you, or your drum circle group.

For thirty something years, I have seen lots of drum circles start up and flourish, and other ones wither and die off in a few weeks. Most people think the drum circle is all about the drumming. It really doesn’t have that much to do with it. The drum circle is not primarily about the drumming and music that is being created. It is more about building a community, the people genuinely finding out who they are, and their self discovery, as they go through this process without even realizing it is happening to them. I know this may sound like some sort of psychobabble, but you will see it happen over a period of months at an ongoing drum circle.

Many successful open public drum circles have started by just having two or three people gathering at a public spot on a beach or at a park, and start drumming together. The word spreads, or you help spread the word about them, and they take right off. Just like that. It’s that simple.

One thing I’ve noticed is people like variety in the rhythms, and like to see a different program from week to week. Otherwise it can get boring. You don’t want the pros to be bored playing the same old beat all night long, or have it too complicated for the beginners either. I offer a 2 hour DVD called 101 Drum Circle Rhythms, that includes a free drum circle CD for $15. It makes a great source of reference material to keep your drum circle fresh and interesting. I think that is the real key to keep people wanting to come back for more week after week. You can pick it up at my site drumcircles.net or Amazon. (No free CD at Amazon.com). I try to offer a good value at a fair price to fellow musicians. Please also consider picking up my book, the proceeds from sales of the DVD and book help me to fund work in our community. Helping others along their drumming path is what it's all about for me.

Ideally you want everyone to be engaged and having a good time. It’s an art form to lead without leading, mix up the rhythms, some up tempo, some slow and grooving, especially for the dancers, without making it too obvious. Whether it’s you starting out the rhythms, or anyone who wants to start one out, or a combination of both. It’s a good idea to really mix up that set list, or at least have a couple of things ready to go, so you can just “go with the flow”. I hope some of this helps your circle to grow!

Eeeking Out A Living Facilitating Drum Circles In Today's Economy

2010-02-01T08:49:00.000-08:00

Times are especially difficult in the arts these days. Everybody is cutting back on expenses. Like in any other field, gaining actual experience is the best way to learn the ins and outs of drum circle facilitation.

Obviously taking facilitation classes is a good idea. But more importantly I think the best thing to do is just attend lots of public drum circles by all the facilitators you can find that are near you. Participate, but watch what they do, and how they deal with various situations. Study what they are doing right, and what they are doing that can be improved upon. If you're considering taking classes, or training I think it's a good idea, but I suggest auditing one of their classes first. If they aren’t willing to let you do that, then perhaps it's wise to move on to another teacher. It is possible to facilitate drum circles for a living, but it takes a lot of work.

One way to get established is to be visible in your community. Get a weekly circle started at a cafe, night club, museum, yoga, art center, public park, community center, even at the beach. Try to get any venue you can think of. Weekly is better than monthly, because people tend to forget what week it is being held. You may start out only making $100 a circle, a commission, tips, or even for free, but it will give you a home base, plus you will be doing something positive for your community. It may take 4 or 5 circles to get things rolling, but once you do, medical professionals, event planners, and even the media will eventually find you. That leads to higher paying gigs. You might even get jobs working for your city, or county. If it's something you love to do and are passionate about it, you can do it. There are some out there that just want to sell classes, and cash in on the drum circle boom, but most are legit.

Another way many facilitators earn a decent living is to approach your city or county arts council. Depending on the city you live in, they can possibly hook you up with city events, festivals, art shows, and even get work in the school system. If another drum circle facilitator gets to your arts council before you, that can be a problem. Some facilitators get non profit corporations going. They get donations from local businesses, and make a nice living that way. Applying for individual state grants to do this kind of work is very difficult. Some medical and special needs facilities can apply for state grants to help fund your work, but you may have to work for free for awhile to prove yourself to them first. I know of many who are making a living this way, but it took a lot of work.

Drum circles are becoming more popular in the corporate world, and that's the area where many facilitators make a very good living. That's where the big bucks are, but it takes a lot of experience, letters of reference, and credentials to break into it. Corporate drum circles can be extremely effective for companies that want to enhance the generation of new ideas and better team work. When people discover that they can collectively produce a good sound without any musical training or background, they start to realize that they can be more effective at work by putting their heads together, brainstorming, and working as a team.

Also, drumming uses the brain in a different pattern than the linear thought process that is usually needed in the work environment. For example, when suggesting a drum circle rhythm, I like to vocalize the first few measures before we play it. The logical analytical side of the brain can process it quicker, which then frees up the creative intuitive side. People can then play what they feel, rather than over thinking it too much. Simply following someone's instructions on what to play is like what you do at work, doing your job, by following instructions.

A drum circle brings the group to a more open mental and psychological process, which can be carried over to the production of new and better ways of working. An excellent tool to kick off any kind of brainstorming session and optimize the quantity and quality of new ideas. In other words, the team improvises and is more creative.

The thing some don't understand about drum circles, is that it's more about the people, than it is about the drumming. Many facilitators agree with me on this, some don't. The quality of the music produced in a drum circle isn't really based on the musical experience of the players, but on the developing quality of the relationships of the people that emerge. As a facilitator I try to help people to empower themselves through drumming, music, and fun. They need no experience at all to play a drum in a drum circle. I try to encourage individual creativity, and group dynamics.

As a general thought, very little is planned in advance except maybe a list of rhythms to suggest. All the rest is improvised on the spot. Most of the facilitating can be done from the edge of the circle through the music. Some insist on facilitating by over conducting and running around giving instructions in the center of the circle. I believe the center of the circle is for self expression, some may just want to get up and dance. If someone is in there orchestrating, it's not going to spontaneously happen. The musical communication, supporting of the beat, and ending points to a jam, are easily done with the drumming. It's leading without leading. All of this can be done from the edge of the circle.

Sometimes even transition points in the drumming just naturally occur. Recognizing, and supporting the group's expression is a key element, because, since drum circles are so organic in nature, that to an onlooker, there are times that look like absolute chaos is going on...but it's an organized chaos. It levels out into a group song, and it uniquely theirs. They created it. Usually there are transition points, or a time to just move on to a new rhythm. It takes time and experience to trust in the natural process of creating a group vibe, and knowing when to move on to another rhythm. A lot of people WANT there to be lots of rules, true in business world, true in art world, so it's not surprising to find it here in the drumming world.

I prefer working with special needs groups. A key part of the intent of groups that are oriented toward those with physical and/or mental restrictions is finding ways to bring them into general society as much as possible. It's been my experience that drum circles are an excellent path to this goal. This is the kind of work I believe I was put on this earth to do. Working with special needs individually, or in groups touches my heart very deeply, especially when I get home and have some time to reflect on the experience.

With this one particular group, after a few drum circles at their facility, I invited them to a public drum circle at a cafe where I was hosting a weekly drum circle. They were comfortable drumming with me at that point, and it worked out great. Months later, when I was asked to host an Earth Day drum circle show up on a big stage, I asked the staff and the group if they would like to drum at this event. They jumped at the chance. Sure it was a little risky, but that's what life is about, taking chances. We played for over an hour and a half, the crowd didn't want us to stop, two encores and everything. I was so proud of them, and it was a joyous moment of achievement seeing them being applauded, beaming with self confidence and pride. It was like a dream come true. Nobody in the audience even knew they had disabilities. It was a blend of them and the general drumming community. I was booked for a 45 minute performance, but it was going so well the organizers asked us to keep going, so we did. All of this happened in less than 6 months. It just kind of all fell together. I found out later on that usually their outings were highly controlled activities, and all closed to the public, like bowling. How would you feel under those circumstances? The public drum circles gave them a chance to be "just one of the guys", and not treated as "special". The effect was profound.

I'm not a licensed medical practitioner, and I have no medical degree in music therapy. However I do have extensive experience working one on one, or with groups teaching drumming to children and adults with ADHD, Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, Autism, Asperger's Syndrome, Neurologically Injured Individuals, and many others. I noticed right away that seeing abilities, and not disabilities in people was the key to a fulfilling experience. You may not make a whole lot of money, but your heart will feel like it earned a fortune.

Around the country many night clubs, pubs, and coffee shops are struggling to find working formulas for weeknights. Having a drum circle night quickly builds up a community around it with a loyal following that grows very quickly. The cost to do this is minimal, I've been doing this successfully for years at various venues. What the venue needs is an organizer to help keep things running smoothly, and promote the drum circle. A percussionist, circle facilitator, or drumming group. Plan on a small base pay or a percentage of sales like 10%. Because believe me, there is a lot of work involved. Also it isn't the drummers, musicians, or dancers that do the majority of buying your products. They will help support the venue and buy one or two, but it's the onlookers that are attracted, who will be doing most of that. And it takes a few months to really get a drum circle community established. I go into this in much more detail in my book "A Practical Guide To Hand Drumming And Drum Circles". Please consider picking it up. It's 300 pages to help get your circle, or drumming career rolling. The price is $18 and it includes a free facilitated drum circle jam Cd if purchased from my website drumcircles.net (Also at Amazon, but no free Cd.)

This book is jam packed with practical information, suggestions, and ideas for people who love hand drumming. If you're interested in starting up a drum circle, an interactive drumming program for your group, or facilitating drum circles for a living, this read will help you along your drumming path. The focus is on sharing as much information about hand drumming and drum circles as I possibly could. Introducing people to drumming is what I love to do. I cover a wide variety of topics and questions I frequently get asked. For example:

How do I start up a drum circle? What kind of drum(s) should I get? How should I approach working with this group, or that group? And many other hand drumming, or drum circle related topics. Drumming with special needs groups, health and wellness, with kids, teens, adults, elders, and mixed age groups. Drum circles in night clubs, cafe’s, and pubs. Team building, conventions, businesses, corporations, and events. Drum circles with at risk populations, at spiritual gatherings, and community events. Working with music directors, educational teachers, in schools, music therapists, and medical professionals. For more information, and the full table of contents, please visit my website. Thanks, I hope some of this helps, and Happy Drumming!

What That First Drum Circle Was Like...

2010-02-01T08:45:00.000-08:00

I encountered my very first drum circle at a city park in Fort Lauderdale, FL. back in the summer of 1977 at a state park. I didn’t know it yet, but I was hooked on it right then for life. I had no idea that first drum circle I ran into would change my life so greatly and in so many different ways, and that I could bring so much joy to so many people and even enrich their lives through hand drumming. So there I was one day, slowly driving down this long one way trail of the park, just wanting to get a little time and space away from the routine of city life. To just see some trees, the water, and nature. To give myself a little break from the concrete and chaos of the city life for a little while.

Anyway, in this park, there were these little picnic clearings about every ¼ mile or so along the trail surrounded by all this lush green tropical foliage. It was relaxing to take a break there, a place for me to get away from it all for a little while. At one of these clearings, I saw this circle of about 20 people all sitting around playing these hand drums together. Mostly hand drums, Congas, Bongos, and all kinds of other percussion instruments. I turned down my car radio when I heard it, and listened a little. Man, it was cool. The sound of all the drumming was so captivating, that I pulled over and kind of tentatively wandered over there. I couldn‘t help it. I just smiled and listened, enjoying the Samba rhythm they were playing. It had all these different layers, textures, and dimensions. And it was only hand drums, and it sounded so good. It was like nothing I had ever seen before. It wasn’t like playing in a band is like, they were all improvising, having a good time, playing what they were feeling, and letting it go wherever it took them.

While I had played in the high school marching band drum line, and various night club bands, it was nothing like this. It was drawing me in closer and closer, the drum beat almost calling to me. They were having what looked like a private picnic, so I didn’t want to interrupt them. I didn’t know who they were, they all looked to be of Latin decent to me. As it turned out they were all Puerto Ricans, and only spoke a few bits and pieces of English. And I spoke no Spanish at all.

There were kids, adults, elders, males, and females. All of them were playing together and having a great time. I was standing there trying to figure out some kind of a polite way to ask if I could join in. But before I could, the rhythm ended, and they all applauded each other. It was obvious they weren’t performing for anyone, just for themselves. How cool is this, I thought. They motioned for me to come on over with gestures, and indicated that I could join in if I wanted to.

Boy, did I!!! I hopped on some Congas and proceeded to hang out and jam with them for hours, playing mostly Latin rhythms. They welcomed me, and treated me like family, and I really appreciated it. That meant a lot to me. Even though we spoke different languages, and couldn’t really verbally understand each other, we were able to communicate through the music. The language barrier didn’t seem to matter. That day gave me a whole new perspective on life, and a new found respect for different cultures I knew nothing about. It showed me for the first time, how to bridge the cultural gap. It was only after I had some time home later that night to reflect on all this.

I never did see that particular group again, they affected me profoundly in so many ways. I think they were just there on vacation, but they were the ones who started me on my drum circle path. Ever since then I would seek out and attend drum circles whenever I could, wherever I ended up living. In an instant I had become a drum circle lover. Most of the drum circles back in those days were held on the weekends, outdoors in parks and on the beaches. They were all mostly freestyle drum circles with no leader. It was just a bunch of people hanging out and playing. Whoever wanted to start out the next rhythm would do so, and if it took off, away it went.

Fast forward to the present in 2010, a lot of people think a drum circle is just a bunch of banging noise with no real discernable beat to it. Well, guess what? Sometimes that’s exactly what it is. A lot of banging noise. Especially at outdoor open community drum circles. Sometimes there is no musicality present at all. It feels better if it sounds good. But at that very same place, the next week, it can be a group made up of mostly the same faces, but this time it is some quality music with real performance level musicianship.

The kind of musical pieces like I described earlier, that simply captivate you and draw you into it. A drum circle where the people are all listening to each other, taking turns leading, even passing it around so everyone gets a chance to start out a rhythm if they want to. All these people have come together as a group with a real synergy to it. Some of the absolute very best drum circles I have ever been to were just freestyle drum circles out on the beach. And, some of the crappiest ones also. That’s part of the fun. The unpredictability of it. You don’t know what it will be like until you get there. Will it be magical this week?

An Assortment Of Drum Circle Rhythms

2010-01-11T23:15:00.000-08:00

This is a list of various drum circle rhythms I like to play. It's my interpretation of them. A few posts below I wrote about various ways to notate drum rhythms. Enjoy!

KC & The Sunshine Band inspired drum circle rhythm: "That's The way, Uh Huh, Uh Huh, I like It, Uh Huh Uh Huh" ♫♫ Doum ka-tek, ka-DoumDoum Tek, KaDoum ka-tek, ka-DoumDoum Tek ♫♫♫ (I guess that disco era helped me out after all!)

Try drumming out "Morse Code" rhythms. Ask someone to suggest 2 letters, or numbers, & put them together to make a new drum circle rhythm. ♫♫ _ _...._ _ ♫♫ A dot is a tone, & a dash, is a bass note. Sometimes they work, & sometimes they don't, that's part of the fun. There’s a Morse Code alphabet chart on my site drumcircles.net

"Little Drummer Boy" Christmas drum rhythm, if you can say it, you can play it! ♫♫♫ Let's Play Our Drum...Pa - Rum Pa PumPum...Rum Pa PumPum ♫♫♫

Good start up drum circle rhythm: ♫♫ "Yum Yum Tastes Like Ckic-Ken" ♫♫ (Just like it sounds) - doum doum tek-ka tekka, doum doum tek-ka tekka ♫♫

♫♫ An easy way to get a Clave drum rhythm jamming is to remind people of the beat to songs like "Mockingbird" or "Hand Jive" ♫♫♫

Sly & The Family Stone inspired beat. Boom sha-ka la ka, Boom sha-ka-la-ka

Word association is a great way to get a 6/8 drum circle rhythm going. ♫♫♫ Fol-low-the-yel-low-brick-road-go-do-pa-ta-pa ♫♫♫

The "conga line" rhythm usually turns into a good drum jam. On the Doumbek: ♫♫ doum-ka, doum-ka, tek--tek. ♫♫ Or on the Djembe: gun-pa, gun-pa, go--do ♫♫ or just feel the rhythm vamp to MJ's “Thriller".

Variation of an African drum rhythm Gunazi. ♫♫ Boom sha-ka Boom Boom, shakala, Slap!, Boom sha-ka Boom Boom, shakala, Slap! (or some accented tone at the end) ♫♫

♫♫ Cuckoo! ♫♫ Common commercial jingles make fun drum circle rhythms: Cuckoo for cocoa Puffs - Shaka-sha-lakaBoom, Shaka-sha-lakaBoom

Drum circle rhythm with a Brazilian flair to it: ♫♫♫ Doum--ka-tekka--Doum--ka-tek-ka,- Doum--ka-tekka--Doum--ka-tek-ka ♫♫

♫ Boom-Boom chakachaka ping ping ping! ♫♫ (gun dun patapata slap slap Slap)

Masmuudii 316 - A fun drum circle rhythm that rolls like a freight train ♫♫ D---D---t-k-T-k-D-tktkt-TktkT-t (repeat 4/4 time) ♫♫

Balloon Boy Drum Circle Rhythm (in beta test) ♫ oom-pah---oom-pah---oom-pahpah__oom-pah---oom-pah---oom-pah-barf ♫ (start with dominant hand, RL,RL,RLR__LR,LR,LRL) Bass, tones, & etc. (Alternate to balance both sides of the body.)

"Bambii" Another fun drum circle rhythm - Doum-tekka-katek-tekka-kaDoum-Doum_Doum-tekka-katek-tekka-kaDoum-Doum Doum ♫♫♫ (It's in 4/4 time, the 3 Doums at the end is what makes this one really groove.)

(Or, try it filled: Dk kT kk Tk kT kk D D)

Nice support rhythm to start at the drum circle: ♫♫ Boom sha La-ka Boom Boom-Cha__Boom sha La-ka Boom Boom-Cha ♫♫

♫♫ Cool drum circle rhythm Karsilama 3, it has a triplet at the end: D-kkT-kkD-kkT-T-T (2+2+2+3) (Shorthand notation on this one.) ♫♫♫

Interesting Jewish drum rhythm that's similar to the rhythm Ayyub ( D k-D t ) On the Doumbek: ♫♫ Doum tek-keh Doum tek (repeats and builds) Or on the Djembe: Gun go-do Gun go ♫

Tootie Fruitie Drum Circle Jam - ♫ Wop-baba-lou-bop__a-wop-Bam-Boom, Wop-baba-lou-bop__a-wop-Bam-Boom ♫♫ (I think Little Richard might dig us drumming to this.)

Sweet drum circle rhythm: ♫♫ Boom - che-boom_che-boom-a-choc_o_late__choc_o_late, (dramatic pause) Boom - che-boom_che-boom-a-choc_o_late__choc_o_late ♫♫♫

Drum to rhymes or phrases to start a 6/8 drum circle rhythm rolling: ♫ You-huff-and-you-puff-and-you-blow-the-Gun-Dun-go-do ♫

♫♫ Saiidi Drum Circle Rhythm - Doum tekka tekka doum doum tekka-Tek ♫♫

Beledi - Zaffah variation, Boom chick-a chick, Boom Boom _ chick-a-chick-a boom.

Gawazi - a great drum circle rhythm for dancers ♫♫ D tkD D tkt tktk, D tkD D tkt tktk ♫

Slower grooving drum rhythm. Usually a hit with beginners & pros - ♫ Boom, sha-La-Ka-Boom-Boom (pause) Boom, sha-La-Ka-Boom-Boom ♫

♫♫ A fun variation of the Chifitelli rhythm (played nice & slow) Doum, tek-ka tek-ka doum doum Tek (pause) Doum, tek-ka tek-ka doum doum Doum. ♫

Slow drum circle rhythm in "7". There's a triplet at the end. Boom boom, Boom boom, tek-ka-tek. Boom boom, Boom boom, tek-ka-tek. (1-2, 1-2, 1-2-3)

Thanks to Steve B for these two. Boom che-boom, che-boom-boom-boom. Boom che-boom, che-boom-boom-boom.

And this rhythm in 5/4 : tek a-tek tek, boom boom, tek a-tek tek, boom boom.

Zaffah drum rhythm (As far as I know it's an Egyptian wedding processional in 4/4 time.) D-tkt-t-D-t-t-tt (repeat)

The last time we played that Zaffah rhythm, one of the bellydancers said it sounds like Beledi on steroids. LoL. (Beledi= D D tkT, D tkT)

One of my favorite drum rhythms: Doum tek a tek tek-ka, Doum tek a tek tek-ka, Doum tek a tek tek-ka, Doum Doum Tek. (pause, & repeat)

Drum Circle Finder - Locate Drum Circles Near You

2010-01-10T21:08:00.000-08:00

See what drum circles there are near you. Check out my drum circle finder for the USA, and the rest of the world. Established in 1999, It's updated regularly, with 1000's of drum circles listed. If you have a weekly or monthly circle that needs to be updated, or added, please let me know.

Honestly, I do offer my 2 hour drum rhythms DVD & free drum circle jam CD on the page for $15. But you don't need to register, or give your email, or anything like that to use the drum circle finder. The proceeds from sales of my DVD helps to cover the time and cost of maintaining it. Thanks in advance for helping out. Use the link to the right, or visit www.drumcirclefinder.net

Some Various Ways To Notate Or Jot Down Drum Rhythms

2010-01-10T19:26:00.000-08:00

There's a variety of different ways I like to use to notate, or can clearly transcribe a drum circle rhythm. It's really a matter of preference, and what you find the fastest, and easiest for you. Here's some various ways I've seen to do so. The accented louder strokes (or slaps) are in caps.

Here's an example of "Fanga" in 4/4 time notated a few different ways:

Gun go-do-go Gun-Dun go-Do (or like this:)
Dun, -, -, go, +, do, go, -, Dun, -, Gun, -, do, go, -, -

(As far as I know, a style taught by Babatunde Olatunji)
Probably the most common, and well known method.
-------------------------------------------------------
Doum tek-ka-tek Doum-Doum tek-Ka (Middle Eastern style)
(or in shorthand = D t-k-t D-D t-K)
-------------------------------------------------------
Boom chickaChick Boom-Boom chicKa
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B o-o-o B-B o-O
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Or, Bass=B, Slap=S, Rim Shot=R, Open Tone=O, Closed Tone=C, Muffled Bass=M
(I don't use this one very much)
-------------------------------------------------------
Or if it's dark, & I'm in a hurry which is usually the case:
Morse Code _ ... __..
-------------------------------------------------------
I've seen some others also use this one: R l-r-l R-L r-L
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Or, keep it simple: B = bass tone, T = tone note, S = slap tone
(I use small case letters for softer notes)
-------------------------------------------------------
Jazz scatting - Just write down, whatever it sounds like.
Boom sha-ka-la Boom-Boom sha-Ka
-------------------------------------------------------
So there's a variety of ways to notate, or jot down a drum circle rhythm even quickly on the fly. Maybe even make up your own method.

Suggesting And Vocalizing Starting Drum Circle Rhythms

2010-01-10T19:18:00.000-08:00

When I'm suggesting a rhythm to play. I like to vocalize the first 4 to 8 measures (or bars) of it before I begin playing it, and I start it out very slowly, then I can gradually bring it up to the desired tempo (speed) once they are comfortable with it.

I always mention that this is just a starting point, and that you don't have to play this support rhythm, play whatever feels good to you, or whatever you feel fits. So when I'm suggesting a drum circle rhythm, I like to vocalize the first few measures before I start it out.

The reason is that the logical analytical side of the brain can process it quicker, which then frees up the creative intuitive side so it can improvise. Then people can play what they feel, rather than over thinking it. It is after all, "a drum circle" not rocket science. When you think too much, the joy goes out of it.

Interestingly, I've found that most people can wrap their heads around it quicker if I vocalize drum sounds with a "K" in them. It's also one of the secrets of the trade in stand up comedy, words with K or Q are funnier.

ie: Boom chicka-boom Chick. Or, Doum tekka-doum Tek. Or, just "scat" them out jazz style any way you can.

When I'm working with beginners I like to use this notation style, and explain the sounds like this:

Doum (D) – Right hand, clear, low tone, (from center of drum – like you’re bouncing a basketball, or on a trampoline)

Tek (t) & Ka (k) – Right & Left hand, crisp high tone (sharply striking the edge of the drum head) Iv'e heard some say to pretend like you are hitting the bottom of a hot frying pan. I don't like to say that, because it associates drumming with pain. Not something I want to do.

Tek (T) - usually played with the dominant hand. Reverse hands if you are left-handed, like me. The accented strokes (or slaps) are in caps. Hope this helps you a little.

3 Lyric Version Of Djembe Rhythm Fanga

2010-01-10T19:07:00.000-08:00

Most of us who have been to a few drum circles have played and/or sang "Fanga" before. Usually it's just the first verse. Here's the 3 Lyric version of it. Give it a try.

1. Fanga Alafayia, ashé ashé (4 times) (ashe = ahh-shay)
Ashe-Ashe-Ashe-Ashe
Fanga Alafayia, ashé, ashé
CHORUS: Asé, Asé. Asé, Asé. (x4)

2. Ikabo A Lafiya - Ashe - Ashe (x4)
Ashe-Ashe-Ashe-Ashe
Ikabo A Lafiya - Ashe-Ashe
CHORUS: Asé, Asé. Asé, Asé. (x4)

3. Ellugua A Lafiya- Ashe-Ashe (x4)
Ashe-Ashe-Ashe-Ashe
Ellegua A Lafiya- Ashe- Ashe
CHORUS: Ashé, Ashé. Ashé, Ashé. (x4)

Djembe Part 1: Dun, -, -, go, +, do, go, -, Dun, -, Gun, -, do, go, -, -

Drum Circles In Pubs, Clubs, And Cafe's?

2010-01-10T17:25:00.001-08:00

In this current economy many night spots, clubs, pubs, and coffee houses are struggling to find working formulas for increasingly slower weeknights. Consider having a drum circle night. It quickly builds up a solid community around it with a loyal following that grows very fast.

Your cost is minimal to have a drum circle night, I've been doing this successfully for years at various venues. What's really needed is an organizer to help keep things running smoothly, and promote the drum circle. Hire a local percussionist, circle facilitator, or maybe even a drumming group. Just Google "drum circle" in your area to find a few. Offer them a base pay or a percentage of sales like 10%, and try it for a few months.

Consider paying them a small base pay. Because honestly, there really is a lot of work involved. Also it isn't the drummers, musicians, or dancers that do the majority of buying your products. They will help support your venue and buy 1 or 2, but it's the onlookers attracted to the scene that will do most of that for you.

My experience is that charging a fee, or cover charge to get it established just doesn't work. Weekly or monthly? I recommend weekly drum circles to really get it established. With monthly circles people tend to forget what week it's being help on. If it's weekly, they know it's always there when they feel like going. Most people will go once or twice a month, some won't want to miss a single night.

A drum circle is kind of like having an open mic night, but better. Since it is interactive, everyone in the venue can participate. So rather than just sitting and watching a band or show, people can be a part of it. I would put out tambourines, maracas, and etc. out on the tables in wicker baskets to entice those who may think they have no rhythm, to get involved. Obviously this also retains the crowd longer because they have more fun.

It takes a few months to get a drum circle community built up and rolling. I go into all of this in much more detail in my book, "A Practical Guide To Hand Drumming And Drum Circles". Please consider picking it up, you would be buying direct from the author. (me) It's self published, 300 pages, and the price is $18. A drum circle jam CD is included with purchase from my website drumcircles.net
It would help out a little. Thanks for supporting independent artists.

Quotes From Drumming Master Babatunde Olatunji

2010-01-10T14:07:00.000-08:00

I love to drum to this Babatunde phrase:

I am the drum...You are the drum...We are the drum...Boom bada pa ta... (pause & repeat) Play it as you say it. Good stuff, always a group favorite.

"Rhythm is the soul of life. The whole universe revolves in rhythm. Everything and every human action revolves in rhythm." - Babatunde Olatunji

"Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. And today? Today is a gift. That's why we call it the present." - Babatunde Olatunji

"I am that I am, I am beauty, I am peace, I am joy, I am one with Mother Earth. I am one with everyone within the reach of my voice. In this togetherness, we ask the divine intelligence to eradicate all negatives from our hearts, from our minds and from our actions. And so be it....ashe." - Babatunde Olatunji

"The Creator wants us to drum. He wants us to corrupt the world with drum, dance and chants. After all, we have already corrupted the world with power and greed....which hasn't gotten us anywhere - now's the time to corrupt the world with drum, dance and chants." - Babatunde Olatunji