African Drumming - New Beginner's Class

Written by Greg Whitt Sunday, 04 July 2010 00:00

When clients initially contact me, I often explain the differences between several types of drum circles.  Of course there's the anarchistic or hippie-thunder drumming circle which has no leader and where everyone simply drums their own thing.  Then there are intentional circles with a specific focus for healing or meditation.  Plus there's my thing - facilitated community drum circles where a designated leader helps the group to reach it's greatest musical potential.  But all of it ties back to folkloric drumming traditions. 

Here in US, long before Europeans arrived, Native Americans were playing in unison and singing around the gathering drum or using the even more-ancient shaman type buffalo drum played with a beater in one hand.  That sort of frame drum is inherent in every culture.  In Europe it evolved into the Irish bodhran or the marching snare.  In the Middle East, cultures may have added jingles or snares and it became the daf or def or bendir or riq or timbral or tambourine or one of countless other names for drums whose heads were wider than their sides are deep.

In fact, to be such simple instruments, there was a lot of thought and technology that went into developing the different types of drums around the world.  People used whatever materials were at hand.  Nomadic people traveled light and used smaller drums.  Forest dwellers used whole logs and settled in a village.  Drums were headed with fish skin or snake or buffalo or goat - with the simple practicality of using what was available.  

Much of the drumming we know here came to us from these other traditions.  The hand drums popular here in the US include congas, bongos, and djembe drums.  The congas and bongos came here from Cuba with the popularization of the Latin Jazz ensembles of the 40's and 50's and those drums hit their heyday here in the 60's and early 70's.  Even Brando and James Dean played the conga! 

Of course, that conga drumming tradition goes back to the ngoma drums of Africa.  The slave trade brought the African people from their homeland to the Caribbean but forbid them from drumming for fear the people would unite and revolt.  In Haiti that successfully happened and the people there are known for being most-true to their African roots.  In other countries they adapted and again used the materials at hand.  A hide thrown over a rum barrel down on the docks became the new barrel drum that is thought to have evolved into the modern conga.  A shipping crate or dresser drawer in Peru became the cajon box drum.  

All of these full-body drumming traditions seem to point back to Africa.  The most popular African drum these days is by far the djembe drum of the West African Malinke people.  These were introduced in the US by Papa Ladji Camara as the traveled with Les Ballet Africains back in the mid-1950's.  Carved from a single log and laced with a goat skin head, the djembe has amazing volume, a huge bass response, and an incredible range of sounds.  At ¾ the size and weight of a conga drum, they're quite a bit more portable, too.  The combination of these features have led to it's huge popularity in modern drum circles.

When I teach beginner's drum classes, I teach a more-holistic overview of hand drumming.  Classes will run the spectrum of frame drums, djembe drums, and conga drums.  In class we may explore West African, Afro-Cuban, Middle Eastern, and Native American rhythm and song.  I'm always careful to honor the traditions of the cultures from which the drums originate.  PLUS we'll delve into new age (ancient age) drumming for health, wellness, meditation and empowerment.  

My next class starts July 12 -
a five week series meeting on
Monday nights from 6:30 to 7:30-ish pm.

Week 1:  Getting Started with Hand-Drumming: 
Selecting, shopping for, playing, and practicing the drum. 

Week 2:  Community Drumming at the Lake Johnson Jam (Raleigh Drum Circle's monthly facilitated circle).

Week 3:  Poly-rhythms from the West African diaspora
(funky fun songs on the djembe drum).

Week 4:  Rhythms from the Afro-Carribean traditions on congas, shakers, and bells
(Harry Belafonte will want to sing along).

Week 5:  Drumming for Personal Empowerment
(woo-woo, zen, deep trance, healing stuff).

Location will be Fred Fletcher Park centrally located off Wade Ave between St. Mary's and Glenwood. Near the parking lot is a large circle with a stone-topped bench around it.  Dress appropriately for the heat, use bug spray if you need it, and bring a cushion to sit on if you want one.

Enjoy a laid-back, fun, and easily accessible class specifically tailored for the novice (as in brand new, no previous experience required) drummer.  Cost is $65 for the series - what a bargain!  

To register, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it