THE BEGINNING OF A LONG AND FRUITFUL DRUMMING CAREER.
NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY!

Yes - Community Drum Circles are where so many of us here in the Western Hemisphere discovered drumming. Or did drumming discover us? Never has there been an easier way to experience playing music than in a group setting where one is not intimidated.

I’ve always described drum circles as “chaos with a beat”. I made sure there was a simple pulse that participants could play to. Technically, anything goes in a pure community drum circle setting - except “too much cowbell”!

One of my mentors, Arthur Hull, developed methods to make drum circles more than “chaos with a beat”. He showed us ways to employ “improvisational conducting” such as leading groups into stopping or starting, loud or soft, fast or slow. This opened many doors.

As one attends more and more drum circles one also tends to start to collect drums and percussion instruments. The West African Djembe drum is perhaps the “drum of choice” for most drum circles. It’s nice to have a variety such as congas, bongos, dumbeks, and frame drums etc. The Djembe shows up more often and in larger numbers.

At some point you will hear someone who can really play their drum and you may think to yourself - I bet I could do that - OR - it’d be cool to be able to do that! That’s where I come in…. Or any teacher actually.

As a Drum Circle Drummer one really only needs to know how to make two notes - a high and a low one. Most beginners without any training will tend to play the high notes with fingertips and the low notes with a slap of the hand. This isn’t by any means wrong - it’s just not the most ‘bang for your buck’ so to speak. It doesn’t take much to point one in the right direction….Check out my Bass, Tone and Slap pages and videos….the secret lies with them: 0 )

Wether you are a Drum Circle drummer, a Trance/Meditational drummer, a Solo drummer, an Ensemble drummer, or a West African drummer….GOOD NOTES ALWAYS MATTER!
MAKE DRUMMING MORE FUN THAN EVER with “The Hansen Method” - a little West African, a little bit rock-n-roll, a whole lot of Funn!

https://youtu.be/ke_8to_befQ