Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05
May 15, 2008 issue
The Beat Goes On—Sunday’s Drumming Circle in West Jefferson Open to Everyone
Story by Bernadette Cahill
According to scientists, something happens in the brain after nine minutes so the group will keep going to find out what it is, the leader said.
He starts pounding out a deep, loud solo bass, then three lighter, softer tones. The circle’s members pick up the rhythm and the sound fills the room. As the beat goes on, awareness of time disappears.
But at some point, something changes. A new bass starts to answer the first deep note. Complexities fill out the three original lighter ones. Completely new tones—high and low—enter the mixture. Soon, something new and different from everywhere in the circle compounds the original rhythm, as if each is speaking and answering in a complex debate.
Still the original beat insists on the fundamental rhythm, tying all the diversity together; yet it is as if something bigger has taken charge. In unison the tempo picks up, the pounding crescendos, the tempo and tones converge in a peak of sound, and the walls join in, answering back with a barely delayed echo.
And soon after, hardly obvious at first, something loosens up. The volume lessens, the tempo slows, the sound fades, individuals drop out and the leader, finally alone, quietly pounds out a deep, loud solo bass, then three lighter, softer tones, slowly, for one last time.
The group heaves a sigh and smiles and cheers break the spell.
The session took about 17 minutes and everyone felt the difference, though no one knows exactly when the shift took place.
This is the kind of experience that impromptu drummers have been having during the monthly drumming circle in West Jefferson, when on every third Sunday around 2:00 p.m., a diverse and constantly changing group comes together to take part in one of the most ancient of the musical arts.
The group started about 18 months ago, said Liz Rogers, the circle’s organizer.
“We usually have about 20 to 50 people,” she said. “If it’s a holiday weekend, there may be fewer but we have plenty of room for more.”
The drumming circle takes place at White Hart Woods on Mount Jefferson State Park Road.
“When it is warm and nice outside, we drum in the gardens. When it’s cooler, we drum in the acoustic gallery,” Rogers said.
The circle’s average playing time is about three hours, but they have even played for almost five hours, with regular breaks.
“You are welcome to come and go as you please, as there is no strict routine. It’s all creative and fun,” she said. “Anyone can attend.
“You can drum or play any of the other instruments that we share. You can dance. You can sing. You can observe. People can bring their children, their friends and families.
“No previous experience with drumming or music is required. Anyone new to drumming and music is guided by our wonderful mix of drummers who have played around the world, and those who have been learning from our experienced master teachers.
”You don’t even need to have your own drum, as we have several available for playing and purchase. Lots of people bring a wide variety of instruments to share, so everyone can experience playing world instruments and rhythms,” she said.
Rogers encourages newcomers to come and bring any instruments they might own, to join in with the d’jembes, bongos, whistles, flutes, bells, chimes, tuning forks, clackers, shakers and rattlers that regularly turn up—plus “your voice or anything else that makes noise,” she said.
Drumming is an activity that cut across all barriers—even time.
“As one of our master drummers says, it is a conversation,” said Rogers. “There is listening and there is talking, but it is simultaneous. Each person has the responsibility to pick a base beat that you are comfortable with maintaining, then letting it blend and evolve with the rest of the conversation without anyone overpowering the other.
“When the conversation is flowing effortlessly and naturally, that is when people start to experience a trance-like state. It is due to the vibrational frequency of the music and the people, resonating with all of your being. Where there is no beginning and no ending. You become timeless and immersed in a flawless joy.”
The greatest benefit of a drum circle, she said, is the unity that develops among a disparate group of people, even though each drumming circle is unique.
“You connect with these instruments and people on many different levels,” she said. “The benefits involved depend on the individual, but usually you will experience immense joy, physical-emotional-spiritual healing, lowered blood pressure and stress levels, and discovering your creativity.
“You can get a strong sense of community, as we all support each other’s journeys in the musical and vibrational evolution.”
Want To Go?
Date: Sunday, May 18
Time: 2:00 p.m.
Location: White Hart Woods, Mount Jefferson State Park Road, West Jefferson
Cost: Free