Drum It With Brummet

Life Lessons from A Drum Circle * Written by Courtney Sperlazza, MPH, has worked in health research and is currently a write-at-home mom to the most handsome and charming two-year-old on the planet. I recently attended two drum workshops by Jim Donovan, music professor and one of the founding members of Rusted Root . I expected to learn how to properly handle a drum, maybe play something that loosely resembled a rhythm. What I didn't expect was to change my whole approach to, well, everything. The principles that make a successful drum circle are the same ones that can improve your day-to-day. What did I learn after a couple of hours of striking a piece of hide stretched over hollowed wood? Everyone starts at the beginning. Of our group of 11, the majority of us were beginners who were learning the hard way that it hurts to bang your thumb off of the edge of a djembe. Then we had the professor of music and professional performer (Jim) among us, who shared a story about how he air d...

  Dave Answers Your Questions !   *Excerpted from an interview we did with the McFly's Book Bliss blog Q: What is your contribution to society? Dave: As a drum teacher I hope to help the next generation of drummers by passing on the knowledge of drums and percussion I have accumulated in my career.  I run a program called Drum it Forward that I was inspired to create years ago.  I go to the schools and offer my services as a drum doctor armed with all the spare parts I have amassed along the way and fix their gear.  The schools don’t have the budget to pay for this and the poor teachers don’t necessarily have the time or knowledge, so I do it as a donation.  All I ask is that if they have any spare parts or pieces laying around that they consider donating it to the cause to perpetuate the program. Find the full interview:  http://mcflysbookbliss.com/brummet-media-group ~~   Visit the Brummet's   Main Website Find them elsewhere online  H...

  ~~   Visit the Brummet's   Main Website Find them elsewhere online  HERE   ~~

Steel Drums *Written by Salil Kothari Have you ever seen people playing music from any unused steel container? Does it seem weird? I hope it does not because the man is playing a steel drum. Steel drums or steel pans are the musical instrument made from metal oil barrels. The metal sheet is 0.8 to 1.5 mm thick. The area from where it is struck to produce sound is in the shape of a bowl. Traditionally these drums were actually made from oil barrels. The difference in the modern drums is just that they can be tuned to a certain pitch. Different oval-shaped points on the bowl produce different pitches of sound. Larger ovals produce lower tones. Via this a melodious tune can be struck. Now a day's various sizes are available. They are chosen according to the need. When you think of Caribbean the image of tall dark men striking the drums on a beach must be clicking in your mind. Why not after all the origin of steel drums took place from there and continues to be their traditional instr...