Discover and Celebrate the Bliss .. and the Heartbeat ... of Asheville's Drumming Rituals, Circles and Performances. Then Dance to Their Rhythm and Beat.
Walk down Haywood Street on a Saturday night...in time to the staccato taps of a tribal drum... and notice how much happier and lighter you feel!.
Visit Pritchard Park on Friday night and feel at one with the hundreds of drummers and dancers whose heartbeats are synchronized to the reverberating beats of the dozens of throbbing tribal drums. Give YOUR heart permission to join in.
Then feel the rhythm ... and the kinship... and dance!
Drumming and drum circles and pow-pows have been part of the Asheville scene and traditions for at least the past couple of decades. Here are some videos that give you an inkling of what it's like. If you've already experienced the drumming of Asheville, these videos will take you there again.
Asheville's Friday Night Drum Circle in Pritchard Park
Discover the Bliss of Drum Circles and Drum Circle Facilitation
The Art and Heart of Drum Circles "... Christine Stevens' "The Art & Heart of Drum Circles" is a short and sweet guide to facilitating a community drum circle. This book really makes sense! It breaks it all down and tells you how to facilitate a rhythm event from the start: How to arrange a room, what gear to buy, what techniques to use, what your helpers should do, problem drummers and ways to handle them, etc...."
The Heart of the Circle: A Guide to Drumming "... This book primarily deals with those of you who are interested in drumming for personal reasons rather than for an audience..... Holly Blue Hawkins explains her reasons for drumming and teaches how one goes about solving lifes problems and answering questions over a drum session. No matter how long you have had a drum or how often you play, this book will change the way you pick up your drum and the way you treat your drum and most importantly you will learn what drumming means to you..."
Sacred Beat: From the Heart of the Drum Circle "... Amazing book!!! It has some of everything that I was looking for: the first part talks to the history, myths and spiritual aspects of drumming. It looks at all sorts of cultures too - Egyptian, Chinese, Native American, African, and others. It's a great overview that gave me ideas of areas where I might want to learn more. Wonderful poems and quotes are sprinkled throughout the book as well. Following this there's a practical section that helps you select a drum that's right for you and there's info on how to care for your drum...."
Drum Circle Facilitation: Building Community Through Rhythm "...clearly written, packed with practical and
useful information, and presented in a kind and humorous style that
makes the material easy to digest. ... The kicker is that the book's
content has broad applications beyond drums and percussion. To my ear,
what makes a drum circle work is sensitive listening, unselfish
playing, high energy and enthusiasm, and a certain amount of
serendipity and risk. Anyone who cultivates these qualities becomes a
better improviser on whatever instrument they happen to play..."
Click on each of the dozens of categories to the left to uncover what makes the Asheville area so vital, so intriguing and so, well, UTTERLY BLISSFUL!
Drum Performances in Asheville
"... Delta Nove drummers at end of set-break for String Cheese Incident at Asheville's Thomas Wolfe Auditorium. Amazing energy, awesome vibe! They paraded their drum line through the entire venue before landing on the stage for the last 5 minutes of their performance, seen here...."
"... Wild Bodema, Asheville's own Women's Drum Troupe... at Lapinski Hall on the UNCA campus...."
UNCA African Dance Team Can Can Performance
More African drumming at UNCA...
Discover the Bliss of
Sacred Drumming
Sacred Drumming "...Take a guided tour from a writer who grew up and studied on Native American reservations and join those throughout the world—from Siberia to South America, Australia to Africa—who venerate the drum for its healing and celebratory powers. Through painting, cleansing, blessing, smudging, dedicating, chanting, and performing, you’ll find your own special beat, transforming the drum into a medicinal tool. Become one with a purchased or homemade instrument.
Draw on the knowledge of Native American and other cultures to drum away fear, purify, establish a sacred space, and reach into areas of the consciousness that would otherwise be inaccessible. Extra special bonus: a CD with more than an hour’s worth of music for a Sacred Directions ceremony, meditation, trance, and more...."
The Shamanic Drum: A Guide to Sacred Drumming "... reveals profound teachings about shamanic drumming, which is a
time-honored method of healing and helping others. Trained as a
ceremonial drummer in the Mongolian and Native American shamanic
traditions, Michael presents the first practical guide to applying this
ancient healing art to our modern lives. Through a series of simple
exercises, lessons, and rituals, he teaches you the basic shamanic
methods of drumming.
The focus is on creating sacred space, invoking the powers of creation, journeying, power practice, initiating change through intent, power animals, windhorse (personal power), geomancy, drum therapy, drum harmonics, drum circle dynamics, archetypal healing rhythms, and the universal rhythmic phenomena that come into play whenever we drum...."
When the Drummers Were Women: A Spiritual History of Rhythm ".... Women's spirituality circles have taken to drumming in a big way. Redmond has been a leader in reintroducing the frame drum, which, she persuasively argues, has been an instrument of spiritual transformation for millennia. Her marvelous book brings together mythology, history and prehistory, personal experience, musical lore, and scientific information on the healthful effects of drumming.
Scores of illustrations show stately goddesses holding frame drums, wild maenads tossing their heads as they pound, and priestesses sanctifying space with the rhythms they beat. Redmond's own story of learning drumming in a society in which women are still actively discouraged from taking up the drums is a paradigm of female experience. Wise and passionate, Redmond's book will find a ready audience, made up not only of those who have attended her popular workshops but also of other women drawn to the ecstatic pulse of the drum...."
Sacred Earth Drums CD "... Drums from around the world join with Native American Flute, Incan Pan
Pipes, Spirit Rattle, Guitars, Digital Synthesizers and Sounds of
Nature (including wolf, eagle, coyote and dolphin). Feel the
irresistible power of the beat lead you on a healing Shaman’s journey. Move your body and become absorbed in the dance – for the sacredness of life and reverence for the earth!..."
Sacred Spirit Drums CD "... Native-American Flute and Incan Pan Pipe melodies soar over Tribal Drums from around the world, Guitars, Keyboards and Nature Sounds (with wolf, eagle, coyote and humpback whale). Following up their best seller, Sacred Earth Drums, the Gordons take you deeper into their healing Shamanic journey to the heart of rhythm. Feel the compelling beat of Mother Earth – move your body and join the dance for the reverence of life!..."
Sacred Drum Visions: 20th Anniversary Collection "... Feel the peaceful power of Tribal Drums and the serene beauty of Native
Flutes, as they join with Incan Pan Pipes, acoustic guitars, Lakota and
Sanskrit chants, world-trance grooves, and sounds of nature. This 20th
anniversary collection from award-winning artists David and Steve
Gordon includes tracks from their #1 selling releases including tracks
from Sacred Earth Drums, Sacred Spirit Drums and Drum Medicine, plus
three completely new and inspiring songs. Healing Shaman rhythms and
ancient sounds center your body and mind, connecting you with the
Earth’s wisdom...."
