Sandra Sabene instructed each person in the drum circle to say their name before playing a choice sound on their hand drum.

“Mike,” the man said before hitting the hand drum in front of him. “Mike,” the next person in the circle said, and then played a sound on his drum. “Not Mike,” the next person said, eliciting laughter from the rest of the drummers in the circle.

Creative Rhythms Drum Circle held its first monthly drum circle of the year on Friday, Jan. 17. The drum circle started 13 years ago under the roof of Liverpool Art Center. Branded as Creative Rhythms Drum Circle since 2018, it is the longest running drum community in the Syracuse area, said Sabene, the founder of Liverpool Art Center and the drum circle.

On the third Friday of every month, people of various ages and experience levels gather in Liverpool Art Center to drum. Seated in a circle, they play djembe drums, a type of hand drum that originated in West Africa. Each monthly drum circle event lasts two hours, from 7-9 p.m. The drum circles are not classes, Sabene said, but “facilitated rhythmic events” that promote music-making for wellness.

“The purpose of the drum events that we have here are to create safe space for people to gather and connect and express themselves creatively,” Sabene said.

At each monthly drum circle, about 20%-30% of the attendees are new to drumming and have never played a hand drum before, according to Sabene.

At Friday’s drum circle, Sabene explained how to create two different sounds — a bass and a tone — on the hand drums. After practicing how to create the sounds, the drummers played a round. Rounds last about 10 minutes, and drummers build on an underlying beat, or pulse, that serves as the heartbeat for the other rhythms played by the drummers in the circle, Sabene said.

Charmaine Seifts, who takes art classes with Sabene at Liverpool Art Center, attended the drum circle for the first time on Friday. The drum circle had a relaxing, open atmosphere, and she plans on coming to the drum circle again, she said.

“It just kind of takes you away from your daily routine and the stress of daily life,” Seifts said. “I think it’s very spiritual, also. It takes you to a different level.”

Some of the rounds at Friday’s drum circle were upbeat, while others were more meditative. Sabene played a Native American flute during one round. During another, she passed around smaller percussion instruments such as tambourines and shakers, to supplement the sound of the drums. Some people got up from their chairs and danced to the beat of the drums in the middle of the circle.

Sandra Sabene, the founder of Liverpool Art Center, leads the drum circle, which welcomes people of all ages and experience levels. Emily Steinberger | Design Editor

Sabene also incorporated breathing exercises into the drum circle program, encouraging the drummers to feel the stress melting away as they drummed.

The drummers played rhythmic games as well. In a game similar to “Hot Potato,” they tried to create the illusion of passing a “flutter,” or soft, rapid sound on the drum, around the circle as quickly as they could.

“It’s wonderful to watch people shift as they open up and keep drumming,” Creative Rhythms Drum circle facilitator Therese Cunningham said. “You see them connecting. They start out kind of quiet, and by the end, they all just awaken.”

Karen Bloom, who attended the drum circle for the first-time last month, said that being together and drumming with others is her favorite part of the drum circle since it provides a feeling of unity and peace.

The drum circle has one rule, said Sandra Sabene’s husband, Dan Sabene: “If you think you made a mistake you just smile and keep on going. There’s really no mistakes,” he said. “It’s the rhythm. Then the community puts it all together.”

Published on January 20, 2020 at 9:28 pm

Contact Mandy: ackrayna@syr.edu | @MandyKraynak