by Gary Diggins

I watch the hospital auditorium as it swells with blue scrubs, white lab coats, pink smocks, and pin striped suits. Over two hundred curious participants pour into the space. Just as they may not know the difference between a djembe, ashiko, or tingsha (some of the many instruments I’ve laid out on the stage), neither can I tell who is a  doctor, nurse, administrator, or volunteer.

I’ve been hired to unite this diverse configuration into a energized and inspired team. My challenge is to do so with a minimal amount of word and a maximum amount of sound. After a little guidance and encouragement, the room is quickly humming with a cooperative vibe. Not only can you feel the energy, you can also observe the effects of spirited communication. The president of the hospital passionately drums with a cafeteria employee. A chief surgeon grooves on a balafon next to a candy striper on a cowbell.

I am privileged to witness scenes such as this each week. While a larger world wrestles with religious, political, ethnic, and ecological conflicts, my job underscores how (on the small scale) a spirit of synergy and empathy can be called up through participatory sound making. I am proud to be among a growing number of facilitators who employ drum circles and sound rituals as a means of resolving conflicts, mediating accord, and promoting community.

Not that long ago, a newspaper reporter asked me why I thought men and women were increasingly drawn to gatherings where improvised drumming and singing are featured.My answer was to the point, knowing that it had to fit into a bite sized sentence. What I could have said, if space permitted, is that participatory musicmaking helps us moderns to...

(And yes... the list delightfully goes on ad infinitum....)

Play is a universal human act which fosters the spirit of imagination.  ~ Paul Newham