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Shannon
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Welcome to
Drumcircles.net
I love drumming, and I love introducing the joy of the drum to others. I get to see their eyes
light up when they discover they do have rhythm. I'm a percussionist, drum circle facilitator,
drumming teacher, session musician, and entertainer in Tampa Bay, Florida.
For me, this is about taking the gift of music that God gave me & sharing it with other people.
One of the beautiful things about drumming is that it can bring people from all paths together.
My website aims to help further your enjoyment of hand drumming. I have been attending and
facilitating drum circles nearly 30 years now, since 1978. I tried to include as much useful
content as possible, and provide drumming resources we all can use and enjoy. Here you'll find
my 101 Drum Circle Rhythms DVD, drum circle CD's, & drum circle finders for Tampa Bay, the
USA, & the rest of the World. I started building this site back in 1998, & it's updated regularly.
There is a lot of verbage on my site, the reason is to help others along their drumming journey,
or to help you with some ideas, and suggestions to facilitate drum circles a little easier yourself.
My 300 page book "A Practical Guide To Hand Drumming And Drum Circles" is in the links below.
Site last updated July 1st, 2009 -- SL Ratigan
Drum Circle Facilitation, Hand Drumming Lessons, Book, & More
I provide interactive drum circles for just about anything - both public & private events.
From jazz festivals, county fairs, and parties - to corporate team building, schools, elders,
special needs groups, churches, & spiritual gatherings. I also offer private drumming lessons.
I like drum circles outdoors connected with nature. Like in a park, or to a sunset at the beach.
I primarily facilitate drum circles, I'm also an experienced teacher with all ages, and host drum
circles for almost any occasion. Conferences, promotions, weddings, benefits, pubs, cafe's, cruise
ships, and performances around the Tampa Bay area. You name it, and I'll work with you to create a
musical program to meet your particular vision or needs. You might say, I am more of a Jazz, Funk,
Rhythm & Blues type of guy. My roots are in Motown - Detroit. I enjoy playing all genres of music.
I started working professionally in a philharmonic orchestra, and later toured with various bands.
Click below for more on hand drumming, facilitated drum circles, drumming events, & drumming book:
Drum Circle Facilitation, Workshops, Book, & Learn To Drum Link
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You Can Host a Drum Circle Event Or Party
-- or get a weekly one kick started
I facilitate drum circle events throughout the state of Florida. Spice up your festival, event,
or spiritual gathering with a multi-cultural drum circle experience everyone will enjoy.
A birthday party drum circle I hosted in Pinellas County, FL.
"Jazz on the Green" Faciliated Drum Circles 2006 & 2007
"It involved children and adults in making their own music,
easily learning the rhythms Shannon taught."
-- Polly R., Coordinator - Jazz On The Green
Ft. Myers Jazz Festival
Featuring Euge Groove & The Rippingtons 2006
Featuring Acoustic Alchemy, Rick Braun, & Jeff Golub 2007
Three views of the "Jazz on the Green" drum circle event.
I love the joy of this little boy smiling playing that great big djembe. Mom tried to give
him that little tambourine, but he wanted to play that big ol' drum.
*Tip* Add hula hooping to your drum circle for some real fun!
Try laying down with your eyes closed for a minute in the center of the circle. Powerful stuff!
More About Drum Circles
Read on, or click here to read more about having a drum circle:
Drum Circle Facilitation Link
The Power of Rhythm
To briefly describe drum circle facilitation by me, it's putting a bunch of people
together, & making a band out of them. It's fun to get to be in the band for a day.
Friends, strangers, co-workers, beginners, or pros...it doesn't matter.
The sound of drums speaks to all of us. Everything has a rhythm, from the staccato
beat of raindrops to the soft rhythm of the surf. Most importantly, our hearts have
a strong rhythm. Sometimes our heart beats speed up, then slows back down. But,
there is a basic, natural rhythm that is ours exclusively.
Drum circles allow us to let our imagination soar, our heart beats changing their speed
as we think about things we might otherwise avoid. We can feel safe doing this in a drum
circle because that bottom beat, the basic elementary pulse of the circle will always
bring us back to our "home" beat. And that gives us an element of security that may not
be conscious, but which we instinctively recognize. The therapeutic benefit of feeling
safe exploring things with our thoughts and emotions is one of the biggest factors in
the growing popularity of modern drum circles.
A drum circle is something a little different from the usual things you tend to see. I
provide African, Egyptian, and Latin drums, & introduce rhythms from various cultures.
I'm like a tour guide, that goes with you around the world in music.
My drum circle facilitation style has been influenced by what I've learned from various
top rated drum circle facilitators, including Christine Stevens, Kalani, Arthur Hull,
Jim Donovan, & Babatunde Olatunji. But even more so by over 30 years of just attending
and hosting drum circles. By seeing what works (and what doesn't) in order to create
a fun and magical atmosphere that encourages creative expression, and musicality.
I prefer to work with smaller groups, from 5 to 80 people. That way, I can give you more
personalized and individual attention. I deliver an authentic drum circle experience. The
emphasis with me is on fun! I believe in not telling people how, when, or what to play,
but rather focusing more on self discovery. But I do offer a few pointers! And I help to
guide people to find their musical selves at their own pace, with no pressure. It's kind
of like what you see with musicians drumming at the beach at an urban drum circle,
except in a little bit more managed format. Just a good time jamming and having fun.
Drum circles can be extremely effective for companies that want to enhance the generation
of new ideas and better team work. When people discover that they can collectively produce
a good sound without any musical training or background, they start to realize that they
can be more effective at work by putting their heads together and working as a team. Also,
drumming uses the brain in a different pattern than the linear thought process that is
usually needed in the work environment. A drum circle brings the group to a more open
mental and psychological process, which can be carried over to the production of new
and better ways of working. An excellent tool to kick off any kind of brain storming
session and optimize the quantity and quality of new ideas. Think about it...it works.
Click here for more detailed information on corporate, company, or a business drum circles.
Corporate, Company, & Small Business Team Building Link
Community, Culture, and Fun
Cultures from around the world use drumming to unify their communities. A drum circle anywhere
brings people together by using our uniqueness to create something that belongs to all of us.
It's educational, healthy, it releases negative emotions, provides joy, opens creative
expression, and brings us back to the rhythms of nature.
But most of all, it's a lot of fun to play the drums. Anyone can participate, from kids to elders.
We smile, we play, we heal, we dance, we laugh, we learn, and have fun together. No drumming
experience is needed. You'll love it, if you try it! Parents and thier kids can play together.
I help everyone to drum with ease in a matter of minutes, so they can discover their own sense
of rhythm, and experience the fun of hand drumming. It's a fun colorful way to jazz up an event,
or special occasion. And it's very casual, people can come and go as they please as it's going
on, and stay for as long as they want to. I don't want people to be drummers,
I just want to help them to be able to enjoy drumming together.
Click here to read more about having a facilitated drum circle event:
Drum Circle Facilitation Link
Charities and Funding
I do some charity work around the Tampa Bay area. Such as The Nina Harris Exceptional Center,
The Florida Sheriff's Youth Ranches, PARC - The Pinellas Association for Retarded Children,
The YMCA, and a number of other organizations.
There is a little wear and tear on the hand drums and percussion I provide at these events.
The proceeds from the sales of my drumming CD's and DVD's helps me to fund this type of work
in our community. I try to provide them at as reasonable a cost as possible. So thanks in advance
for helping us all out with repairs of mutilated tambourines, drum heads, and expenses. Drum Some!
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This Is Your Brain On Drums
Drumcircles.net on AM Talk Radio
Why would a board-certified neurologist start prescribing drum circles for his patients?
Listen to this recent national AM syndicated broadcast of the Healthy Talk Radio Show, featuring
Deborah Ray, Neurologist Dr. Hammesfahr, and myself, to find out why. It's interesting to hear
his perspective on drum circles and their benefits. (It's 55 minutes long -- a 25MB mp3)
The follow up interview number two, taped a few months later, is posted below this one.
This interview features Dr. Knaus, Dr. Hammesfahr, and myself. We discuss the benefits of
theraputic drumming, and how it can bring you back to the rhythm of nature, and the earth.
We also talk about the resonant frequency of the planet, the human brain, and how similar
they are. This is a fascinating interview. (It's 30 minutes long -- a 12MB mp3)
Drum Circles on AM Talk Radio download
Drum Circles on AM Talk Radio download 2
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Morse Code Drum Rhythms
I'm an amatuer radio operator, and one day I was drumming out Morse code to a few friends.
They got a kick out of it, so now we make up new rhythms all the time. Try making up your
own Morse Code drum jam rhythm. Just pick out a couple of letters, and put them together.
When all the electricity went out like during the Northridge earthquake, amateur radios still
worked, while all the cell phones didn't. We could still communicate with friends, and pass info
to families in other states, as well as around the world. So with growing concerns about the power
grid going down, ham radio is making a slow comeback. The FCC test is not that difficult to pass.
As a teen with my giant green Heathkit radio that took up an entire wall back then, I think some
of us were the OG's (Original Geeks) LoL. Consider looking into amateur radio, it's a fun hobby.
Anyway, a dash is a bass note, and a dot is a tone note, done in 4/4 time.
I like to let people yell out a couple letters or numbers, and make up new rhythms on the
spot. Sometimes it works great, sometimes it doesn't, but it's always fun to try it out!
C + X is a nice sounding one: ( - . - . - .. - )
Pretty cool with youth groups, or any group. Try it out!
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Swiss Hang Drum
Take a look at this cool percussion instrument from Switzerland, "The Hang Drum".
A sort of a steel drum that is played with the hands. Some popular homemade versions
of the Hang Drum are out there now. Join the Hang Drum yahoo Group to get the scoop.
People are making great sounding ones out of propane tanks, and other things. (Cool!)
It looks like the flying saucer that landed at Roswell in the 50's. I want one!
I'm told there will be a Canadian distributor soon for these. (maybe) Each hang
is hand hammered, they are magnificent, expensive, & elusive. For those (like me)
who can't afford $1500 for a hang drum, below is a "Virtual Hang Drum" you can play
with your computer mouse. Very cool! (*Note* This redirects you to another website.)
Play the Hang Drum yourself Link
Free Drum Circle mp3
I like to provide ideas, and give away something free to people who visit my website.
Since you read all the way down this far, here's a free drum circle mp3 for you to enjoy.
Listen to it, put it in your mp3 player, or whatever, please just don't sell it anywhere.
We tend to loose track of time drumming at the drum circle, 25 minutes goes by like it's
only five! It is a 20MB mp3 download. It sort of morhps into 3 different jams, there's a
flute player, over 60 drummers, and 7 belly dancers. It was a drumming good time!
Belly Dancing Drum Circle Jam Download
The Visitor - A Drum Circle Movie
Here is my review Of "The Visitor" Movie With Drum Circles & Hand Drumming in it.
Also a review of the drum circle we held the opening night of the film at Muvico
Theaters Bay Walk, in Saint Petersburg (With photos, video, and more.)
I think "The Visitor" movie was a wonderful film. It's doing a lot to help bring drum
circles more and more into the mainstream. In the film, it showed how drum circles
can help to bring people from different cultures together. And how hand drumming can
help you to be a better person. It also addressed some important immigration issues.
Anyway, here's my review of the film from a drum circle lover's perspective, also a
review of the drum circle just before the opening. It was a blast for us all to drum
in the lobby of the theater, and then go in and watch the film together.
Note - The actor Richard Jenkins, (the man who discovers hand drumming), was nominated
for an Oscar in the film. And rightfully so. The nominations were February 22 2009. The
catagory, "Performance by an actor in a leading role". Richard, we're Rumbling for you!
I hear Netflix now has this movie in streaming video, so you can go watch it right now.
The Visitor Movie & Drum Circle Link
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