A new opportunity to experience music and explore rhythm through group drumming sessions at IU Southeast is in the works.
Tara Kimes, psychology junior, said she is in the early stages of forming a drumming circle at IU Southeast, where students, faculty and anyone else interested in music and rhythm could come and enjoy making beats together.
Kimes said while plans are still developing, the group would ideally consist of two to six participants, and would be open to musicians, beginners and interested bystanders alike.
Kimes said participants could either bring their own percussion instruments or could borrow one from her collection of two small djembes, which is skin-covered, African drums whose name translated means “everyone gather together.”
They could also pick a larger djembe, two small percussion instruments, a larger African drum and a tambourine.
Meeting times and session lengths, Kimes said, would be informal, meeting in between classes or during lunch. She said with brighter days and warmer weather arriving soon, sessions will very likely take advantage of fine weather and meet by the IUS Lake or elsewhere on campus.
Kimes said whether stealing 10 minutes out of your busy schedule, or having several hours, drumming has significant benefits and affects both physically and psychologically.
“Since my early twenties, I’ve been drumming either in a group or by myself about three times a week,” she said.
She said drumming is an uplifting experience, and it can change and affect moods in a short amount of time.
“For instance, some days when it’s hard to get going for work or school, I’ll play my drums just for 10 minutes, and afterwards I’m beaming and ready to go,” Kimes said.
The powerful psychological effects of drumming, Kimes said, have been documented in several studies which conclude that solitary and group drumming produce even more beneficial results upon the mind and body.
“Studies show that drumming can lower stress by releasing endorphins, which in turn uplifts your mood, that it can increase focus and concentration, enhance social connectedness in group situations, and can even boost your immune system,” Kimes said.
Kimes said she can attest to the claims, and has felt these benefits personally.
“I enjoy how drumming makes me feel emotionally and physically,” Kimes said. “It’s a very powerful thing.”
The effects of relaxation, increased focus and greater concentration that drumming produces, Kimes said, rival many other unwinding activities, such as yoga.
“I taught yoga for two years, and while it has many of the same benefits of drumming, you don’t get the communicative aspect that you do when you’re creating music by yourself or with others,” Kimes said.
“Unless you’re with a partner, in yoga each person is zoned out and within themselves, and you don’t get the interpersonal communicative benefits that you do with drumming,” Kimes said.
While the advantages of drumming can be reaped from solo drumming,
Kimes said the gain for both body and mind is multiplied in group settings, which is a motivation for her introducing the power of percussion to IU Southeast.
“Drumming uplifts people so much, and when you’re creating rhythms together it becomes a heightened form of communication, with everyone getting in sync with one another,” she said.
With the menace of finals approaching, and the stress and concern that the economy is producing in students, Kimes said there’s no better time to slow down even, for a few moments, to reflect and rejuvenate.
By AMY FAULHABER
Staff Writer
amfaulha@ius.edu
