Fire Tribe Gathering

DRUMS AND SACRED SOUNDS

Your participation as a musician in our fire circle is an opportunity to consciously serve and support our community’s sacred chant, trance dance, and ritual crucible. You will be part of a shared prayer — playing with "tranceformational" attention and intent. Our meditation for the night is to create and nurture a sonic trance environment, actively seeking to induce altered states of consciousness in ourselves and in others.

Trance drumming is quite different from what you may have experienced in community drum jams, or drum and dance classes and performances. Feel free to play your spirit and flow with the energy of the moment. At the same time stay conscious of, and sensitive to, our collective composition. Play heartfully and mindfully — and be prepared to play one rhythm for a LONG time!

Roles

Trance drumming for a fire circle celebration offers different areas of influence and responsibility for the various instruments. Dununs, and other bass drums primarily serve to provide a stable bottom melody focused around a strong, clear pulse. Hand drums such as ashikos, djembes, or congas provide rhythmic accompaniment to the bass drum melodies. Drumming for trance dance is a time when remembering that "less is more" is very important. Leaving "s — p — a — c — e" in the patterns you play gives others the opportunity to contribute complimentary rhythms in the places you leave open. Please consider playing the same hand drum part as others near you to create a stronger collective energy.

The "top" sounds, such as bells, shakers, and claves, play a very important role in triggering trance. As with all the other instruments, consistency and simplicity go a long way. Because shakers and bells are some of the louder frequencies heard at the fire, frequently changing a pattern or playing inconsistent rhythms can throw both the dancers and drummers off the groove. The outer dance ring or "Rattle Track" is an orbit where shakers provide sonic containment, "driving the fire" around the entire ritual area. Small shakers and rattles can continue being played at all times, except perhaps following a call for sacred silence. Even then, some people may feel the need to continue rattling softly in order to maintain their own trance.

Remember to allow space for different types of drums to take a leading role — congas, dumbeks, and frame drums don’t have the same degree of volume or projection as djembes, for example. Be willing for music to evolve which showcases the richness and diversity of these other softer voices.

Please welcome interludes featuring other sacred sounds. Embrace and enjoy the magic of the digeridoos, crystal singing bowls, or Peruvian whistles. Our silence empowers them to weave their musical spells without percussive accompaniment. Bird whistles, rain sticks, thunder or rain drums, gongs, bullroarers, and other effects make wonderful transitional elements leading into chants or invocations.

Melodic instruments such as guitars or flutes are very rarely used at the fire circle, as trance music is repetition and drone based. The sonic environment is focused on rhythm, entrainment and deep groove. Many melody instrument players have a difficult time fitting into a rhythm and trance context, as the temptation to play soloist over the massive rhythm is strong. Please share your melody instruments at other times during the Gathering, outside the ritual area.

Arranging the instruments

Musicians in the fire circle are situated on stools or benches in a semicircle on one side of the dance track, with the bass drums located in an arc at the center. This is in contrast to the more familiar circle of drummers all the way around. The need for this becomes critical because there is now a large fire in the center — and all the dancers moving in a circle around it. The seating arrangement lets the drummers see and hear each other clearly, and thus stay connected and play well together. There is an open space or "runway" leading from the top of the arc into the dance track. This open space is consciously kept clear as a focal point where bell jams, digeridoo offerings, and other sacred sound events can coalesce.

There will be a heart shaped area marked where the open center of the drum arc intersects the dance track. This area — often referred to as the "Gratitude Zone" — is be a lingering place for dancers who wish to pause in their orbiting and connect more directly with the drummers. The front row of seats nearest to the Gratitude Zone is reserved for those players focused on consciously working with the dancers. Only occupy these seats if you have a clear intention to be in direct interaction with the dancers. All soloists — please remember to take turns — share the "speaking space".

Be aware that seats are for people actively engaged in playing music. Please play as much as you like... and when you take a break, please take your instruments with you and leave your seat open so that others can rotate in.

Keep the drumming area clear of non-musical objects such as coolers, sleeping bags, or other gear. Your personal nest area is the place for whatever you’d like to bring for comfort, rest, refreshment, and relaxation. We want to have plenty of room for everyone who wishes to drum!

Ways we’ll play

The "tranceformance" cycle is usually born from silence or from an invocation, story, poetic offering or breath work. One of these elements will give rise to the beginning of a chant. Allow plenty of time for the chant to be shared, learned, and developed before bringing in the drums. Join in the chant, letting the words and emotions of the song begin to move and inspire you toward your contribution to the rhythmic foundation that we’ll soon create.

Remember that pure chanting has its own rhythm and power. Give the singers time to find their harmonies and counterpoints. As the chanting begins to build in power, a simple bass drum pulse joins in to reinforce the rhythm and begin the dance. As the chant continues to build in intensity, slowly begin to layer in other bass drum, hand drum, and percussion parts. Be aware of the volume of your instrument as you join the chant. Play in a way that is appropriate to the feelings being evoked. Not only can we begin playing softly — also remember that we can rub, scratch, or tap the very edge of our drums to offer gentler sounds. Some people like to snap fingers or clap hands before bringing their rhythm to the drum.

Usually, the tempo of the drumming stays the same until the chant peaks and transitions fully to dancing. At this stage the volume of the percussion instruments usually increases and dancers begin to enter into trance. As each piece unfolds, there may be two or three gradual increases in tempo. Take care not to prematurely push a rhythm too fast.

The volume and intensity of playing are likely to be modulated as the dance progresses. For example, we might play quieter as we speed up to the next level.

To avoid shocking or "short circuiting" the dancers’ trance state, please do not use African performance style group breaks or sudden stop cuts. A cycle is likely to fade out into silence, perhaps with a rumble. At times we might intentionally play the rhythm slower and slower as we fade out the music.

The first moment of silence is a great time to take a deep breath and consciously direct, or channel, the energy we have built for your own magical use. We prefer to make that moment an inner celebration of the sacred, in contrast to shouts of "Whooo!" or lapsing into conversation.

Welcome the deep silence that follows. Meditate in the stillness, or listen to the gentle rattles circling the fire. Do breath work, stretch your legs, drink water, or visit the food altar. Soon another prayer, poem, or chant will begin the cycle anew.

Considerations

The overall organization of our fire circle creates a sonic challenge due to the presence of the fire and the dancers in the center. Remember to continue to look and listen to the people making music all around you. Extend your attention outward, both to maintain an awareness of the music, as well as to nurture your connection with the other members of our community. Making eye contact with the dancers passing by is one easy way to stay tuned in to their experience.

Remember that the drummers’ shared goal is to make transformational music in service to the chant and dance. Stay alert and aware to avoid "spacing out" out as you drum. The basis of our trance is a tuned-in, focused mindfulness. Intention has a lot of influence on what sort of trance state we reach. Keep your attention on what is happening in the fire circle and consciously integrate what you experience into your playing. Sharing smiles and eye contact with the dancers and drummers around you will help maintain your connection.

Most of the rhythms we’ll create will be in duple or triple meter. If a rhythm unfolds that you can’t "feel," it’s likely in a rhythmic mode that is unfamiliar to you. Be willing to allow people more experienced in that modality to carry that rhythm and use the opportunity to join in the chanting and dancing. We suggest that more experienced players simply avoid meters such as five, seven, or nine in favor of rhythms that allow everyone to participate.

Allow the patterns you play to have lots of "space;" there’s no need to play every available note! Think of the sound of a heartbeat in contrast to the sound of rain on a roof — there is power and depth in simplicity.

Soloists are encouraged to remember to share the solo space. Regardless of your skill level, be willing to contribute most of your playing time to supporting the collective groove. Your strength as an accompaniment player will make a big difference in the power and depth of the collective experience.

If you are a dunun player planning to play on multiple drums, please remember that "less is more." Even if you are quite capable of playing intricate melodies on your own, be willing to give spaces and places to the drum voices of others.

A quick review of our tribe’s drum etiquette: a drum covered or lying on its side is not available for you to play. A drum standing up and uncovered is available to be played with care and respect. It’s always best to ask for permission when you know who owns the drum. Be sure to remove all rings and bracelets before playing someone’s drum to avoid damaging the skin.

Most players desire an unobstructed view of the fire and the dancers in order to maintain connection. Please avoid standing in front of other musicians. It’s alright to go out and drum on the dance track provided that you can simultaneously play and move with the flow of the dancers around the fire. Frame drums and other small percussion are great for this. Take care not to obstruct the flow of the dancers, and listen extra carefully as you orbit the far side of the circle away from the rest of the drummers so you stay in the groove.

Remember to also make time for your own prayers. Go into the circle and join in the chants and dance. Give others an opportunity to experience the joy of drumming in service for YOU!

For information on upcoming Fire Tribe events please contact 808-864-1701, or visit http://www.firetribehawaii.org.