Welcome to the Internet's only site and blog devoted to shamanic drumming as a vehicle for healing, consciousness expansion, and community building.
Estimated to be between 20,000 and 30,000 years old, shamanic drumming is considered one of the oldest methods for healing and accessing inner wisdom. Practiced in diverse cultures around the planet, this technique is strikingly similar the world over. Shamanic drumming uses a single, repetitive rhythm played at a tempo of three to four beats per second. Although sounding quite simple and redundant, the unique connection between the drum and the shaman gives this drumming great power, richness, and depth.
The sound of the drum is very important. It is the subtle variations in timbre and ever-changing overtones of the drum that allow the shaman to communicate with the spiritual realm. Part of the shaman's training involves learning to hear and interpret a larger range of frequencies than the normal person can. The shaman listens and finds the right tone, the right sound to which the spirits will respond. Through the many tones, pitches, and harmonics of the drum, the shaman communes with the subtle and normally unseen energies of the spirit world, which is the web of life itself.
Tuvan shamans believe that the spirits of nature create their own sound world, and it is possible for humans to communicate with them through the sound of the drum. Tuva (southern Siberia) is one of the few places in the world where the shamanic heritage has remained unbroken. Tuvan shamans use the drum to convey to the spirits of a place their greetings, any requests, and thanks. It is a spiritual practice designed to help human beings relate to all of nature.
Drumming opens the shaman's inner, spiritual ears and eyes and also calls the helping spirits. As Tuvan musicologist Valentina Suzukei explains, "By changing and listening to the frequencies and overtones of the drum, the shaman is able to send messages to, and receive them from, both the spirit world and the patient. For example, the shaman might use the overtones to send signals to the sky, where they provoke a voice from the cosmos; in turn, the cosmic signals are caught on the drum and reflected to the shaman through the creation of subsequent overtones."(n1) The shaman builds a sonic landscape which interacts with the natural world. To learn more about Tuvan shamanism, read In the Land of Song and the Drum: Receiving Inspiration from Tuvan Shamans.
Click on the "Articles" link to read informative articles on shamanism and shamanic drumming. We also offer books and recordings on shamanic drumming. This web site is our invitation to all who wish to experience the power of rhythm.
References:
(n1) Kira Van Deusen, "Shamanism and Music in Tuva and
Khakassia," Shaman's Drum, No. 47, Winter 1997, p.
24.
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