Winter 1999

Dear Diary,

This past August, Jennifer and I spent our summer vacation visiting Idaho. We spent several days in Boise (now I know it is pronounced BOY-see, not BOY-zee) and also toured the Snake River Basin in the southern part of the state, seeing marvelous mountains, deserts, and big open skies.

On our last evening in Boise before flying back to Chicago, we went to Julia Davis Park, which is just next to Capitol Blvd. and across the river from Boise State University. It is a sprawling city park, and we were at first attracted to its large and beautifully-maintained rose garden. As we entered the park, we heard the rumble of distant drums and the unmistakable sounds of a large crowd. As we strolled through the flower area, we got closer to the south end of the park and there we noticed a large empty band shell. But in front of the band shell, on the expansive open lawn, there were a few hundred people gathered together, dancing and singing and milling around. Of course, we were curious and made our way there. As we got closer, we saw that the center of activity was a large drum circle.

This drum circle consisted of a few people on various kinds of percussion and melodic instruments, all improvising. Many, many others were standing nearby and either dancing or just listening. It was an exciting event to see so many people spontaneously creating rhythm and unabashedly enjoying it and the companionship. I do not know the style of the music well enough to know if it was sophisticated or not, and I did not really care. The experience was enjoyable in a most basic way, a reminder of the primeval power of music, and the need to tap into this power in my teaching studio every chance I get.

We stayed a while and took in the moment. I was fortunate to have my video camera with me to record some of the event. After returning to Chicago the next morning, I wanted to find out more about just what we had seen and heard back in Boise. I was able to get in contact with Martin Johncox, a reporter for Boise's main newspaper, the Idaho Statesman. He told me that every Wednesday evening in the summer, this particular drum circle meets in the park. Drummers and others come from all over Boise and southwestern Idaho (not just from nearby Boise State University, which is what we had originally thought). Besides being a journalist, Martin also just happens to be a drummer who participates in this drum circle on some occasions, so we could not have contacted a better person to get more information!

To see a short video clip of this event, click below:

1.8 MB, QuickTime movie file

In this drum circle, as in most, a number of people take turns being the leader. This particular group was doing mainly west African rhythms. A few basic patterns are sequenced, and each one is improvised upon before going on to the next. Martin Johncox mentioned a few specific ones that were probably being done: fanga, guaguanco, zowly.

The core members of this group are quite serious about honing their art. Sometimes they have workshops in which drummers of African rhythms from other parts of the country come and teach new patterns and techniques. And when the weather gets colder in Boise in the autumn, the group sometimes rents a warehouse to play in.

To hear a 48-second sound clip of this event, click below

527k, WAV sound file

One of my piano students at Chicago Musical College, Jack Slaiher, is also a drummer. He told me that drum circles are relatively common now in many parts of the country, but that most have focused more on Afro-Cuban rhythms. The west African rhythms that we heard in Boise that evening are just now becoming more widespread in drum circles throughout the US.

It was indeed serendipitous that Jenny and I happened upon this exciting rhythmic event that capped off our lovely eight-day vacation in Idaho.

P.S. Martin Johncox is a member of another group, Mondo Raga Samba, that regularly performs various types of world music. Their website is www.mediamaestro.com