Summertime Vitality - Part 1

Una de Gato or Cats Claw is an amazing healing herb found in the Amazon and throughout the tropics. I became aware of it thru drinking Treasure Tea with Vanessa Kay of the Amazon Herb Company. I also bought a 100 pack when I was departing Peru 2 years ago after my first Journey to the Amazon.
Una de Gato is well documented for it's incredible healing properties, I have stayed in relationship with it because it makes me feel great. As a percussionist and independent artist I need to feel consistently vital and energized, without big pendulum swings, this is where Una de Gato comes in. As a Djembe player I need to to play full-contact, all out and be ready to go the next day 7 days a week.So please check out Una de Gato for your Super Vital Summer of 2009!!!
"Uña de Gato,'cat's claw', is a thorny liana vine reputed to be a remarkably powerful immune system booster and effective in treating a wide array of maladies including cancer, systemic candidiasis, genital herpes, and AIDS (SIDA).
Uña de Gato also has anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidant properties. It has proven useful in treating arthritis, bursitis, allergies and numerous bowel and intestinal disorders. Anecdotal evidence indicates effectiveness in relieving side effects of chemotherapy.
Wild populations of this woody vine are threatened in some areas by harvesters who dig out the root out rather than simply cutting the vine and allowing regrowth. This is a foolish practice since new growth occurs rapidly when Uña de Gato vine is cut.  It grows prolifically under cultivation.
Uncaria tomentosa, reputedly the most effective of several uña de gato species, is endemic to the Peruvian Amazon and is gaining international attention for its documented curative qualities." ~From www.biopark.org/peru/unadegato.html

Panzumo Spring Concert Video Clip 5/16/09

A short slide show of our performance at the Unitarian Society of Santa Barbara yesterday. Thank you to Kathy deWet-Oleson for putting this together.

Drum and Dance Program at Mama Mimi's Preschool in Santa Barbara, CA

Mama Mimi’s Pre-School is an amazing creative arts pre-school in lower Montecito. It is one of the main schools where I have developed many aspects of my Rhythm, Song and Dance Program. I teach the fundamentals of hand and stick percussion on Djembes and Djun-djuns. The drumming is a very excellent tool for brain development, non-verbal awareness, large motor muscle control, basic time and meter, group dynamics to name just a few of it’s important attributes.
After the drumming we work on the fundamentals of creative movement and african dance. In this portion we expand on ear training with the essential kinesthetic development, thru following the breaks, tempos, and a variety of rhythms with corresponding steps and simple choreography.
Following the drum and dance portion, we do Tai Chi and basic Kung-Fu movements with Mimi’s assistant teacher Matt.
Matt shows animal forms to highlight the ecological aspects of our creative arts curriculum. We want children to feel a deeper sense of connection to animals, fostering a greater appreciation for the wonder of life and the beautiful creatures of the earth.
Rhythm, Song and Dance (with Kung Fu and Tai Chi) Program is just one of the many offerings at Mama Mimi’s Pre-school, for more info call Mimi at (805) 969-6087.

The Power of Circular Rhythms (Integrating Brain Function part 1)

Circular rhythms regenerate themselves like the snake that catches its tail, all trance rhythms are circular. They move in a timeless manner and never get tired or old. The circular flow gives the feeling of deepening, going into sound, tapping into the subconscious mind. As you play gun-go-do-gun-pa-ta- you move like crawling, synchronizing both brains thru the corpus colosum. This is very difficult for people who’ve had brain injuries, for the communication has to flow back and forth evenly and effortlessly. This movement of 1-2-3-4-5-6 across the drum will help the participant with integrative brain function.
Variations of this rhythm can be heard thru hundreds of ritual, initiation, trance and mask dance rhythms.
A central purpose of these rhythms is to step out of the control of the rational mind and open up into the circular mind, which is the meditative mind, the great observer.

This is the place of awareness that makes a place for deep insights. The dance stories told in these rhythms are not everyday stories. They are dances celebrating the supernatural power of nature and our intrinsic need to feel a most essential connection to the Devine. These conscious rituals are designed to reset the internal compass or reboot the system if you will.

From:Are You Only Using Half Your Brain? - Living by Design Blog

The Left & Right Hemispheres of Your Brain

The right side of your brain controls the muscles on the left side of your body and the left side of your brain controls the muscles on the right side of your body. Also, in general, sensory information from the left side of the body crosses over to the right side of your brain and information from the right side of the body crosses over to the left side of your brain. That's why brain damage to one side of the brain affects the opposite side of the body.

Each side of the brain responds to specific stimuli and controls specific activities. For example, the right brain is used for spatial abilities, face recognition, visual imagery and music. And the left brain is used for linear processing, math and logical abilities.

Left Brain functions:
Logic, reason, maths, language, reading, writing, analysis, detail, short-term memory, repetition, structure, effort focus...

Right Brain functions:
Facial recognition, rhythm, visual imagery, creativity, emotions, dreams, long-term memory, the bigger picture, music and tone...

Cross Crawl - An Easy way to Balance your Brain

"Cross Crawl derives its name from the way babies move when they are crawling. By using opposite arms and legs as they speed across the carpet babies are assisting their developing brain by stimulating the left and right hemispheres at the same time.

The original research and application of cross crawl was used to help brain damaged children. When baby walkers became popular, there was some concern that they got babies on two legs prematurely and encouraged skipping valuable brain developing crawling time.

In recent years, the simple act of encouraging the use of both sides of the brain at the same time has lead to beneficial breakthroughs for children with learning difficulties and challenges with coordination. For adults, the simple cross crawl exercise gets the right hemisphere back online for problem solving, and creative thinking. This helps reduces overall stress and anxiety and gets you thinking smarter.

Santa Barbara's Panzumo Steps Up to Help the Pelicans

Santa Barbara based afro-cali percussion ensemble Panzumo is headlining a concert to benefit the Wildlife Care Network and their efforts to save and rehabilitate Brown Pelicans. The pelican is a symbol of buoyancy and unselfishness. In spite of their size they are very light and can float like a schooner. They have air sacs under their skin which allow them to dive down for fish and pop back up, they are unsinkable. This great buoyancy makes pelicans a wonderful symbol for challenging times. No matter how far life's circumstances may pull us down, pelican will show us how to pop back to the surface, with resiliency and vitality.

Panzumo makes music that matters. Infused with the magical realism of beautifully imaginative costumes, deep groove rhythmology, rich classical nuances (viola, harp, dulcimer, flute), and dancers that captivate the senses. Panzumo is dedicated to art that transcends time and monolithic cultural perceptions of "reality".

As the pelicans go so do we. Saving the pelicans is about saving ourselves. Originally djembe players were connected to the Noumou caste of blacksmiths. Many of these blacksmiths were also medicine men who crafted a variety of "gris-gris" or "ju-ju", herbal medicines, and were in charge of many of the boys initiation rituals and ceremonies (including circumcision).
In african traditional "medicine" or animists societies every family (and it's extended lineage) has a totem. Not only can you not hunt or eat your totem, you must protect it and it's environment. The old traditions are a guide to the spiritual power of nature and the responsibility and commitment to protect it's ambassadors.



Sofa - Transforming Warrior Energy

Sofa is a very old rhythm of Maninka, or Malinke origin to glorify kings and great warriors, many of whom rode horses. They played plate-shaped drums (tavela) used to send coded messages. The Rhythm originates from the Kouroussa, KanKan, and Faranah regions of Upper Guinea.

Rhythmic motifs: Djembe Bell Ta-tata-tata-ta-ta-ta-ta- is a most essential timeline, because it holds the 3-2 son clave, making it a major archetype for the pan-african rhythm language and the diaspora. The downbeat Sangban part talks to the upbeat Kenkeni and the DunDun responds to their conversation in the second half of the measure.

The Sofa dance is a great dance for drummers. The moves are bold and easy to follow, providing an excellent introduction to Djembe Dance. When dancing Sofa you become observant and more aware. This is a rhythm about heart and courage.

Questions for you as you play/dance Sofa:

What obstacles do you face in your life today?

How can Sofa help you gather courage to overcome these challenges?

Are there people, animals, plants or ancestors who can help and/or guide you?

How does tuning into your body through breath and movement allow you to feel the rhythm from a deeper perspective (as a drummer)? Get into it!!!

Ecological Perspective-
The Lion is a symbol for courage and a fitting totem for sofa the Warrior King. The lion is also the totem for the Keita lineage, with all of their rich history as Mande Royalty. Lions are an umbrella species which need expansive landscape to thrive and is subsequently seriously endangered. Lions are the only large cats that live in groups or prides. Males and females live up to 20 years in the wild. Left alone by day, they are seldom dangerous. Yet lions are highly intelligent, which leads them to be nervous and high strung with rapid mood swings, making them potentially dangerous. Lions do not fight for the sake of fighting, however. They avoid confrontations and will leave the scene of danger if possible. (This is a tactic to keep in mind if the lion is your totem). NOTE: Male lions are pictured above, but the females do most of the hunting.

Vitality today (for your inner warrior):
Ginseng
Ginseng will help maintain and restore cellular function which can reduce many of the symptoms of aging. Ginseng also improves muscle tone, decreases blood sugar levels, and balances the metabolism as well as balancing and maintaining hormone levels.

What should I practice to develop my djembe playing?

photo by Serena Wells
Q: What should I practice to develop my djembe playing?

A: An important question to ask yourself is "Do I have the technique to play these parts cleanly and in (steady) time? " Make sure that you understand the basic timeline patterns of djembe support parts and bell patterns. This allows you to play in a variety of situations and develop in time.

The next question is "Do I know the dun dun parts?" If you do not, then get on it! You have to know the dun lines to solo effectively and, more importantly, you need to be able to play all the parts in the orchestra to know the rhythm and be useful in the ensemble.

Other questions to ask yourself:

"What are my performance goals?"

And if you play in an ensemble: "What are the group's goals?"

"Do I know the djembe standards?" Everyone who plays djembe for dancers needs to know the standards. Like Jazz, djembe has standards: Koukou, Soli, Manjani, Dundunba(s), Soko, Sinte, Lamba, Kassa, Madan, Sorsonet, Sabar (translated), Yankady/Makru, Sofa, Tiriba, etc. These are the rhythms and dances that are taught all over the world.

More helpful tips:

* After you embody the essential parts of the orchestra, start working on the solo drum language to these great dances.

* Make a weekly goal to work on your timing, and work on a particular rhythm or two.

* Play along to recordings, respond to the phrases you hear. Stop the recording and go back to particular phrases that catch your ear, this keeps you engaged and focued on a deeper level of responsiveness. Find recordings that break down solo phrases. You can find examples of this at www.panzumo.com (in the Wulaforest/Pulse drumming area of the music section)