Before diving in , consider if you ’ re ready for
Where to look for lessons
Jude plays an Australian didgeridoo to enrich a West African djembe piece while Peter and Lynn wait for their cue to start drumming
Peter offers a shaker to Greg
More than 100 adults sing in the Cum Vino Cantus choir
Both choir and drumming are uber-social and result in a complicated sound that I could never create on my own . In choir , we even manage our breath together ! I ’ ve made new friends of all ages , and I ’ ve learned new music , including one current song in Latin and another in Japanese .
Meanwhile , drumming has opened my ears and hands to traditional , non-Western music played on a non-pitched instrument . Musicians notate this music in unfamiliar ways or not at all ; I know drummers who memorize all of these complex rhythms . ( At a few workshops , West African teachers have been exasperated by the North American need to take notes !)
And here ’ s a surprise — if I have a splitting headache when I arrive at drum rehearsal , that headache will disappear , even if the music is loud enough to wear earplugs . When I relax into the rhythm and breathe naturally , quotidian task lists and ominous world news just melt away , and so does my headache .
As for my clarinet that was disassembled and snapped up in its velvet-lined case at the end of Grade 12 , I recently donated it to a grateful highschool band program . If you ’ re wondering about my majorette batons that I ’ d wrestled with for a parade or two back in the day , well , that ship sailed long ago .
Sheila Bean retired from the Calgary Board of Education after seventeen years and taught a little bit of general music and a whole lot of West African drumming . While teaching elementary school , she also played O Canada on the piano and moved countless risers for assemblies .
Before diving in , consider if you ’ re ready for
$
The cost of instruments / lessons The distance to lessons The time commitment of practising
Where to look for lessons
• Find individual teachers on social media , community newsletters , or bulletin boards .
• Many music studios offer adult lessons .
• Ask your local librarian to help you research online lessons .
• Use the internet to search for local lessons , drop-in jam sessions , bands looking for another member , or whatever fits your needs .
CALGARY Westwinds Music Society Bow River Handbell Musicians Society
EDMONTON Cosmopolitan Music Society
BURNABY West Coast Amateur Musicians Society
FORT McMURRAY
Suncor Energy Centre for the Performing Arts
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