Jim Donovan Interview

Donovan teaches the roots of drumming
By Lauren Shopp

Djembe drums stacked five deep and a maze of folding chairs arranged in a chaotic semicircle crowded the sharp angles of the CNY Yoga Center. Rusted Root drummer Jim Donovan sat perched above a group of 30 people on a small platform with his eyes closed and hands poised above the large drum that rested between his legs.

"There are only two mistakes that you can make tonight. The first one is not trying, the second one is to perceive that you messed up and judge yourself for it," Donovan told the group before the workshop began. "Let that stuff go - this is not about perfection."

This feeling of ease and peacefulness defined the entire evening at Donovan's Rhythm and Drumming Workshop, held on Friday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the CNY Yoga Center in Liverpool. The workshops are meant to show participants not only the basics of rhythm, but also the ways in which drumming can help to enhance creativity, group unity and movement. Donovan has taught at venues as diverse as the Church of Universal Love and Music in Mt. Pleasant, Pa., and the New York Institute of Dance and Education in Auburn.

Donovan began the night with a breathing exercise in which he urged participants to clear their minds and focus on one of the most important aspects of the workshop: acting in the present.

After participants reached a more relaxed state, Donovan began the workshop with a series of instructions that showed them how to avoid injuring their hands on the drum.

"I promise you that your hands will be slightly bigger when you leave today," Donovan said. "You'll hit the wrong part of your hand on the drum one time and it will only take that one time for you to realize that it was the wrong thing."

Regardless of the warning, many participants still left with swollen fingers and black-and-blue marks scattered across their palms.

Donovan guided his pupils - complete with monster-sized hands - through a two-hour group drumming marathon that could not have been experienced on campus. He performed solely on djembe drums - small, African hand drums made of wood and animal hide.

He began the drumming portion of the workshop by allowing participants to explore different beats, ranging from slow and simple to rapid-fire. Although the group meshed well when performing easier exercises, many participants lost track of the rhythm patterns when the beat became more intricate. Donovan stopped the workshop at these times and offered encouragement and advice.

"Don't watch my hands - trust your ears," Donovan said. "In the West, we are trained to not believe it until we see it. In music, if you always have to see it, you will not enjoy it, because you're going to be caught up in analytical thought."

Donovan also taught songs from Nigeria and Ghana as part of the workshop's emphasis on multicultural music. The evening was capped by a 10-minute improvisational drum jam, in which Donovan encouraged all those in attendance to contribute their own unique beats to the rest of the group's collaboration.

"Drumming with other people is like a sonic sorbet, it puts everybody on the same page," Donovan said. "When you're using both of your hands back and forth in music, you're utilizing both hemispheres of your brain. You're balancing yourself out and putting everybody on the same energy level so that you're all starting from the same spot."