Bongo Boy in rhythm with First Friday event
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Bongo Boy Recreational Music Center in Indianapolis will bring drums and percussion instruments to its Bongo Boy Drum Circle on March 1 at The Commons, as part of the Columbus Area Arts Council's First Friday for Families series.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Bongo Boy Recreational Music Center in Indianapolis will bring drums and percussion instruments to its Bongo Boy Drum Circle on March 1 at The Commons, as part of the Columbus Area Arts Council's First Friday for Families series.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
ISA Colleen believes a solid rhythm can create harmony in more ways than one.
She is activities director at Bongo Boy Recreational Music Center in Indianapolis, which will bring drums and percussion instruments for about 150 people to its Bongo Boy Drum Circle at 6 p.m. March 1 at The Commons. The free gathering is part of the Columbus Area Arts Council’s First Friday for Families series.
“Our biggest hope at our events is always that parents and children can be drawn together,” she said.
So the Bongo Boy staff, which normally teaches music classes, pursues that interaction with a motivation that is hardly humdrum.
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Make your own rhythm WHAT: Bongo Boy Drum Circle, an informal and fun hands-on event aimed especially at families, but also anyone of any age WHEN: 6 p.m. March 1 WHERE: The Commons, 300 Washington St. ADMISSION: Free INFORMATION: 376-2539 or bongoboymusic.com |
“Most of our First Fridays programs are theatrical,” said Tami Sharp, the Arts Council’s program director. “We wanted to mix things up a bit this season and provide a truly interactive experience. And what better way to do that than by giving children the opportunity to play the drums?”
The informal event is particularly aimed at clans looking to bring in the funk and the noise. Especially the noise.
“It does get rather loud,” Colleen said of the gatherings that draw all ages. “After all, these are drums.”
Normally, a Bongo Boy staff member will pound out a beat at some point as a kind of melody line for others to build upon. Colleen is careful to indicate that anybody can join in, even with no rhythm or experience.
“With what we do,” she said, “there is no wrong note. There is no wrong beat. Really, if people don’t even want to play at all, they can sit there and enjoy themselves and tap their toes.”
Soon after the music starts, comes a symphony of noteworthy giggles usually comes from children.
“We’re certainly not there to be musically perfect,” Colleen said. “We’re there to engage people in a rhythmic experience — and, of course, we’re there for laughter.
“Does it sound like chaos when we begin? Well, yes.”
Colleen, a former high school volleyball coach, got involved in drumming when she first saw it used in personal growth and emotional healing workshops in Washington state. She has seen it especially help women.
“I have developed a huge passion to help people who struggle to communicate their emotions,” she said. “This allows them to put their heart out there so they can begin to heal.”
Even the drum circles frequently allow people to express everything from frustration to assertiveness. And the good vibes from the events often follow a family home, where the music can become a bit more home-grown.
“Then, they can get out the pots and pans,” Colleen said.
And cook up their own flavor of sound, presumably.
“I’ve noticed,” Colleen said, “that it’s really cool for many of the kids to see their mom and dad grooving with them.”
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