Toward the One, United with All

Blessed Beats Frame Drumming

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Drumming is an ancient technology for synchronizing the body-mind complex and accessing realms beyond the physical.

The frame drum is the oldest known drum, played mainly by women for millennia in sacred rituals and oracular ceremonies as a means of creating peace and ecstasy, and accessing the deepest wisdom within.

Layne Redmond is a world-renowned drummer, composer, recording artist, author, and drum historian, who through her life-long research, study, and teaching has brought the frame drum back into Western consciousness, empowering people to reclaim this ancient transformative art.


Layne playing one of her signature Lotus frame drums
From Layne's "Being in Rhythm" meditation:  "Our bodies are expressions of energetic fields of vibrations. From the pulse of our hearts to the rhythms of our breathing and the patterns of our speech, we are truly rhythmic beings. We are conceived to the pulse of our mother's blood and born into a rhythmic world, where we are continually influenced by the celestial cycles of the Sun, the Earth, the Moon, and the stars. Although we can never extricate ourselves from this rhythmic web, many of us find that modern life is unconnected to the rhythms of nature and we feel a deep yearning to be in rhythm once again."

In Layne's book, When the Drummers Were Women, she notes: "Many are returning to the drum to recover an important spiritual connection that has been lost, a connection long buried but somehow instantly familiar."

Layne's work has enabled many people all over the world to reconnect with a rhythmic world through the powerful experience of playing the frame drum, which she shares as a musical discipline within a spiritual framework.

At Blessed Beats, we teach and explore Layne's approach to frame drumming mastery through introductory and intermediate classes, frame drum intensives, weekend workshops with Layne, and through our frame drum troupe, Sancta.


Sancta at "Twilight at the Oasis", a benefit for Cornucopia House


Sancta at the Music Explorium grand opening
Upcoming Events

Beginning Frame Drum, Wednesdays, 7-8:30pm, February 22 to March 14, Music Explorium, pre-registration needed. A new class series for beginning frame drummers starts Wednesday February 22, and continues weekly for 4 classes ending March 14. Loaner frame drums are available, or bring your own. $20 per individual class, or all 4 classes for $65 if paid by Feb. 22. This series is designed for those who've never drummed before, and is also valuable for those who haven't drummed for a while, and want a safe, gradual way to get back in the flow. Plus, it's just so much fun to drum with others and make rhythmic music together! 
At the end of the class series, participants will be able to:
* Recognize, play, and step in time with The Pulse, the foundation of all rhythmic sound
* Play all the basic strokes on tar and tambourine, invoking the elements of Earth, Water, Fire, and Air
* Play rolls, shakes, and double-time strokes
* Play the traditional Middle Eastern rhythm Baladi with variations, and participate in a Baladi procession
* Play interlocking rhythms with other frame drummers
* Create new rhythms, using combination strokes within musical phrases
 To register, email Farrunnissa with your name, phone number, and whether you'd like to borrow drums (first come, first served). For questions, contact Farrunnissa at 919 361-2383.

The Healing Power of Drumming with Layne Redmond, February 10-11 & February 12, Chapel Hill. Last Chance!  Register by February 1st. We're delighted that Layne Redmond will be returning to the Triangle for two workshops on Feb 10-12, 2012.
* Beginner/Intermediate Workshop, Friday night 6-9 PM, Saturday 9 AM - 6 PM, $160. For beginners, this workshop will introduce Layne’s teachings and basic frame drumming techniques. Those comfortable with the basics will learn how to refine and deepen their drumming. Perfect for those who've been away from their drums for a while and wish to reconnect in a powerful way! Includes loaner drums for beginning drummers.
* Advanced Workshop, Sunday 9 AM - 6 PM, $120. Expand your mastery and take your drumming to new levels! Participants must be graduates of a Giving Birth To Ourselves, Trance Union, or Invoking the Muse frame drum intensive, or must receive prior approval to attend.
* A limited number of overnight lodging spaces are available onsite for an incredible price of $25 per night which includes linen! An optional continental breakfast is available for overnight guests for an additional $8 per day.
To register, send a check to "Beauty Circles" to Farrunnissa Lila Rosa, 5611 Buttonwood Court, Durham NC 27713, along with your name, mailing address, home & cell phone, and email address. Include any food restrictions you have for lunch. If you'd like to stay onsite Friday or Saturday night, state which nights and whether you want the continental breakfast option. 
Your registration must be postmarked by February 1.  See flyer with complete description and registration details. For questions, contact Farrunnissa at 919 361-2383.

For more information about these events or about Blessed Beats, contact Farrunnissa at 919 361-2383.

To learn more about Layne Redmond, her recordings, publications, and upcoming workshops, and to sign up for her newsletter, visit www.LayneRedmond.com.

Farrunnissa and Layne
 Farrunnissa and Layne

Look what the goddess does when she is sad:
She takes up a tambourine, made of taut skin
and rimmed with castanets of brass,
and she begins to dance.
The sound blares out wildly,
reaching even to the depths of the underworld,
so loud, so clamorous is it. 

Look what the goddess does when she is sad: 
She finds the wildness in herself,
and as she does,
she finds that there is joy there too.

-- Euripides (Greek dramatist)
quoted in The Goddess Companion by Pat Moynihan

In Beauty is the secret of Divinity.
 – Hazrat Inayat Khan