~ STORIES of JOY ~
Percussion Is My
Passion
- Joy
Krauthammer
April 2011
At the end of Shabbat services,
where I serve spiritual communities as world-beat hand percussionist, people
ask me questions: "How long have I been drumming? What kind of drum is the
big one? Did I go to music school? How did I become a drummer? How do I do
it?"
The last is my favorite.
I love these telling questions
because I love it that people are interested, and appreciate my music with its
subtleties and expansiveness. I love to share my story, one of visions, Hashgachah
Pratit / Divine Providence, and of a joyous, passionate Jewish woman
drummer.
I share with people that I play
with joy for them--because I receive their joyous soulful energy that
circulates; I feel that and it excites me. Accompanying cantors, singers,
dancers and rabbis brings out the rhythmic best in my music. More of that truth
is that I connect with the Source of All BlesSings, and to Miriyahm HaNeviah,
biblical timbrel player. I have gratitude, and become a vessel
for Hashem’s music. I am ‘played’ by the Holy One. I am inspired to
“Serve G*d in Joy”. (Psalm 100:2) My kavanah /
intention is knowing that my ‘Sounds of Joy’-- the gift that G*d gave to me,
can assist neshamahs / souls to lift their tehilim
/ prayers to the Divine One; as a dance going up, and for a shefa /
abunDance of conscious connection with healing and wholeness, to come down
through the Kabbalistic Four Worlds of Spirit, Mind, Heart and Body.
To be ethereal was my yearning
when I asked the Creator to give me a drum—naively thinking that music would
not take the great physical space that my own ceramics work had occupied.
(That's an oxymoron for a percussionist. I'm learning to be ethereal.)
Many vessels of
sound I play were designed (some customized to my desire) by my renowned
international teachers (Paolo Mattioli, obm), were purchased during world
travels, or were inherited from my mother, z"l (especially gongs
and bells). My instruments that I lovingly play, stroke and caress (not
'beat' or 'bang') with my hands or mallets include large wood and natural skin
African djembe, Middle-Eastern dumbeks (metal, vegetarian synthetic, or ceramic), frame drums, and (Remo) timbrels (aka riqs) with heavy metal brass (or other alloys) jingles, seed
jingles, cymbals, ting shas (small
hand cymbals), chimes (72 double row, and energy chimes), triangle, and
such ‘small’ hand-made, ethnic traditional percussion as bells, rattles (chajchas,
kpoko-kpoko, seeds, Buffalo rawhide), shakers (natural woven caxixi, gourd gita, maracas, shekeres, and axatse), scrapers (guiros), clave, and mu yu (slit drum). Additional ethnic percussion from many nations I
have learned include: tambourine, tar, tamborim, bohdran,
djun-djun, ashiko, talking drum, klong yaw, cuica, timbau, surdo
repinique, agogo, bongo, congas, cowbell, tubano,
pandeiro, kanjira, sakara, fruit and vegetable shakers (of plastic, wood or
metal), as well as sound shapes.
For meditative and healing
moments, I play organic rain sticks, ocean drums, gongs, Asian bells, and
crystal and Tibetan singing bowls tuned to lev / heart chakra.
Since 1990, I mamash /
truly have loved playing percussion for Lev Eisha / Heart of Woman women
and men at our gevaldt / awesome Shabbat services
where Shechinah dwells. I have been drumming since 1986, through both
challenges and simchas. The secret? This eisha /
woman plays with her lev.
BlesSings for Sounds of Joy,
Joy Krauthammer
This story is published in Lev Eisha site:
For a more fully illustrated magical
musical story with my responses, please read:
+Joy.jpg)
