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Had an epiphany today...

2012-05-11T00:14:42Z

I realised that it's been a year since I was granted funding to do my drumming for mental health project. A year of snags and screw ups and mis-communication that has led to...well, nothing!

My epiphany today is that I can let that funding go and let that partnership go and try again. So I'm going to. But I'm going to make some changes.

You see, I've had this vision for quite some time, about using drumming in a way that builds communities as it builds the people why participate. I want to create a performance group of drummers. I want that group to be made up of youth. I want it to be a place for people who need a second chance, who need an opportunity to learn something new about themself...and about the world around them.

This past week I attended a conference here in Halifax called Youth Work That Works. It got me fired up again. It gave me the opportunity to meet with a group of amazing people. We challenged each others ideas, we debated and we dreamed. I ran a drum circle for the group last night and it was beautiful. This is what feeds me. This shared joy. Shared Music. Shared Presence. Right Now.

I've started working with Phoenix Youth. It's all tentative at the moment....a little seedling with lots of potential....I'm excited and hoping that this will be the first step to creating what I've been dreaming about for so long...

Busy bee!

2012-02-29T21:28:31Z

In the past week and a bit, I've run drum circles in Lunenburg, the Abbey J. Lane (QE2 Hospital), and at a Waldorf School in Blockhouse. I also brought my box of noise to the Open Mic at Humani-t Café last Friday and was amazed and inspired by the joyful rhythm that was rocking the place front to back.

The Abbey J. Lane runs a variety of mental health services for the public and I was fortunate enough to get an opportunity to drum with a group who accesses recreation services there. I had a group of 13 initally, including 3 staff. The group were all adults with one senior. I spent the first 20 minutes just talking to them. I learned all kinds of things about what they liked to do, places they had travelled and their experiences with music. After, we moved into shaker games. I got them to play along with me, play by colour and by yes/no to questions about them. I got a few people to "steer" the group by playing the heatbeat on the Djun Djun. At first they hesitated, but it look little time for them to get into it. I set the group up to play parts using Boom Wackers and then got everyone to swap out instruments, (the whole group wound up with percussion at one point creating a really mellow groove). At the hour mark a few people had had enough, but I still had a core group strong enough to do my now infamous Rumble Roar. They weren't too sure at the start as I described it, but once we let out our roar a beautiful thing happened....smiles. Everywhere. Giggles. It was beautiful.

I made sure at the end of the circle to make eye contact with each individual and say thank you. I could tell it was a challenge for some, but also recognised the gratitude in their eyes for the gesture.

Best part: I've been asked back :)

Stuffed my gear in the hatchback Saturday after a busy day and took the hour commute to Blockhouse, a small community on the South Shore. I'd been asked to come run a circle as a part of a fundraiser for the Waldorf School. They were doing a showing of "A Drummer's Dream", a documentary about a group of Master Drummers from all over the world who came together one summer two years ago, in the woods of Ontario, to share their skills and passion with a new generation. It only seemed fitting to hold a drum circle after such an event! It only lasted about 15 minutes but I had a blast. The group was really friendly and responded well to my antics. I was paid in baked goods, (and totally ok with it) and made some really great connections.

Sunday the 19th I travelled down to Lunenburg to do a 2 hour facilitated drum circle. Attendance was lower than I'd hoped for, but it all turned out well in the end. Everyone had a good time and I fulfilled my drumming addiction for another day :)

Word is starting to get round about the work I do. I've had a few more people inquiring and I'm hoping it will lead to more opportunties to do this work. At this moment, I'm waiting to hear back from a local photographer and will a bit of luck I'll be able to update some of the photos on the site really soon.

Lunenburg Drum Circle, Saturday, Feb 19!

2012-02-12T17:45:06Z

This month, we’ll be moving away from traditional rhythms and
exploring the magic of free flowing, group rhythms. In a
facilitated drum circle, the group will learn to listen to each other
and come away with a clear understanding of how to improvise
in any drumming session. This session is appropriate for all ages
and drumming skill levels.
Date:
Sunday, February 19
Times:
2pm-4pm (Registration at 1:30)
Cost:
$25 bring any drum
Location:
Lunenburg Cultural Centre, 114 Fox St.
Register:
Email wlw3@mac.com
Bring:
Any drum or percussion instrument. If you
do not have anything come and play
something that Kelly brings.
All types of drums welcome.
Kelly is bringing nine extra drums
and a box of percussion
instruments, if you do not have
anything to play.

Been neglecting the ol' website as of late...but things are happening!

2012-01-16T00:49:35Z

Ok, so quickest update ever:

Today I went to a drumming workshop in Lunenburg. It was great. I'll be hosting the one next month and I'm really looking forward to it!

Back in December I did a 10 minute drum circle for my work's Christmas meeting do. It was seamless and surprised everyone there! Everyone really loved it and as a result, I've been asked to come to a circle (yes, during my 9-5 working hours!) with an off-shoot group that our organisation facilitates.

I have also been in communication with a former schoolmate of mine. She's now working as an Occupational Therapist at the QE2 (hospital in Halifx). She's received some funding and wants to do a trial circle on Feb 23rd. She's working with people recovering from mental health difficulties...a population I've been trying to work with now for over a year. Still waiting for confirmation, but so far so good.

I had hoped to finally launch my Drumming for Mental Health this month, but problems yet again. This time an expired check and uncertainty over whether a new one will be issued. Long story short, the workshop has been promoted as a "coming soon"...not at this rate!!! >_<

Anywhoo, Friday night I was back at Humani-t cafe and decided to bring some toys to share. HAve made some new friends and the result was a sweet last minute drum session. If you head over to YouTube, you can see the video here.

Adventure Earth Centre

2011-11-15T11:57:27Z

I led a drum circle last night at the Adventure Earth Centre. What a great group! It's so interesting to me to see how in tune a group can become. This group had already worked with one another and it showed in their music. I had 12 participants, ages 12-16 and a lot of laughter.

Great night had by all!

Drumming for a women's choir group

2011-10-22T19:42:03Z

I was invited to join the Gaia Singers this past week to drum with them for the launch of their latest CD, Widening Embrace. We performed last night at St. Margaret's of Scotland church on Robie street. It was a lot of fun. The ladies were kind enough to invite me to another performance tomorrow in PEI, but unfortunately I won't be able to make it. Still, great experience!

Drum Camp 2011 !

2011-07-08T00:59:00Z

Well folks, I've been busy making calls and sending emails. I'm told the summer months can be tricky for organising events, but I'm going to give it a go anyway.

For those of you coming to this site looking for more info, you've come to the right place!

So what's the purpose of this camp anyway?

Well, to be honest, I'm robbing a brilliant idea I once heard of. It was a group that worked with homeless people and got them together to form a choir. They practiced each week until they were ready to perform. The benefits were obvious from the video. These folks suddenly had a place to go and a reason to be.

Drum camp is aiming to achieve something very similar. I want the participants to have a place where they can come and feel free to be themselves, while learning a skill they can be proud of. I envision this camp as an opportunity for participants to make new friends, learn how to work as a team and experience first hand the joys associated with collaborative music making.

This week long program is phase 1 of a project I hope to extent (as with so many great projects, subject to funding) to include a composition segment and later, a pulic performance series.

Obviously, this cannot be achieved without people! So, please, spread the word about this program. If you or someone you know is experiencing a mental health difficulty, and you're between the ages of 16 and 30 we want to hear from you!

Some finer details:

Dates: Monday July 18th-Friday July 22nd

Times: 10am-12:30pm (potluck lunch to follow)

Location: Chocolate Lake Recreation Facility (Herring Cove Road, served by bus 19 and 15 I think?)

Cost: FREE!

We got funding!

2011-06-01T22:18:54Z

Thank you to Chebucto West Health Board for accepting our funding proposal to provide drum circles for people with mental health difficulties!

We were awarded $1650 toward the program. Tomorrow I will meet with stakeholders from the Healthy Minds Co-op to work out a game plan. We had applied to 2 agencies looking for just shy of $5000. We're a wee bit off the target, but it's a start!

Drum chums :)

2011-05-30T17:34:18Z

The 2nd Halifax Drum Circle took place on May 26th and we had ten people there to show their rhythm. Our youngest player was about 12, our oldest over 50. We had a nice mix of drums including Djembes and Darboukas.

Tonight, I'll be attending the Pathways end of year banquet. This was initially supposed to be the finale of our project, but we'll have one final session next week. I'm excited about tonight! The initial plan to compose a song didn't really work out. I'm confident that with more time the kids would have been able to create something amazing, but with our limited time, I'm happy that they've agreed to perform....with a bit of cajoling :)

I'm also really looking forward to this Saturday when I'll be facilitating a family drum circle for Deafness Advocacy Association of NS. Must be off, time to practice finger spelling!

Pathways underway, first community DC and 2 funding proposals

2011-05-10T19:20:13Z

Looks like I might have let the old blog fall to the wayside these past few weeks. So without further ado, an update:

The youth drum circle for Pathways kicked off three weeks ago and while the numbers were on the low side, everyone seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves. We'll start working today on composing a piece that will be performed at their year-end banquet, May 30th.

April 28th was my first attempt at holding a community drum circle in Halifax. While lots of people expressed interest, it just did not seem to be a good date. In the end, we have 5 new faces turn up, and one fellow who arrived just as we were packing up to go. Hopefully this month will see a bigger turn out.

April 29th was the deadline for funding applications to the Chebucto West and Dartmouth Community Health Boards. With the help of Irene and Myra from Healthy Minds, I got the applications in on time. Groups who have been successful in their applications will be notified June 6th. Cross your fingers!