Non-profit The Drum Workshop, Inc

In collaboration with Artsbridge, Inc., The Drum Workshop began a new program called, We Drum as One: Nurturing Peaceful Co-existence in Israel and the Palestinian Authority. This summer, we worked with approximately forty participants in Boston, who will return to their homes and share the experience of ensemble drumming with their peers as a path towards peaceful coexistence in the region.

The Drum Workshop is planning our first visit in October and subsequent trips in January and April. JChoice funding will support these trips to continue programming in the participants’ home villages. Our mission is to nurture the idea that peaceful coexistence is possible and help people to better understand each other, facilitating conflict resolution. We will continue to support these fledgling programs as communities across the region reach out to one another.

The Drum Workshop designs and implements programming to address teens at risk, long term illness, substance abuse prevention, violence prevention, anger management, families in crisis, peer leadership, and coexistence. Ensemble drumming is a living metaphor for the workings of a community, and an excellent medium for enhancing individual self esteem, refining communication skills, nurturing the spirit of cooperation, and developing a sense of oneself as part of something greater. It is an uplifting, educational musical experience, and its extended value lies in its ability to reach people on a deep level.

The Drum Workshop was founded in 1987 and incorporated in 1995. We have provided thousands of sessions over the years to a large variety of groups. We have visited schools, senior centers, churches, camps and other facilities across the United States. Our current development is towards expanding our ability to share the success of our programs nationally and internationally. Over the years we have created a roster of services which reaches across generational lines and impacts the entire community. This provides us with a number of model programs which can be transplanted anywhere, given the proper motivation and resources. We can provide the expertise, support materials and equipment to facilitate the creation and implementation of programs for young children, teens, parents and children together, the elderly, people with disabilities etc...The Drum Workshop is fully able and eager to assist in the development of new programs and provide on-going support as these programs grow.

The Drum Workshop would like to create a world full of people who feel good about themselves, respect each other, express themselves artistically, enjoy community, and work joyfully and effectively together.

We Drum As One engages us in our efforts to promote coexistence, among all people of all races and traditions, but specifically between celebrants of the Jewish, Christian and Muslim faiths. We envision providing an extensive series of community programming regionally to develop a We Drum As One coalition that will help us in our plan to bring services of this nature to communities in Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

In addition to the We Drum as One program, we're also involved in the following programs:

1. Repeat The Beat is our initiative to create and utilize instruments made from reclaimed or easily available materials, because recycling is good, and a large set of drums can be prohibitively expensive for some groups. Our intention is to use these instruments in our own programming and to film a video and write a manual containing all the information required for groups anywhere to create the instruments they need to run Drum Workshop programming themselves. Repeat The Beat is a play on words encompassing the ideas that recycling materials is a contribution to environmental sustainability, and that these rhythms should be passed on, and on and on…

2. Rhythms to Routes, describes our philosophy of ensemble drumming to inspire improvement in the symptoms of people with movement disorders like Parkinson’s Disease, Dystonia, and Chronic Lhyme. By engaging in the challenging but fun filled, social exercise of learning and performing traditional African, Haitian and Cuban rhythms, we stimulate our neuro-muscular systems. In participants who are experiencing difficulty with movement and cognition, ensemble drumming provides the opportunity to forge new routes between the brain and the body. We have seen remarkable progress in ease of movement, speech, and flexibility among our participants. We have met with the Movement Disorder department at Boston Medical Center to discuss designing therapeutic methods for their staff to use with patients in that area, and they would like to pursue the development of ongoing programs.

Name of Organization:The Drum Workshop, Inc
Number of Paid Staff:3
Number of Volunteers:30
Total Organizational Expenses:$283,422
% of Organizational Overhead Expenses:30%

The Drum Workshop is by no means the only source for people who are interested in learning ensemble drumming. There are teachers scattered across the country who offer somewhat similar experiences. However, over the years we have developed such a large body of program offerings, teaching methods, and support materials that we stand apart from the rest as a well rounded, thorough, philosophically rooted, practically minded organization capable of tailoring programs to meet the specific needs of any given situation. We believe that taken in it’s entirety, our roster of services, depth of knowledge, established original techniques, support materials, performance capabilities, and vision for the future make The Drum Workshop a leader in this field.

Every year The Drum Workshop is represented by drummers of every age and level of ability in Martha’s Vineyard’s huge 4th of July parade. We play a rocking Carnavál style Samba, and are often accompanied by dancers who whirl around us as we pass the thousands of cheering spectators lining the streets of downtown Edgartown.

In July of 2007, we went all out! I had completed the design of a device that would clamp a drum to a wheelchair and angle it at any plane appropriate for the specific physical abilities of any drummer. This would allow us to include more people with physical disabilities than ever before. Also, I had started a pilot program to determine the benefits of ensemble drumming for people with Parkinson’s Disease and other movement disorders, and they all wanted to march and play!

While we were excited by the possibilities, we were also cognizant of the challenges that lay ahead: would the clamping system hold up under constant use for 90 minutes? Would the members of the movement disorder group be able to stand the grueling pace of an hour and a half of non-stop, furious Samba?

We spent days fitting and fine tuning the clamping mechanisms. We enlisted volunteers who dubbed themselves the “Chair Patrol” to accompany each member of the movement disorder group, carrying a beach chair for rapid deployment should it be necessary. Each of our teen members carried a roll of duct tape, a drum key, and an adjustable wrench.

My favorite image is of a young woman in a wheel chair, her snare drum clamped tightly in front of her, with yet another snare drum clamped behind her, between the hand holds of the chair. She played the drum in front, while a member of the movement disorder group played the back drum, skipping, and jogging somewhat precariously behind. On each side of the chair, strong hands gripping the handles, two young men with Down’s Syndrome propelled the whole shebang down the street.

With a lot of planning, a lot of faith, a lot of laughter, a lot of mutual support, (a little duct tape) and a lot of help - we did it! Forty six drummers started the parade at 5pm, and forty six drummers marched proudly back into the staging area at 6:30, weary, sore, elated, and inspired!

-Rick Bausman

Director of The Drum Workshop, Inc.

Arts and Culture
Children
Israel
Peace

Drumming is cool, and therefore has always been attractive to youth. There is a lot of opportunity for potential funders to also be directly involved by participating in ensembles and learning how to pass the music, growth, joy, spirit and healing on to others.

Name:Rick Bausman
Title:Director/Co-Facilitator
Address:P.O. Box 3000 PMB 3172 West Tisbury, MA 02575 United States
Telephone:(508) 627-3786
Email:drumworkshop@earthlink.net
Website:www.drum-workshop.org

Sderot Indoor Recreation Center	Because they contain: Arts and Culture Children Israel Peace
Art Camp Connecting Israeli and Palestinian Youth	Because they contain: Arts and Culture Israel Peace
Music Scholarships for Underprivileged Children	Because they contain: Arts and Culture Children Israel
Summer Camp for Israeli and Palestinian Girls/Women	Because they contain: Arts and Culture Israel Peace


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We Drum as One