Sufi Drum Circle

Sufi Drum Circle

The Sufi Drum Circle will be an opportunity to practice and learn the hypnotic and invigorating music and rhythms used by Sufis in their practice.

The frame drum has been called the world's 'oldest spiritual technology'. It is also an instrument that was predominantly (but not exclusively) played by women in the ancient world and still associated in the middle-east and Central Asia with women.

The frame drums used range from daf (large Persian Sufi frame drum) to the Riq (small jingle frame drum). The techniques learned in these workshops can be transferred to other frame drums including the North African Tar and the Central Asian Doira.

After learning basic frame-drum rhythms we will integrate the music with Turkish ilahis (devotional songs) and melodic instruments. This is an opportunity for students to get a real feel for the practice of Sufi frame-drumming -even trying your voice out with Sufi singing, and visiting a Sufi group to play rhythms!

The Daf, the large Persian frame drum, is used in Khangah (temple of dervishes) during the zekr (spiritual chanting) ritual. Its Pahlavi (pre-Islamic Persian language) name is Dap and Daf is the Arabic version of Dap. Many Persian poets have alluded to the Daf in their works; perhaps the most famous one is Molana Jalal-al-Din Rumi.

Daf has become very popular these days and is now integrated into other styles of Persian music. Indeed, the Daf is becoming more popular around the world.

Sufi frame drumming is a very ancient tradition in the art of Persian drumming. For many years these traditional rhythms have been played and developed in the khangahs of Persian Sufis. The frame drum played in their temple is the daf with its pre-Islamic name dap.

The Sufi rhythms are mainly in 4, 6 and 8 beats, since they are easier to understand and then for some advance levels rhythms of 5, 7 and 9 beats will be practiced at later sessions.

Frame drums are the most ancient drums among the other class of drums such as goblet drums, cylindrical drums or kettledrums. Frame drums have been played in Middle East for a long time. The different styles and rhythms have been reached to us through the historic chain of drumming tradition from master to student, father to children in every generation.

In the country of Iran (Persia), many different styles of frame drumming exist and three main drumming style is Persian (dayereh), Kurdish (daf) and Azerbaijani (ghaval) style