This goblet shaped thing is a Djembe, (said "jem-beh"). Originally from West Africa, this is a (goat?)/skin covered drum played with bare hands. Don't you just want to sit down and try??

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We walked into Secret Harbour Marina and were greeted by a few Djembe's placed in a circle. This was one of them...



"the word comes from two words in the ancient Malinke language. 'Djem' was the tree originally used to make the drum shell (a very dense wood found in Mali) and 'be' (pronounced 'beh') was a goat, used for skinning the drum"

"According to the Bambara people in Mali, the name of the djembe comes from the saying "Anke djé, anke bé" which translates to "everyone gather together in peace" and defines the drum's purpose"

This was another one,



Aren't they beautiful ?

Monty told us that a skilled drummer "can make the djembe talk" and the people will come dance. Max, Secret Harbour's bartender, was walking by, and we asked him if, in hearing our drumming, he felt instantly compelled to dance?

His response, a totally incredulous look, said it all.
As if : "You have a long ways to go before I come dance!".

The jembe master (a "jembefola") leads the pace of the dance, increasing the tempo when good dancers enter the circle. A single song can be played for hours at a time.



My biceps and palms were sore after 30 minutes.

Monty taught us a few basic sounds: bass, tone, and slap.



As you can see from the photos below,



it took a few tries,



thank goodness Monty was a patient man, although at one point he had us stop... as he quietly exclaimed "OH MY".

I'm thinking that was NOT a positive OH MY but rather a surprised OH MY, a cringe of his ears OH MY. And I'm thinking that with his being an experienced teacher, and international player, he has heard it all, and I'm thinking that ours somehow takes the Oh My prize !!

When we all were somewhat co-ordinated into some semblance of decent soundings slaps and sounds, he had us keep going as he began to sing,

Swing low, sweet chariot,
Comin' for to carry me home;
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Comin' for to carry me home

We drummed along, sometimes coordinated, sometimes not. Sometimes out of sync, sometimes not. Sometimes loud, sometimes not so much.

He then tried to coordinate us into drumming to:

By the rivers of Babylon
Where he sat down
And there he wept ... when he remembered Zion.

I closed my eyes and allowed myself to feel the sound, the reverberation hitting me throughout my body and my hands just played, of their own accord. A whole body mesmerizing type of experience.

At the end, when I opened my eyes, the smiles on everyone's faces, including my own, sang of volumes ! THRILLED, enchanted, bewitched.



I think our clothes perfectly exemplify Monty's parting words: "It'll come... Don't Worry, Be Happy".