Guitar In Drum Circles

By Michael Mckinney

Drum circle groups are gaining popularity today and their emergence presents a tantalizing possibility for Classical and Flamenco guitarists. I recently had the thrilling experience of sitting in with a drum circle on several occasions and expect to do so again. There’s nothing like it to test your improvisational skills, but before you simply show up please consider the following things, and number one is how you approach the group. Humility goes a long way to engender good will. Remember Drum circle members are there to experience the percussive rhythm of a communal drum beat and not guitar playing, however there are others and they often number more than a few who are willing to let a guitarist sit in. Before you start playing it helps enormously if you thank the group for letting you participate and even better if you tell them you don’t want to play over the group and you’d be happy to play only 30 minutes or so. If all or most are in agreement you have your chance. Now it’s on you.

Have you thought about what you’re going to play? Most likely you have, but here’s the approach that I found is most effective;

Top of the “to do” list is rasgueado. If you don’t have one I couldn’t guess why. They do two things very effectively; they pump out a continuous flow of harmony and they hold basic chord progressions together over extended musical stretches. They also have the ability to “cut in” to the wall of percussion that will build in volume. Rasgueado is one of the easiest exercises to do without a guitar, just keep fanning out the fingers. What makes it important in a drum circle is the fact that fast scales won’t be heard above the din of the drum beat and they don’t really counter the drums as effectively as rhythmically strummed chords provided the rasgueado is tight and sharp.

There is an exception to this and that’s when the drum circle starts and the pulse is slower and more subdued. This is the time to be expressive and take advantage of the inviting space. It’s an invitation you don’t want to miss because you don’t know when it will come again. I prefer to refrain from any recognizable melody and rely completely on improvisation. I find chord arpeggios and pentatonic scales work best in this setting. They allow me to tune in to the surrounding rhythmic pulse that will eventually surge. The softness of arpeggios seems to waft a musical web around the central barreling sound of the drums. When the pulse gets louder and faster as it certainly will, rasgueado and chords will dominate.

How long can this continue? It can’t, and the reason is obvious. When this train rolls out of the station it’s not coming back or stopping for anything. Drum circles can easily extend over an hour without stopping, so how do we withstand such an onslaught of percussive sound?

Try this; Plant for the G major bar chord on the third fret, then on the beat, strum a very quick rasgueado from the G chord to its natural fifth the D7 chord found right beneath it using the third left hand finger on the D note as a guide finger to place the chord. With the metronome at 160 BPM strum with rasgueado the G major for one full measure and two beats of the next measure with D 7, and then finish and immediately mute after sounding G major on the third beat, then stop playing and wait. Try to resist jumping back in too soon, but when you do use the same formula up two frets to A major, and so on up the neck. In each key we use the same staccato like attack for a total of seven beats only, four to the root chord, two to the fifth of that root, then, one final beat back to the tonic. Every progression has only two chords. It’s vital that you stop playing after these seven beats. It’s the only way to allow the guitar “breathing space” because once that percussive juggernaut starts it will steam roll any other musical approach. The same formula can be used playing minor chords. For instance starting with B minor to F#7, both played with a bar on the second fret, then upward to C# minor and G#7 etc. Use the same seven beat formula played very quickly and stop. It’s essential that you wait ten seconds or so before beginning again. When playing minor chords remember they’re not as bright as major chords.

One last thing; the last drum circle I played was the best because I brought a small 30 watt portable amp, and though I never used anything near that volume it helped me to be heard in a way that’s simply not possible by other means, but there’s something to consider. To just show up with an amp is presumptive and may raise eyebrows, so perhaps you can keep it in the trunk and ask after you’ve made a favorable impression. If you’re allowed to use one keep the volume slightly below and not equal to the drums. Don’t worry about being heard, the sound of strings is very different than percussion and people will clearly hear you.

This wonderful experience is one I hope you will soon encounter. If you do, you will not forget it. The energy level at these gatherings is very high and it will affect your playing. This is why improvisational playing is best because it accommodates the rhythmic immediacy of the surging energy and feeds from it.

Enthusiasts of the great art of Flamenco music use the word “Duende” to describe the feeling one gets when deeply enthralled by the evocative power of this musical art form. You will find this elusive state of mind experienced communally at every drum circle and to be a part of its magic is a great privilege. Good luck.