Dust off your doumbeck, develop your technique

I t's time to dust off your doumbek. The Noodle of Doum, Juneau's Middle Eastern drum group, is hosting a series of drumming and rhythm workshops with guest instructor Lara Triback.

Don't have a doumbek? You can still participate. Some drums will be available for those who need to borrow one, or you can use an alternative if you already have one - djembes, frame drums, or other hand drums will work.

Classes include Basic Doumbek Technique, Aug. 20; Essential Middle Eastern Rhythms, Aug. 21; Odd-Metered Rhythms Made Easy, Aug. 23; and Click, Clack, and Ring - Zils Technique, Aug. 26. Workshops will be held at Sitka Rose Studios, and private lessons are also available.

Patshiva, a former member of the local tribal-style Middle Eastern dance and drum troupe, took classes with Triback in Portland and enthusiastically recommended her as an instructor.

The workshops provide an opportunity for drummers to refine Middle Eastern techniques or expand their repertoire of drumming styles. And dancers will benefit from learning the rhythms that provide the backbone of Middle Eastern dance, which is traditionally performed as a visual representation of the music itself. Authentic "cabaret" style Middle Eastern dance physically translates the rhythms being played. Souhail Kaspar, a world-renowned drummer with whom Triback has performed, has stated that you should be able to tell what rhythm is being played by watching a dancer - even if you cannot hear the music.

Cherri Bell and Shawn Damerval, founding members of the Noodle of Doum, have organized the workshops. As dancers they are known as Majida and Shadiyah, and perform with Daughters of the New Moon. They have been teaching dance through Juneau community schools and at the University of Alaska Southeast, and began adding drumming and rhythms to their classes to enhance students' understanding of the dance and provide another avenue for people to get involved.

"Some people would rather drum than dance," Damerval said.

They noticed that there was some crossover between the students taking dancing and drumming classes, but there were also several people who would come just to the drum classes.

With the exception of a few rhythm workshops, learning Middle Eastern drumming in Juneau has been limited to instructional DVDs or gleaning tidbits of information or techniques in dance classes or from a few people who had taken classes elsewhere. Bell and Damerval agreed that there should be more opportunities for people to get involved in the local Middle Eastern dance and music scene.

"We wanted to build more of a community," Damerval said.

Bell and Damerval also facilitated Triback's travel to Haines for workshops there - in case you didn't make it to the fair and need an excuse to go north for a weekend.

• Samia Savell can be reached at samiasun@hotmail.com.