By Paul Roberts
Special to The PREVIEW
Join musician and music therapist Paul Roberts for a free hand-drumming class at the Pagosa Lakes Clubhouse on Tuesday, Jan. 16, at noon.
The class offers a welcoming environment that encourages fun, creativity, playfulness and connecting with others. Hand drums are provided for those who don’t have one. Even participants who have no experience playing a musical instrument can immediately get into the groove. Besides hand drumming, the class includes body percussion and songs of indigenous peoples.
“The meaning of song goes deep,” wrote Scottish philosopher Thomas Carlyle. “Who in logical words can explain the effect music has on us? A kind of inarticulate, unfathomable speech, which leads us to the edge of the infinite and lets us for a moment gaze into that!”
Music takes up where words leave off. By allowing ourselves opportunities to become musically creative and expressive, we can become free from the limitations of words and concepts, access deeper parts of ourselves and explore how this universal language can benefit our lives.
Research is demonstrating how music can be mentally and physically beneficial. It’s encouraging to hear the affirming words of scientists about how music stimulates the brain, improves learning, improves heart rate, reduces anxiety, enhances social support, self-esteem and confidence.
“Why do so many of us try to explain the beauty of music, thus depriving it of its mystery?” The question, posed by celebrated American composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein, brings attention to fact that music, being a nonverbal experience, can never be fully explained.
Approaching music with an open heart and an open mind, we can appreciate the affirmations from the scientific community about the importance of music while experiencing this wondrous renewable resource and its beneficial potential for human beings and the planet.
The word rhythm in Greek means “to flow.” In the Pagosa drumming class, we gain a sense of interpersonal support as we flow with rhythms into a state of well-being.
For more information about the hand-drumming class, email banjocrazy@centurytel.net or call 731-3117. The Pagosa Lakes Clubhouse is located at 230 Port Ave.
