Rhythms of Life

This past Saturday, The Idisi were guest performers at the Women's Drum Center Annual benefit concert "Rhythms of Life" at the Jeanne d'Arc Auditorium at St Catherine's University.

If you are not aware of the Women's Drum Center..I HIGHLY encourage you to check them out.

www.womensdrumcenter.org

The center is a vital part of our arts community in St Paul and the Twin Cities at large. The wondrous women who inhabit the many different drum technique classes, ensembles such as Drumheart, Women Who Groove, HeartRHYTHMS, and Million Women Drum Circle are truly women with Change in their hearts, and on their minds.

The concert was a wide spectrum of rhythms and drumming styles, and included  The Idisi performing several songs with various drummers. Most of the songs featured being from West Africa such as Yemaya, Baba la gumbala, and the beautiful ensemble piece we all did to end the show, Oya De, celebrating the Goddess/Orisha Oya, and the Winds of Change.

The entire evening was one of celebration, amazing skill, vibration, and joy. The featured dancers also brought such grace and beauty to the stage, I could not help but beam the entire time.

As I stated to my Idisi chicas at our centering pre-show chat...we had a lot of "twatenal torque" (I am so trademarking that) on that stage..and it was glorious!

The audience was ready to play and were warm and inviting. The Idisi had a fantastic time. It was also beautiful to be invited to sing a channeled solo piece at the opening of the show with Cheri Bunker's frame drum women. It was truly special and moving for me.

I am heartened, literally, by the resurgence of women stepping forward and taking the reins to enact change in the world. I see so many women who have entered their Crone stage leading the way, as if to say "Come sisters, we have much work to accomplish, let my wisdom be a beacon". As a women embarking upon my 40's...and finding myself in a leadership role I did not expect to be in...it gives me comfort to know so many are coming forth to be a force for change in a very Divine feminine way. Through community, through our open hearts, and through the arts....these gentle..but fierce... Winds of Change usher in a Great Remembering of what is possible for us all.

These Winds keep us all moving forward, however slow, despite the barrage of "you can not/should not/will not's" from the prevailing dualistic mentality.

I endeavor to keep my Faith strong that we WILL, because events such as this remind me...we always DO.

Thank you Marisa Cuneo-Linsly, Cheri Bunker, Krissy Bergmark, and all the fantastic drummers of the Women's Drum center for including The Idisi in your celebrations. May your organization celebrate many more years of community service, and keep the rhythm of Life going strong.

Namaste'
Dayna Jean Wolter
The Idisi -Founder and Director

 The Idisi perform again on Sunday, April 29th, 2012 at Patrick's Cabaretin Mpls MN at 7pm-9pm
as special guests of Pirates of Dreamtime.

 Join us for "Beltane Dreams: Songs of The Ether" A Sacred Sonics Performance and Ritual

For tickets click here

Music as a Method of Healing by Tanya Brody

Musick has Charms to sooth a savage Breast,
To soften Rocks, or bend a knotted Oak.
I've read, that things inanimate have mov'd,
And, as with living Souls, have been inform'd,
By Magick Numbers and persuasive Sound.

These first five lines of William Congreve’s poem, The Mourning Bride, (1697) show the power that music has had over the human race for centuries. When we speak of “being lifted up” by a piece of music or “being moved,” we are referring to the energy that courses through our bodies when we hear a glorious set of notes strung together in a way that appeals to us. 

Sound travels in waves and these vibrations affect us physically as well as emotionally. Some people put on soothing music to get rid of a headache. Others perform their yoga routine to music, presumably for something enjoyable to listen to, but the sound also enhances the movement, adding to the healing potential.

Our group, The Idisi, uses sound vibration as a healing modality. By setting an intention, let’s say, healing the waters, or sending healing energy to a specific person or area of the world, and allowing our subconscious to voice whatever feels “right” at that moment, our group of 30 women works together to create amazing sound healing and send it wherever it needs to go. 

Please keep in mind, this is a group of women of all different backgrounds, vocal ability and training, all opening our mouths and letting sound come out. By opening ourselves to the task and hand and to each other, we are able to create some of the most powerful and amazing music ever heard, and never to be heard again.  Each piece we perform is unique in its beauty. The only way to “recreate” any of what we do is through recording, which we have done, producing our debut album, “chanty- WHOO-hah.”

By understanding the deeply spiritual nature of sound, we are able to channel it through our voices to where we wish it to go. This is not some superhuman feat; this is a talent everyone in the world has if they choose to do it. One of the great wonders of music is that it is universal. When a person starts singing in any language, people can enjoy the sound and feel the rhythm, no matter where they are from or whether or not they understand the words. That same power exists in all of us and takes little or no training to invoke.

In all energy work, the theory is that the energy created or channeled will go where it is needed. The beauty of music is that its sound enters through the ears but the sound waves go through the entire body, sending energy throughout the system. What’s more, because music is something that exists in every culture, there is no natural aversion to something that is “different” in terms of receiving the healing energy, as sometimes happens with people who are unfamiliar with energy work in its many forms.

The power of music as a healing modality is substantial and should not be ignored. Modern medicine is taking this to heart, with music therapists becoming much more common in hospitals and musicians coming into hospice situations to soothe the way for those who are at the end of life. 

So take some time to listen to music today, after all, it’s good for you.

Tanya Brody is a professional Harper/Singer/Songwriter, copywriter and member of The Idisi. Her music can be found at www.tanyabrody.com. 

You can learn more about and hear The Idisi at our website, www.theidisi.com Our album of vibrational chant, “chanty- WHOO- hah” is available on our site, through amazon, CD Baby and iTunes