 |
SIMONA LADRUMMA'S RÉSUMÉ |
 SIMONE LADRUMMA* has been composing and performing on hand drums since 1987, firstas a member of several Seattle-based bands, including Anzanga Marimba Ensemble, and then, from 1992 to 1999, as founder and Director of Ladies Don't Drum, a unique all-female percussion ensemble. During their eight-year run, "Ladies" performed and recorded with the Seattle Men's Chorus, Maya Angelou, Holly Near and Bobby McFerrin, among others. In 1998 they released their first solo CD, "Nailin' It." The band performed throughout Canada and the U.S., including a memorable performance in New York's Carnegie Hall. COURSE CREATION In 1991 Simone began teaching drumming "for a loving" with the creation of Drumming &The Holistic Expression of Rhythm, a method of learning to play hand drums that bridges the gap between our ancient tribal heritage and modern life. Since that time she has brought the magic of rhythmic expression to thousands of people across the U.S., Canada and Europe, both as a teacher and as a performer. She has a studio in Seattle where she offers classes to people of all levels and genders. She has also taught through the University of Washington's Experimental College since 1992. MENTORS & TEACHERS Simone has studied with many great teachers including Babatunde Olatunji, ShereeSeretse, Dr. Dumisani Maraire, Mamady Keita, Arturo Rodgriguez, Carolyn Brandy, Chris Stromquist and Chata Addy. In 2003 she went to Cuba where she studied regional drumming, dancing and singing throughout the length of the island. Simone has also studied drum set with Vance Nurkula (rockdrumv@earthlink.net) and JimParsons. TEACHING STYLE LaDrumma incorporates much humor into her teaching and provides her students withbackground information on the cultures from which the rhythms come. She uses the term "Holistic" in her class title because she also teaches how to create your own rhythms, techniques of improvisation, and how to use the voice and body to manifest rhythm. VENUES Simone has been a perennial performer at Seattle's acclaimed Women of WisdomConference and also has performed and led workshops at the Seattle World Rhythm Festival since its inception in 1993. For the last few years, Simone has also emceed the Festival's Opening Night Ceremony. Alone or with a group she has performed and/or taught at Seattle's annual Folklife andBumbershoot Festivals, at WOMAD, and at fairs and festivals throughout the Pacific Northwest. She has been the subject of numerous newspaper articles, been interviewed in many magazines and on TV, and was also a prime subject on the PBS documentary, "The Grandmother Myth." SCHOOLS With her unique programs called "Just Say YES to Drums!" and "Drum Your Way Aroundthe World" Simone has brought her infectious energy, knowledge and enthusiasm to thousands of children in schools K-12 and to institutions of higher learning as well. In 2004 she was invited by Bastyr University, internationally recognized as a pioneer in the study of natural healing, to present a program on the connection between well-being and drumming. In 2006, she drummed the invocation for the graduating class of Bastyr at McCaw Hall in Seattle. (Dr. Patch Adams was the featured speaker.) She has also presented programs to teachers on how to present percussion to children. In 2004, she was a faculty member of the Seattle Summer Rhythm Institute. (For moreinformation on school programs, please click on Programs for Kids.) SPECIAL POPULATIONS Simone also brings her drums to libraries, prisons, churches, homeless shelters, half-wayhouses, birthday parties, weddings, corporate retreats, and everywhere the Spirit of the Drum leads her. Each month she drums with severely developmentally disabled people in West Seattle and in the summer leads classes and puts on performances for the City of Seattle's programs for developmentally developed youth. She also teaches workshops for at-risk teenagers in Snohomish and King Counties. On a quarterly basis Simone brings the Spirit of the Drum to Interaction Transition house inSeattle, temporary housing for men who have recently been released from prison but are still on parole. She has also led drum circles for the Freedom Project ("Transforming prisoners into peace-makers"), www.freedom-project.org. *Yes, it's her real name. No, she wasn't born with it. |
