Dear Friends of Dance and Rhythm!

I wish you a wonderful, healthy and rhythmical 2000. May we find movements that nourish our whole being throughout the next millennium and may rhythm connect us all more and more. Thanks to all of you who have shown interest in DiRRiD—Dance in Rhythm-Rhythm in Dance. Last year we shared a number of events geared towards finding ways to bring dance/movement and rhythm/drumming deeper into our lives.

DiRRiD teaches the kind of dance that is in all of us, because in reality we are always dancing. DiRRiD activities are for those who are seeking to be more flexible; who want to get more in tune with and care for their bodies. It is a path to deeper experience of rhythm in the body, offering multidimensional access to expressing rhythms through movement, singing, and percussion. DiRRiD is a dance that makes life easier. Rhythm lives in all of us equally; it is our mutual teacher, maybe even our main teacher in life.

I very much look forward to sharing more drumming and dancing with you throughout this new millennium.  

Rhythm is life. Being in rhythm connects us all, and reawakens our resources for living and well-being. Rhythm and movement are good medicine for body and soul--they are always available and have only positive side effects. In DiRRiD we learn how to turn ordinary movements into healing tools we can use on an everyday basis. Through stepping, clapping, drumming and our voice we find enjoyable ways of self-expression. Movement journeys through landscapes of rhythm teach us how to find rhythm in our daily life, with ourselves, and the people around us. They help us ground ourselves, and find joy, focus, clarity and calmness.

"I'm a dancer in my heart,
a drummer in this life,
and a teacher with great pleasure."

Heidrun Hoffmann

DiRRiD
P.O. Box 7224
Santa Cruz,CA 95061-7224
(831) 454-1445

For a description of Heidrun Hoffmann in performance, visit In Concert.

DiRRiD Happenings

DiRRiD Training - Buk Drumming - CD
Body Oracle - Mandala Drumming
"The Power of the Drum" -DiRRiD for Kids
New 3-Year Program Orientation

The first three-year DiRRiD training in the USA started in March 1998, now in its second year. We are a wonderful circle of people: nurses, dance teachers, therapists, drummers, musicians, and massage therapists. Visitors are invited to join the group energy on the Saturday of each session (see Calendar for dates & costs) and get an introduction to DiRRiD aspects through experiencing new realms of dance in rhythm.

For personal reflections on DiRRiD by students in the three-year program, visit What People Are Saying About DiRRiD.

In 1997 we began an ever-growing circle of Buk Drummers, each individual owning their own drum, providing themselves a source for regenerating strength, focus, physical presence, and tremendous joy. To take the Buk drum into your life is to embrace rhythm, the life-giving force--a complete experience of what this drum partner can be. Find out more about Buk Drumming.

There are already several Buk workshops scheduled for Beginners and Intermediate drummers (see Calendar).T hese workshops will give newcomers the opportunity to start playing a Buk and get to know other Buk drummers. Intermediate students will deepen their experience & proficiency, and continue to share with other drummers.

Journey 1 - The Beginning , a 55 minute DiRRiD-CD is available. Along with other compositions, two 20 minute pieces provide enough time to dive into various possibilities for playing, dancing, and singing along with the music. The insert booklet includes descriptions of 22 exercises. If you are interested please order directly from DiRRiD, P.O.Box 7224, Santa Cruz, CA 95061.

The Body Oracle® (developed by Heidrun Hoffmann) includes a book of approximately 100 pages of instruction and guidance, and a deck of 80 cards. It is a wonderful way to find personal keys to the dance and rhythms of your life (see Body Oracle), encouraging you to joyfully fill your days with dances, rhythms and new insights by just drawing a few cards. Both the book and cards are now available directly from DiRRiD!

With Mandala Drumming we are forming a circle of a different kind of drummer. The fascination of constantly relating to the center in movement and rhythmical expression is the passion for this new form of dancing and drumming at the same time. The photo at the top of this page is an example. Mandala Drumming is an integral part of all DiRRiD events. Watch the Calendar for upcoming Mandala Drumming workshops.

One of DiRRiD’s students, Joyce Lounsberry, invited Heidrun recently to a very special meeting, a gathering of seven woman drummers in front of the camera to produce a video for her dissertation, The Power of the Drum. Participants in this gathering were: P.J. Hirabayashi (Japanese Taiko), Zorina Wolf (African Drum), Mo Maxfield (Shamanic Drum), Fariba Bograzan (Middle Eastern Tar), Holly Blue Hawkins (Community Mother Drum), Afia Walking Tree (Afro-Cuban Drums) and Heidrun Hoffmann (Korean Buk). We each introduced ourselves and played individually and in the end jammed together. I came home buzzing, wanting to just play, play, play, realizing once again: “Playing the drum is what makes the difference.”

DiRRiD For Kids

DiRRiD is now part of the  SPECTRA program of Santa Cruz County's Cultural Council. Our first public school performances in November of 1998 were enthusiastically received. In February 1999 we also began providing residence programs in rhythm and dance education in area public schools.

Our first public school performances in November of 1998 were enthusiastically received. In February 1999 we also began providing residence programs in rhythm and dance education in area public schools. Members of The DiRRiD Players during the 1998-1999 season were Peter Greenwood, Debra Houston, Holly Blue Hawkins, and Pilar Marti.

As a result of DiRRiD’s warm reception, the group was invited back to Starlight Elementary School (Watsonville, California) in the winter of 1999 for a six-week residency. Heidrun and one assistant per session visited individual classrooms, working with children in a hands-on setting around a large “mother drum,” clapping, stepping, singing, and drumming together. The emphasis was placed on simple rhythm concepts: slow/fast, loud/soft, and listening to one another while playing together.

The Body Oracle Cards™ were introduced as attention-focusing aides, and to help students differentiate between parts of the body, and types of movement. Children commented that they enjoyed using the cards because it fostered an element of group process, contrasting the teacher-centered approach to learning something new. An added benefit of using the Body Oracle Cards in this bilingual setting was that the children were able to learn to name parts of the body in English as well as Spanish.

Working with young children around a central drum provides an opportunity for teaching in a style that balances structure and freedom. The children are encouraged to push back their desks and learn to express themselves physically and artistically, in ways that may not be typical in conventional classrooms. In addition, teachers are given experience—and perhaps new insight—into ways to augment their teaching style with structured freedom, playfulness, individual self-expression, and energy release.

To request DiRRiD in your school, contact the Cultural Council of Santa Cruz County, 7960 Soquel Drive Suite I, Aptos, CA 95003, 831/688-5399 or 476-2313, or fax 831/688-2209

New Three-Year Program To Begin in 2000

The next 3-year DiRRiD Training orientation workshop is scheduled for Pajaro Dunes, Monterey Bay California.

November 30-December 3, 2000

For more information, please contact the DiRRiD Office.

Announcement:
DiRRiD now belongs to the Dromenon Web Ring!

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