After my day of exploring Bangalore’s flower markets and the 8th cross district, we began our preparations for the India VMC Playshop. Rob and Vas had collected the fourth member of the VMC Global team for this training, our dear friend from Korea, Myoung-hun Song, at the airport the previous night after a wee problem with the immigration visa and a misfiring credit card!!!!! They landed home at 3am!!
The DrumJam team are totally on it when it comes to loading and shipping kit and so with the trucks loaded the next morning, we were left to jump into our vehicles and head out into the countryside to the venue, Our Native Village
The road to the venue was bumpy and dusty but we were there in the end. We were greeted with a bow and a Namaste and given a wee paint Bindi for the forehead. Just by the reception area was a beautiful Rudraksha Tree with a bowl of Temple Flowers (Frangipani) at it’s base. The perfect blessing.
Set up time. Once again the team was on it and we soon had our room ready for the program.
The participants were bussed in for lunchtime and in the early afternoon and once everyone was roomed and settled we began the training. Here there was a good mixture of returnees and newbies and we began at a pace which continued throughout the program, leaving us with plenty of room for concept work, jump time and late night drumming. Roberto and Vasundhara were the lead trainers with Song and myself taking segments and adding salt and pepper where required. It was a totally harmonious experience for us as trainers and the participants really got a lot from seeing this Global team fully in the flow. There were amazing learning moments for us all as we progressed through the weekend and the participants were like dry sponges, soaking up every last drop. My personal highlight was the Sunday morning ‘Rhythm Sanctuary’ session I led. (There will be footage when we have had time to edit the filming, so keep coming back to check here) Beautiful music medicine moment for the whole tribe. Lots of tears and hands on hearts.
We moved into and through our closing ceremony and then headed en masse for the closing Community Drum Circle in the centre of Bangalore. This was an opportunity for the graduates to play in a half way house circle bewtween the training bubble and the real world before they were released to get into trouble in their respective communities.
Once again pictures can say more than words so please enjoy this collection.
Next up in Part 3, our Road Trip into the West.
DrumTrek 
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