20 years of drummaking

For over 20 years now i have been creating drums, rattles and other shamanic tools. This has been my passion, and i am immensely grateful that i have been able to do this work. From creativity, connection with nature, and listening more and more to how to evolve in this work. To be open for the inspiration and idea’s that are whispered into my ears and hands.

From the beginning i have always gone through the whole process of the drummaking, steambending the frame, cleaning and stretching the hides. Not using any additives to get the hair of the skin, and as possible work with natural materials. The creation of a drum for me is a sacred process, in connection with nature, guides and drumspirits. Sometimes it will take time to find the right materials, the call of the drum to be born. This is a process that doesn’t always fit in our modern perception of time. Often it is also a process for me.

At first, it was a huge task to get to know all these aspects of drummaking. The fysical process of the creating. To get to know all the types of wood, and their bending properties. To find the right addresses, good sources for the skins. And by cleaning the skins myself, you start to get a feel for how much they will stretch, how much tension they will need for the best sound. I always tried to keep the energy neutral, so that it was open for the new guardian. And trusting on the energies of the wood, animal and crystals used. Nowadays i feel more and more the calling of certain energies that want to be connected with the drums, like in the above picture, the awakening of the conscious heart. This was born from the process i was in, connecting more and more with my heart energy. Lately i feel more and more drawn to work this way, to closely listen what is going on and translate it into a drum or rattle.

Earth goddes rattle

The above rattle made me find this small cave, what a great place to empower the feminin energy. So i feel more and more the call to take them outside, to a place they show me, to connect with the ancient energies of the earth. Blessed to live in this beautiful environment in France, the Dordogne. Where many parts of nature are still pure.

Now in these challenging times with the lock-down, lots of things keep happening in my process. I have been living quite isolated here already, but took the time to rest and energise for two weeks, to connect with what was going on, exploring more ideas and truely with renewed passion and energies for the ideas that are waiting to be brought to life.

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