When the drummers were women : a spiritual history of rhythm

In this long-awaited, lavishly illustrated book, drummer Layne Redmond presents an empowering narrative history of the sacred drum in the ancient Goddess civilization, using her extensive collection of images gathered during more than five years of research and travel in the Mideast and Europe. 80 photos & drawings. "By searching out the lost, early history of the frame drum, Layne Redmond bas uncovered an important missing chapter in the history of bumanity—a chapter in which goddesses ruled beside gods and in which womens spirituality, wisdom, and sexuality were affirmed through rituals involving drumming. In an age where people are rediscovering the communal and healing powers of rbythm, WHEN THE DRUMMERS WERE WOMEN establishes the link between ancient knowledge and the contemporary empbasis on the importance of passion and soulfulness to life." (RICK MATTINGLY, editor, Percussive Notes magazine) "As a scholar Redmond traces the history of the frame drum from its former exalted position, through its centuries of suppression, down to its current intense revival, as a virtuoso performer she speaks with authority on the drums real and read- ily accessible powers. Women reading this book will want to jump up and start playing Layne Redmond's drum, men will get a valuable lesson in what they bave been missing these past 5000 years or so." (JOHN ANTHONY WEST, author of Serpent in the Sky) In this lavishly illustrated book, drummer Layne Redmond presents an empowering narrative history of the sacred drum in the ancient Goddess civilization, using her extensive collection of images gathered during more than five years of research and travel in the Mideast and Europe. 80 photos & drawings. She recounts women as drummers and leaders of ritual, giving readers a captivating visual confirmation of the vitality and power of a goddess-oriented tradition. Bringing together current scientific research into the harmonious effects of rhythm on the body, mind and spirit, Redmond shows how women today can reclaim drumming as a spiritual heritage and sacred technology that celebrates the unity of natural cycles of earth, cosmos, and human body When The Drummers Were Women Acknowledgments Contents Introduction Part I THE DIVINE FEMININE CHAPTER ONE In Search of the Sacred CHAPTER TWO First-Person Feminine Part II IN THE BEGINNING CHAPTER THREE Primeval Goddess of Rhythm CHAPTER Four Mother of the Fruited Grain Part III IN HISTORY CHAPTER FIVE The Lotus Goddess CHAPTER SIX The Queen of Heaven CHAPTER SEVEN The Golden One CHAPTER EIGHT The Mother of the Gods CHAPTER NINE The Great Protectress Part IV DISPOSSESSED CHAPTER TEN The Storm God CHAPTER ELEVEN The Triumph of the Virgin Part V THE RETURN TO RHYTHM CHAPTER TWELVE The Technology of Rhythm CHAPTER THIRTEEN Giving Birth to Ourselves Notes Selected Bibliography Discography Illustration Credits Index