Rating: 
Summary: A Treasure!
Review: RE: simplistic feminist fluff??? Someone has a problem with successful women!!!
Let's get some facts about Layne Redmond down here:
Drum! Magazine readers (a rocker's mag, predominately read by young males) in 2002 voted Layne Redmond Percussionist of the Year, her album Trance Union, Percussion Album of the Year and her video, Rhythmic Wisdom, Percussion Video of the Year. In 2003 they once again voted Trance Union, Percussion Album of the Year. In 2003 the editorial staff of Drum! listed Layne Redmond as one of the 53 Heavyweight Drummers Who Made A Difference in the 90's, along with drummers like Tony Williams, Roy Haynes, Zakir Hussain, Elvin Jones and Micky Hart. By the way, she is the only woman on this list. Drum! Mag readers are well known for being into simplistic feminist fluff!
She was the first woman to have a Signature Series of world percussion instruments with Remo, Inc., one of the world's largest manufacturers of percussion instruments. She has been a soloist at the Touch Festival in Berlin, Seattle Bumbershoot Festival, the Institute for Contemporary Art in London, Tambores do Mundo in Brazil, the 1995 World Wide Percussion Festival in Brazil, and the Vienna International Percussion Festival in 2001. In Nov. 2004 she'll give a scholarly paper on Ancient Greek Percussion and also a hands on clinic, fusing Middle Eastern and Brazilian rhythms for tambourine, at the Percussive Arts Societies International Conference (PASIC 2004). Another group of people well known for their simplistic feminist fluff leanings.
In terms of her spiritual connection to the frame drum she has taught or lectured at Andover Newton Theological School, Hartford Seminary, the Unitarian Conference, St. Catherine's College in St. Paul and the Jewish Renewal center, Elayt Chayyim -- well known for their feminist fluff leanings.
I came across Layne Redmond in my research for my doctoral thesis on ancient music back in 1994 and have followed her career with interest ever since, actually writing a number of articles about her work. Her book, When The Drummers Were Women is invaluable, no where else are the images of the ancient Mediterranean women drummers held in a collection. Only a drummer of her depth and skill could have gleamed as much information from the ancient images of drummers as she did. I was fortunate to hear her lecture and perform at PASIC 2000 on Ancient Egyptian Percussion and I was also able to attend one of her rituals with the Mob of Angels in a cave in upstate New York along with 750 other men, women, and children. I don't think anyone there thought they were participating in light feminist fluff.
Her new cd, Invoking the Muse, shows how beautifully she has used her ancient research and her writing skills as a source for the creation of nine sophisticated, brilliant compositions, performed by some of the most successful and popular musicians in contemporary classical, jazz and world music. As for her writing as Library Journal put it: "Well documented, with an excellent bibliography, this multifaceted study will have great appeal for all readers . . " I recommend her website: www.LayneRedmond.com, a really a great resource and I'll let the New York Times wind this review up:
Layne Redmond is a superb percussionist!
The New York Times, James R. Oestreich, 1991
Rating: 
Summary: simplistic feminist fluff
Review: Redmond's thesis is quite fascinating, and it is wonderful to see this area of oft-overlooked women's spirituality and religion come to light. However, I was a little disappointed in the writing of this book, finding it straying too far from the intended topic of the history of women's drumming practices. In recent years, many books have been published with this theme: ancient goddesses, Divine Feminine, etc. I picked up this book because I thought it would offer a completely new angle on ancient practice, yet, I found it repeated things that I have learned in various other publications. There were a few new insights, as well as very interesting images and pictures to demonstrate how ancient women used their drums, but not the amount of information for which I was hoping. One other qualm I had with this book was the subtitle: A Spiritual History of Rhythm. When an author attaches this inclusive subtitle to a book, the reader hopes for a survey from many different cultures and continents. I was disappointed that African rhythm history was altogether ignored in this book, in favor of Asian, and European rhythm history. African rhythms are some of the most ancient, and the women had a special purpose and place in the development of rhythm and music in Africa. Why ignore them? Perhaps Redmond's subtitle should have read: A Spiritual History of Frame Drumming in Europe and Asia. At least that way, it would have been clear upfront what the reader could expect. Although I have been critical of the overall work, I applaud Redmond's effort to commute her passion and love for drumming and rhythm, as well as her devotion to the Divine. Reading the book inspired me to pick up her CD, and I am anxious to hear more of her work.
Rating: 
Summary: Redmond's Contribution
Review: Redmond's thesis is quite fascinating, and it is wonderful to see this area of oft-overlooked women's spirituality and religion come to light. However, I was a little disappointed in the writing of this book, finding it straying too far from the intended topic of the history of women's drumming practices. In recent years, many books have been published with this theme: ancient goddesses, Divine Feminine, etc. I picked up this book because I thought it would offer a completely new angle on ancient practice, yet, I found it repeated things that I have learned in various other publications. There were a few new insights, as well as very interesting images and pictures to demonstrate how ancient women used their drums, but not the amount of information for which I was hoping. One other qualm I had with this book was the subtitle: A Spiritual History of Rhythm. When an author attaches this inclusive subtitle to a book, the reader hopes for a survey from many different cultures and continents. I was disappointed that African rhythm history was altogether ignored in this book, in favor of Asian, and European rhythm history. African rhythms are some of the most ancient, and the women had a special purpose and place in the development of rhythm and music in Africa. Why ignore them? Perhaps Redmond's subtitle should have read: A Spiritual History of Frame Drumming in Europe and Asia. At least that way, it would have been clear upfront what the reader could expect. Although I have been critical of the overall work, I applaud Redmond's effort to commute her passion and love for drumming and rhythm, as well as her devotion to the Divine. Reading the book inspired me to pick up her CD, and I am anxious to hear more of her work.
Rating:
Summary: A must read for any one who drums
Review: The detail of the history is great. I was thrilled to find a true history that was backed with details and true references. It's a book worth owning and sharing with all drummers you know. It renewed my interest and gave me new insites. Tal
Rating:
Summary: A must read for any one who drums
Review: The detail of the history is great. I was thrilled to find a true history that was backed with details and true references. It's a book worth owning and sharing with all drummers you know. It renewed my interest and gave me new insites. Tal
Rating:
Summary: simplistic feminist fluff
Review: This book basically covers the history of women using frame drums theorized by viewing artifacts and pictoral references from past 2200 years of civilized societies. There is no mention of tribal drumming or theories discussed of women using other types of drums. Plus you get wasted pages of author's own diatribe about her and her friends spiritual enlightment from forming a drumming group. It's junk like this that gives christian fundamentalists fodder for saying new-age/neo-pagan followers are nothing but feminists trying to rewrite history.
The pluses for this book are it has plenty of b/w pictures, and the cover flaps can be used as bookmarks if you can't finish this lightly fleshed out summary in one sitting.
Rating:
Summary: The Beat of Different Drummers
Review: This book made a major change in my life as a woman & a drummer. Filled with photos of funereal friezes, statuettes & bas relief of women holding frame drums or tambourines from centuries & centuries ago before written history, this is the telling of one woman's journey along her spiritual path & the discoveries she made. A lovely lyrical effort & one I eagerly recommend. It will change your life!
Rating:
Summary: The Beat of Different Drummers
Review: This book made a major change in my life as a woman & a drummer. Filled with photos of funereal friezes, statuettes & bas relief of women holding frame drums or tambourines from centuries & centuries ago before written history, this is the telling of one woman's journey along her spiritual path & the discoveries she made. A lovely lyrical effort & one I eagerly recommend. It will change your life!
Rating:
Summary: This Book Is Excellent
Review: This book outlines the history of drumming and empowers women today to take up the drum. This is a well researched piece of work that reaches into ancient history. Layne Redmond traces the history of the drum and how women were the first drummers until patriarchy emerged and discouraged and then prevented women from using the drum. It is interesting and informative.
Rating:
Summary: absolutely wonderful
Review: Throughout history, music and rhythm have been used in religious ritual, to bring human beings into the ecstasy of the divine presence, by whatever name that has been called at any given time. And, specifically, rhythm was prevalent in the ancient Goddess religions of the Mediterranean. I never realized, until I read _When the Drummers Were Women_, how many of the Goddess traditions included sacred drumming. But it's right there--Cybele's devotees ate and drank from drums and cymbals, Inanna was given drum music as an offering, and votive figures of drumming women have been found in many places. It's like what I've heard happens when a woman gets pregnant--all of a sudden, she sees pregnant women everywhere. Not because there are more pregnant women than there were before, but because her focus has changed. Layne Redmond gives us a new focus--percussion--and suddenly we're able to see the pattern of rhythmic ecstasy that ran through many of these rituals, which many of us hadn't noticed before. And she also suggests drumming as a way to the divine today, and emphasizes that drums were not always seen as "masculine" instruments as they are seen today. Are they seen as masculine? Ask me, ask any woman who played percussion as a young girl. A lot of weird looks still follow a female drummer. But that's changing, thanks to prominent female drummers like Redmond. Why not five stars? I think it's a personal issue of mine. I've read a lot of "history of the Goddess" books in my life, and at this point I'm heartily sick of reading about the matriarchy and its suppression by the patriarchy. This isn't Redmond's fault, it's mine. But this book contains the exact same story arc I've seen many times before, the very same oversimplified history. (The best three-dimensional account I've seen of this theme is Baring and Cashford's _The Myth of the Goddess. Other writers' tellings of this story come off as too sweepingly general after the Baring/Cashford book.) It's up to you whether the drumming angle justifies buying another book about the matriarchy/patriarchy story. For me, it was justified, because I am interested in Demeter, Persephone, and Dionysos, and got some new information about their rites from Redmond's book. It's the big question to ask yourself before buying this book.
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