Join this drum circle in Kochi if you love percussion

Join the drum circle in Fort Kochi for a unique musical experience celebrating beats and rhythms of all kinds.

“It all started because of some madness. My answer to all your questions is just that,” smiles DJ and percussionist Kimo (Bejoy Joy), as he raves about his dream project in Kerala — the drum circle.

Every week, a few percussionists from different parts of Kochi come together, sit in a circle and jam together. The notes rumble, roar and roll off the instruments such as djembe, conga, hang drum, darbuka, didgeridoo and cajon, in a rare synchronised rhythm.

You cannot listen to the same music again, it is never the same, neither are the musicians, the rhythms or notes. If you can strike a few notes, they will hand you an instrument and you can also be part of this frenetic musical revolution. Because at this drum circle, it is all about celebrating beats and rhythms of all kinds.

“There really are no bad drummers. Everyone has a sense of rhythm and musicality. Even if you don’t know music, you can join,” explains Kimo, who is based in Kochi. If you join the language of the drummers, you can dance to their beats, because every time they jam, it is a celebration.

The drum circle is held in Fort Kochi twice every week. On Wednesdays, musicians gather at David Hall and Fort Kochi beach on Thursdays. It is organised by Kochi-based music company Art House Music Labs.

“The idea is to develop a street music culture,” says Kimo adding that it all began in 2014 when he experienced the joy of being part of a drum circle for the first time in Rishikesh, on the banks of the River Ganges. “That changed everything. And when I came back to Kerala, I wanted to start something like that. Street music is still an alien concept here,” he says.

So he started the drum circle in Fort Kochi in 2016. He was joined by Hari Krishnan, Nekheeb Sha, Arun Kumar and Sajeer Khan, who were his bandmates in Rhythm Circle, a Kochi-based band. “We used to gather and play. Sometimes travelling musicians would also join us,” he recalls.