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My interest in and experience with Persian, Arabic, and Indian music traditions stem from a more general interest in ethnomusicology, altered states of consciousness, and the usage of music for therapeutic and healing practices. While growing up in Ukraine in the 1980's and early 1990's, I had little exposure to those music traditions. A new chapter opened in 2003, when I arrived to the United States motivated in my decision by the diversity of world music traditions accessible in New York City. I began studying privately the vocal and drumming practices of the Middle East, India, Balkan and Slavic countries, while reading extensively on the history of these traditions.

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 Since 2007, I studied frame drums with Naghmeh Farahmand, Mehdi Darvishi, Aida Shahghasemi, Yousif Sheronick and Alby Roblejo; Persian and Arabic singing with Jessika Kenney, Bahram Sadeghian, and Youssef Kassab, North Indian singing with Sanjukta Biswas, and Balkan and Ukrainian traditions with Carol Freeman and Nadia Tarnawsky.

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I decided to focus on percussion, particularly Persian daf, and my interest expanded to the therapeutic dimension of music and drumming in particular. Using the knowledge I gained from the Certificate in Creative Arts Therapy at the New School (2010-2011), I have started gathering and creatively processing information on the healing properties of the Eastern music. This path subsequently led to my volunteer work as a research assistant at Beth Israel Hospital in NYC and publication of an article about personal explorations of Indian and Persian music traditions in music therapy practice (co-authored with Soniya K. Brar, MT-BC; in: Music and Medicine: Integrative Models in the Treatment of Pain, ed. by John F. Mondanaro and Gabriel A. Sara, The Louis Armstrong Center for Music&Medicine, New York, 2013).

      

My long-time goal has been to organize a Persian drumming circle in NYC, which would include people from various backgrounds, interesting in and open to Middle-Eastern drumming traditions. In the past, my efforts to do this were often challenged by internal disagreements and differences in vision between the members of the group. Oftentimes the differences had to do with cultural and political issues, and made me question my own understanding of the concepts of “openness”, “sensitivity”, “cultural canon”, and “student-teacher relationship”. I am not giving up, however!

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If you are interested in collaborating on the drumming circle project, or have an idea of your own, please do not hesitate to contact me.

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