Over the last few years I have purchased a number of recordings of drumming for use when shamanic journeying on my own. I have not yet reached the point where I can journey while I drum, so recordings are very handy when I want to journey by myself. I thought it would be good to post some simple reviews of the recordings I have used so that other folks can have a starting point for comparison when tying to choose some drumming tracks for journeying.
I first got into shamanic journeying because of dreaming. I'd been keeping a dream journal for a few years and wanted to broaden my experience and do group dreamwork, so I began reading every solid book on dreaming that I could find. Somebody gave me the audiobook for "Dream Gates" by Robert Moss. I wasn't so sure about it but decided to give it a listen. Nearly the first sentence of Robert's is that the best book on dreams is the one you write yourself in your own dream journal. Well, that really got my attention, I couldn't agree more! I decided to take this one more seriously and discovered that he has formed a nice modern synthesis of dreaming and shamanic practice and that really grabbed my attention.
Here's a link to a CD audiobook of Dream Gates, which is also the title of a book covering similar material. I'm not sure what content you will find on these recordings as I have only listened to the original cassette audiobook:
Dream Gates Audiobook - Robert Moss
http://www.amazon.com/Dream-Gates-Robert-Moss/dp/1591794897
I've never found a Robert Moss book that I didn't like, so I'm sure that the CD version will be of good quality and will cover a lot of the same material as the cassettes. You can find more information about Robert Moss at his site:
http://www.mossdreams.com/
I'd always been drawn to shamanism but felt that I didn't want to be ripping off any native or aboriginal culture, so I kept away from a sense of respect. But after some experiences with past life regressions and getting a life reading from a psychic, I could see that shamanism is a real part of my roots, actually all of our roots. I understood that I was drawn to it because I had some ancestors who worked with it and that I had had some exposure to it in other lives. Or so it seems to me, these things are never so cut and dried, but if you look at them as stories about you and your current life, then they have something to say. Something important and worth looking into at least.
But back to the drumming. One of the early tracks on "Dream Gates" introduces you to the technique of reentering a dream using shamanic drumming. The first time I did this I had an amazing experience where a old dream of mine came to life and I first met Snake, but that's a story for another time. Suffice it to say that this opened up new vistas in my dreamwork and got me hooked on shamanic journeying. The problem I had with using the drumming on "Dream Gates" is that the drumming parts are of limited duration and I didn't want to spend time finding the right places in the audiobook and fumbling around with them. I think "Dream Gates" is a great audiobook, one of the best on dreams, and certainly a great introduction to shamanic journeying, but a dedicated drumming recording seemed the right way to go. Looking around, I found "Shamanic Journey Drumming" by "Spirit Passages":
Shamanic Journey Drumming - Spirit Passages
Evelyn Rysdyk & C. Allie Knowlton
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00005MOH2
It has an opening track that helps set a good focus for journeying. The drumming track is over an hour long, probably long enough for most journeys. It closes with a really good callback. This is the recording I used for about a year and consider it a good basic tool and I still use it occasionally. The drumming is very solid and of the right rhythm for me. Not as fast as others, but steady. The quality of the recording is very good and the actual sound is rather nice. I ripped mine to a high quality audio format and used it in my music player. I found out very soon that drumming recordings will destroy the kinds of earbud earphones you get with most music players. I suggest a decent pair of headphones. I used this set of Plantronics computer headphones:
Multimedia Stereo PC Headset - Plantronics Audio
http://www.amazon.com/Plantronics-Audio-Multimedia-Stereo-Headset/dp/B0000665P5
They have the benefit of not only being inexpensive, but I find myself using them with my computer when I want to keep things quiet in the evening. They have a volume control on the cord, which is very handy when journeying to a recording. I might as well mention another useful item to have--an eyeshade. My experience has been that using an eyeshade reduces distractions that might intrude on your journeys. Some people use various kinds of cloth that they wrap around their head, but I didn't have time to make one and I found a simple pair at a place that supplies traveler's needs. Here is the pair I use, but I'm sure that anything that you find comfortable will work:
Eyeshade - Eagle Creek
http://www.amazon.com/Eagle-Creek-Travel-Gear-Comfort/dp/B001M0NZ5E
You'll also need to have a quiet comfortable place where you feel relaxed and secure. I like to sit upright but lots of folks like to lie on their backs. I find that sitting half lotus on our comfy living room couch with a blanket when it is cool and there is nobody around is perfect for me. Dim the light and turn up the headphones to where it is loud enough to block out distractions, but not so loud that it harms your ears. This is where a volume control on the cord is useful.
After using the Spirit Passages recording for a while I started to feel a bit stale and looked around for another recording. I wanted to have some alternatives to compare. I found the reviews for "Drumming To Journey By" by Kay Cordell Whitaker:
Drumming To Journey - Kay Cordell Whitaker
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00004U2JF
This has had a lot of good reviews and I agree that it is a very good recording, perfect for journeying. It is, however, a bit slower that most drumming tracks, and it is has a rich and complex set of sounds and some low chanting in the background. I actually have grown to like the chanting and feel that it is a benefit, but others may not agree. Kay Cordell Whitaker (http://www.worldbalance.com/) has a website and has written some great books and has been a teacher in her particular tradition of shamanism. You should check out her books, too!
At some point after Amazon started selling digital music I noticed that some of the recordings on my list of drumming tracks I'd like to try had become available, and at very reasonable prices. After looking around a bit I decided that Frauke Rotwein's recordings looked like good ones to take a chance on, so I downloaded a number of tracks from Volume 1. I skipped the birds singing track and got the three drumming tracks. This has turned out to be the set of tracks I use most often, especially the Double Drumming track. Since my injury last fall, most evenings after I finish my breathing and energy exercises, I will do a short healing journey and this the track I usually use.
Shamanic Journey Drumming - Frauke Rotwein
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000ZOE8Y0
I also listened to the samples of the other Frauke Rotwein recordings and decided that Volume 3 had some interesting tracks. Again, I skipped the birds songs, picked the drumming, and also got the Singing Bowls track. I've never used this last for journeying, but like to use it for centering myself if my heart is jumpy before I undertake a journey.
Shamanic Journey Drumming Volume 3 - Frauke Rotwein
http://www.amazon.com/Shamanic-Journey-Drumming-Volume-3/dp/B000QQVSSG/
These recordings of Frauke Rotwein are fairly inexpensive, and of good quality and easy to download and are ready to put on your digital audio player if you have one, or your computer if you don't. I was going to include links to the CD versions but they are marked as discontinued.
This post is getting long, so I will stop here and continue later.
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