Power of drums

Power of drums uplift Native American studentsBy Lidia Romero
Collegian Reporter In a small room decorated by Native American paintings of strong and proud men, the smell of sweet incense lingers in the air.

Drum vibrations seep deep inside each individual, each beat in synch with a heartbeat.

There is a group of people singing, seemingly meditating around the drum. Their eyes are closed, and they are chanting.

They are the Broken Heart Singers made up of Native American Colorado State University students, alumni and community members.

"I needed some kind of cultural uplifting," said Darwin St. Clair, Jr., founder of the Broken Heart Singers and assistant director of Native American Student Services.

St. Clair said the group began in fall 1992 because he needed something to help him feel normal and help Native American students get in touch with their culture.

"It brings us all together," St. Clair said. "We all become one."

It's very spiritual for him to play the drum and sing with other members of the group, he said.

"When all of us are sitting around the drum, we all smudge (sweet grass) to purify ourselves; that's very spiritual," he said.

The message of the music is to educate and open people's minds to the native culture and their singing.

Four poles and a strap of leather hold each drum. Each pole is a different color: red representing the north, white representing the west, yellow representing the east and black representing the south. The colors are also symbolic for all races and colors of the earth.

Gerry Himmelreich, an environmental geology major, said he did not grow up in a reservation but felt the need to know more about his culture.

"The drum has a healing power," he said. "I sing to honor those who came before me."

He said the name of the group means a lot to him because it represents the mending of his people who have suffered in the past.

Rosalyn Salters, an ecology tourism major, said she has always drummed. It's not traditional for a woman to drum because the drum stands for the womb of mother earth, and since women already have a womb they are not allowed to drum. Yet she said drumming is a part of her.

"It is as important for me to eat as it is to drum," she said. "I can't help it."

Jennifer Johns is a biology chemistry major who said when she came to CSU she felt lost. She felt a huge culture shock, but the Broken Heart Singers served as a refuge.

"They were a little family in the middle of a huge university," she said.

She said she uses this time (drumming) to release her stress and to feel relaxed.

"You let yourself be free," she said.

Emo Notah, a CSU alumnus, was with the Broken Heart Singers from the beginning of its conception.

"I saw it as a place to meet other Indians and to learn about other Indian culture," he said.

He gets his energy from the drum and the people around him, he said.

"I look at them as an extended family," he said.

Referring to the name of the drummers, Notah said, "For me it's a symbol, it gives me a sense of identity."

The Broken Heart Singers practice from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesdays near the Native American Student Services Department.

For more information contact Darwin St. Clair, Jr. at 491-7338.