To the Editor:
I am writing in response to Amy Evans's essay, "Pale neo-hippie boys have no right to bang African drums." Excuse me. I did not ask to be born a middle class white heterosexual male. I did not ask to be "overprivileged." But I do ask that you respect my views as I respect yours.
I have taken part in many drum circles, both in Oberlin and in other places. It has always been my experience that drum circles are a celebration of unity, of solidarity and of understanding. Perhaps these "neo-hippie" virtues may seem trite and empty to the spirit of the increasingly segregationist 1990's, but obviously there are others who still believe in them. Most of us flannel-wearing long-haired suburban overprivileged types have immense respect for the drums and the African cultures which produced them. I freely admit that I could not replicate the subtle polyrhythms found in true African drum traditions. But cultural appropriation is not the point of drum circles. We do not drum as a sort of cultural rape, (as Ms. Evans seems to suggest) we drum to affirm our solidarity with other peoples, to engage in rhythmic ecstasy, and ultimately to have fun. If Ms. Evans has a hard time believing that a bunch of middle class Euro-Americans drum for the fun of it, while still having reverence for the African cultures which produced these drums, I would have to say that her mind is very narrow indeed. But this merely points to a larger issue. If white guys have no right to play African drums, do they have the right to play Afro-American jazz? Do British musicians have the right to play the blues? Do Koreans have the right to play Russian violin concerti? OF COURSE THEY DO! Am I supposed to go through life listening to and playing nothing other than the music of my Eastern European forbears (who, coincidently, arrived in this country after the Civil War - meaning that I cannot have been a "self-assured descendant of slave masters", as Ms. Evans calls white men)? I certainly hope not. My musical interests include European classical, Afro-American jazz, rock, Middle Eastern music, Indian music and African music. One does not need to belong to a culture to appreciate its arts. Is the South Asian community going to attack the sitar and tabla EXCO course? Is next year's Spanish House Merengue Madness party going to be open only to Latin-Americans? I hope not. I believe in diversity and inter-racial understanding.
Copyright © 1996, The Oberlin Review.
Volume 124, Number 24; May 10, 1996
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