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- Initiate change
- Foster growth
- Enrich learning
- Build community
- Celebrate diversity
…All through Group Drumming and Expressive Arts
Terri Segal
Owner/Director, Rhythmic by Nature
terri@rhythmicbynature.com
Terri is an Expressive Arts Therapist, Facilitator, and Educator who is dedicated to sharing the therapeutic value of creative expression through Group Drumming and Expressive Arts workshops. For the past 10 years, Terri has studied and taught West African Drumming and World Percussion. She is a trained Expressive Arts Therapist and Drum Circle Facilitator. Terri participated in HealthRhythm's Group Empowerment Drumming Facilitator Training Program, Village Music Facilitator Training Program, completed a three week West African Drum and Dance Intensive with Company Fore-Fote in Guinea, West Africa, holds a BA Honors in English from McMaster University, and is a graduate of Expressive Arts Therapy at ISIS-Canada.
Through her business Rhythmic by Nature, Terri facilitates Group Drumming Programs at schools, social service agencies, and for small and large businesses for the purpose of teambuilding, wellness, recreation, and education.
In her innovative, fun, and memorable workshops, Terri focuses on how the process of music-making can enlighten her clients in areas of communication, stress management, and inter-personal dynamics.
Depending on the needs of her clients, she can also effectively facilitate workshops that combine drumming with other artistic modalities such as writing, visual art, movement and voice.
Terri brings her gentle and affirming leadership skills to her empowering, resourceful, and community building workshops. She honors each participant’s unique gifts, is an empathetic role model, a good listener and intuitive guide.
The first time that I heard the pulsating rhythm of a community drum circle was in Montreal at the Tam Tam that is held on Mt. Royal each Sunday afternoon. I was amazed that so many people could gather together, each drumming and moving to their own rhythm, while at the same time, uniting in a common pulse. Throughout my studies at McMaster University, my passion for drumming took on a whole new meaning. I began collecting hand drums and percussion instruments, joined a West African drumming class, and initiated weekly drum circle gatherings; all for the sheer love of bringing together people to celebrate the power of rhythmic and creative expression.
As I began facilitating these gatherings, I became aware that drum circles go far deeper than drumming alone, that the dynamics of the music can reveal the dynamics of the group, that a drum circle is a metaphor for community where each person has a unique role in the music-making experience… where communication, listening and respect build the foundation… and where connection, disconnection and everything in between can occur. In my days at university I would gather together fellow drummers and join in rallies and marches in support of local social justice issues such as anti-racism, affordable housing, and equal rights. In these cases, the sound of the drums would not only assist in calling peoples attention, but also carry a very potent and unified message about the importance of respecting differences, celebrating diversity, and communicating with each other. I have always felt a natural pull to weave in other artistic modalities into my drumming programs such as painting, poetry, voice, movement and story telling. My passion to build a sense of community and inspire change through the arts continues to grow; and it naturally nurtures a constant desire for learning and honing my skills as an Expressive Arts Therapist… Above all, it feeds my soul. Together in Rhythm, |
