One of the largest U.S. manufacturers and suppliers of ethnic musical instruments, Mid-East has been family owned and operated for over 33 years (since 1973). They've stayed in business this long because they offer top quality products, and stand 100% behind everything they make.

The inception of Mid-East occurred back in the early 70's when Alice was working as a belly dance instructor. Belly dancing was the rage in the 70's and one of Alice's tasks, as a teacher, was to find the most reasonably priced materials for her students. Enter husband (Steve). At that time Steve worked as a stockbroker dealing with financial numbers all day. When Steve found out what the zills (finger cymbals) were costing he said "I could make them better and for less." And he did. After supplying Alice's students, they began to manufacture and supply zills to a number of dance studios. It wasn't long before their living room was turned into a makeshift factory. All four of their boys helped to count, clean, and bag zills. Within a few years Steve quit his stockbroker job. The family was in business. Customers began to show interest in a number of other instruments, and as they did, Mid-East began to manufacture and import bongos, tambourines, African Djembe's, Dhol's, and more ethnic based instruments from around the world. Today the company is housed in an 18,000 square foot warehouse in West Melbourne, Florida.

Don't be surprised if you have difficulty selecting that one special piece from our Mid-East line of percussion instruments. If you have questions, our knowledgeable staff at X8 Drums is dedicated to providing friendly and helpful service. We want our customers to know that Mid-East makes well crafted instruments at an exceptional value. We only carry the best!!

Labels: african.djembe, bongo, dhol, ethnic.instruments, mid-east, tambourine, world.percussion

A drum circle is any group of people typically playing hand drums and percussion in a circle. It is a rhythm-based event where a diverse group of individuals and instruments are gathered for the common purpose of empowering a community with creative self-expression in a group music making experience. Rhythmical expression is as ancient and unique as man and found throughout the world, represented in art, celebration, meditation, and wellness situations. Drum Circles are commonly used for social gatherings or to promote wellness in populations such as nursing homes, assisted living, at risk youth, mentally or physically challenged, and various community situations. Other instruments and dance can also be incorporated into the drum circle. They are distinct from a drumming group or troupe in that the drum circle is an end in itself rather than preparation for a performance. They can range in size from a handful of players to circles with thousands of participants.

A Community Drum Circle is a place for individuals to express themselves through the use of drums and percussion instruments. These instruments are accessible to a multi-generational and multicultural community. An individual can express himself or herself through the instrument without much skill or technique, becoming a part in the group song. The use of different instruments (drums, shakers, bells, etc.) allows the group to experience a metaphoric relation of the unique individuals involved in creating a diverse spontaneous rhythmic song, fun for the whole group. As the groups' sounds evolve, participants begin to hear the rhythmic interdependent relationships creating the songs. Conversations through rhythmic pulses emerge as the community becomes connected beyond the music produced.

Types of Drum and percussion instruments typically found in a drum circle include:

Ashiko
Bongo
Cluster Drum
Cajon Drum
Conga
Dhol (type of 2-headed drum)
Djembe
Doumbek
Drum Sticks
Jug Drum
Shakers
Tambourine
Timbales (sometimes)

Labels: ashiko, bongo, cluster.drum, conga, dhol, djembe, drum, drum.circle, drum.sticks, drums, hand.drum, percussion, percussion.instrument, tambourine, timbales