"Working to the Beat of Many Different Drums"

The New York Times

Sunday, March 30, 1997

Section 13 – Neighborhood Report – Crown Heights

David Rohde

Junior Wedderburn becomes visibly uncomfortable when asked about steadily increasing sales for the handcrafted drums he and his partner make. The musician-turned-reluctant capitalist needs help from Clyde, his brother, fellow musician and business partner, to remember what prices they charge. Market-share, stock options and maximizing profits are alien concepts in the dingy, Crown Heights basement that is the factory for AV Drumworks Inc.

"One of the reasons we started building the drums was to keep our traditions alive," said Mr. Wedderburn, an award-winning Jamaican drummer who leads Ancient Vibrations, an 11-year-old ensemble of drummers, singers and dancers. "We’re really trying to keep the drums available to the masses."

A year ago the lives of three band members – Mr. Wedderburn, his brother Clyde and Jeremiah McFarlane – took unconventional turns. In an effort to preserve the music and chants of Jamaican folk religions, and to make a living while not on tour, they began manufacturing handmade Caribbean and African drums.

After several months of few sales, AV Drumworks is selling about 20 drums a month, and the company is growing steadily. Word-of-mouth, advertisements in drum and music magazines and marketing at performances are fueling sales.

Orders are coming from as far away as Hawaii, Germany and Switzerland. Mr. Wedderburn said he was surprised by the slew of orders that abruptly arrived last December. "I had no idea that people would be giving drums as gifts," he said.

The three-man operation offers handmade kete, funde, kumina, thunder and djun-djun drums. Unfinished djembe drums are imported from West Africa and are sanded, stained and finished before being sold. Prices range from $200 to $400 each. "We would like this outfit to get so big," said Clyde Wedderburn, "that we could employ some youths around here."

The company’s immediate goal is to find more space and light. AV Drumworks operates out of a 40- by 10-foot section of a musty, windowless basement at the corner of Midwood Street and Albany Avenue. Some tools the craftsmen use are testaments to their improvisational talents.

An automobile brake disk with an iron pipe welded to it is used to bend steel bars that seal skins to the drums. A 10-inch table-saw, an 8-inch grinder, a belt sander, a power planer, polyurethane, razor blades and lots of glue are used to fashion drums from slabs of oak, poplar and cherry from upstate New York and goat skins from New Jersey and West Africa.

Mr. Wedderburn and his partners believe they could sell their drums for 50 to 100 percent more than what they charge. But their goal, they say, is to preserve the music of the Jamaican folk religions of Kumina, Tambu, Nyabinghi, Afro-Christian Pocomania and Bruckins.

The group’s performances, which are primarily by drummers and dancers, feature African and Jamaican dance as well as song, chants, poetry and the spoken word. Mr. Wedderburn received a New York Dance and Performance award, or "Bessie," for his compositions in 1996, his ensemble has performed with several New York dance troupes and they have toured with the reggae bands Mighty Sparrow and Skatalites.

"We are not businessmen," Clyde Wedderburn said. "We are primarily drummers with an interest in building a tradition."

"Percussion – Beat ‘Em," by Georgia Scott (an insert from above article)

The drums sold at AV Drumworks are re-creations of traditional drums played in West Africa. A partner in AV Drumworks, Clyde Wedderburn, who is a member of Ancient Vibrations, said drums allow personal expression. "You have to have a need to want to play," he said. "Drumming on a whole is a spiritual thing. Once you start playing a rhythm, you get into a groove; you start to feel the vibe."

Djun Djun (pronounced jun jun) – Double-headed drum, can be played on the floor or held between the legs. Low bass sound created with a mallet.

Djembe (pronounced JIM-bay) – Versatile drum played with the fingertips and palms. Creates multiple tones and usually accompanies the djun djun.

AV600/Kete (pronounced KET-tay) – Designed to be played with the fingertips. Creates a high-pitched sound. Used in reggae music and traditional Jamaican ceremonies.

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