Drum Café | TEDxTokyo 2012
Everyone with a heartbeat can appreciate Drum Café Japan’s elemental appeal. Born in Sendai in 2009 as an offshoot of the original Drum Café in Johannesburg, South Africa̶ which uses traditional African drums as motivational tools to help organizations build teams̶DCJ changed focus radically after last year’s devastating Tohoku earthquake
and tsunami. The group’s ongoing Niko-Niko (Happy) Smile Project involves holding hundreds of interactive drumming performances at schools, hospitals and shelters in Tohoku. Accompanied by a clinical psychologist, three African drummers̶ called “drumming therapists” pound out rhythms while the audience participates. The research says this is great for post-traumatic stress disorder: beating a drum boosts the brain’s serotonin levels and alpha waves, relieving stress and improving concentration and well being. DCJ has already helped tens of thousands, and continues to inspire hope, one beat and one community at a time.