I walk up the narrow staircase of the small building on Kirkwood to interview a man I've never met before. Reaching the top of the staircase, I step into a dimly-lit corner room that reminds me of an old Victorian house. Blue curtains hang from the many windows, and cushions lay on the hardwood floor. As I look about the relaxing atmosphere I don't even notice the woman standing behind me. Surprising me with an enthusiastic hello, she introduces me to Marcus Sims. Like something out of Woodstock, he stands 6'5" with unkempt hair, large glasses, old jeans and slipper-style shoes.\nSims arrived in Bloomington to conduct a musical journey of discovery and awakening. TaKeTiNa, the emerging art form Sims practices awakens rhythmic patterns deep within us using a combination of stepping, clapping and singing in different layers of rhythm. During the process, workshop participants use chaos to delve deeper into the rhythm.
Feeling the Rhythm \nMusicians, dancers, yoga students, mediators and people who want to experience spiritual transformation are especially drawn to the new art form, but it is equally beneficial to any person willing to give it a try, Sims says at the beginning of the workshop. \nI'm more than happy to take advantage of this opportunity, and I soon relax on the floor, joining the eager students in the circle to begin the workshop.\nSims, who has conducted workshops around the country, starts with chanting a series of African songs that hold no meaning other than an explanation of the rhythm. After a few moments of getting used to the chant, Sims has us all move our hands in a simple beat with the words. Just when we all think the process is relatively easy, Sims introduces a new motion: tracing a circle in the air with one hand while beating out a rhythm with the other. Sims explains that by chanting and performing the separate hand motions at the same time, we are preparing our bodies for what is ahead.\nAfter tying bracelets covered in bells to our ankles, Sims takes out a Brazilian drum to maintain the rhythmic chanting. Soon after, Sims incorporates forward and backward steps into the chant. We add clapping to our movements and finally convert our chanting into full-blown singing.\nIt isn't long before confusion reigns. Chanting alone is easy. The same can be said for stepping, clapping, and singing a simple tune. However, once fully entwined in the experience of TaKeTiNa, a person finds him or herself doing all of the above at once. Each of us participating soon learns why the workshop lasted two and a half hours.\nOver and over Sims repeats the combination of different rhythms with us, patiently continuing the steady drum beat. As our skill and syncopation increase over time, Sims sets down his Brazilian drum, and picks up another Brazilian instrument called the Berimbau. This stringed instrument added to the melody of our chanted song while keeping in time with the flowing rhythm that has grown between all of the participants. \nMore time goes by, and very soon we find ourselves drawn into a different state of being. The motions and singing seem to meld together as TaKeTiNa's rhythm takes over our bodies and our minds. Near the climax of the experience I hear my own voice raising an octave without even knowing it. Looking back, the only explanation I have is that the rhythm compels me to.\nI must admit, during the beginning of the experience I had thoughts of both frustration and embarrassment of doing something that seemed so silly. After experiencing the motions, the feelings and the sounds firsthand, I can easily understand what Sims means when he said that TaKeTiNa is where yoga was 50 years ago.
The beginning of knowledge \nLike yoga, TaKeTiNa is a symbiosis of motion and emotion that any person can experience to explore a new part of him or herself, Sims said. Those who experienced it Monday night all agree that it won't be very long before millions of Americans are practicing TaKeTiNa.\nThis unique art form was developed within the last 15 years by Reinhard Faltischler, an Austrian composer and percussionist who spent years studying drumming in India, Cuba, Korea, Brazil, Africa, and Bali. He discovered the fundamentals of rhythm built into diverse cultures. Most importantly, he saw there was a cultural healing force built within rhythm. Faltischler created TaKeTiNa as a means of focusing that force into an experience which playfully explores the border between order and chaos to stand centered with a foot in each world, Sims said.\nSims first met Faltischler almost five years ago when he attended a TaKeTiNa workshop in Toronto. Sims was so inspired by the experience that he dropped everything to fly to California. There he received four years of training from Faltischler, and is now a basic level teacher. \nAs a radical vision of rhythm, TaKeTiNa divides into four levels of understanding: basic, advanced, senior and master. With time, serious students become masters, Sims said.\nSims has a degree in classical music composition from Shenandoah Conservatory in Virginia. He has studied modern dance, yoga, and many forms of music. As one of only 10 TaKeTiNa teachers currently in America, Sims has devoted much of his time traveling the country to give workshops such as the one given Monday night in Bloomington.\n"TaKeTiNa is harder to talk about than to experience," Sims said. \n"It felt like my mind was so challenged and ever present… but eventually I felt moments where my body became part of the rhythm," said Bloomington resident Bret Eartheart, who participated in the workshop to experience something new.\nOther students felt a similar early frustration, but found their rhythm as the workshop continued.\n"It certainly wasn't easy to maintain my feet, hands, and voice at the same time," said Bloomington resident Nicole Colvin. Colvin said she was attracted to the workshop by the prospect of putting her body in touch with music. "But eventually I came to understand that TaKeTiNa was re-connecting with the primordial rhythms within me"
