Feeling the Beat in White Plains: Learn How to Play the Drums

The City of White Plains Recreation and Parks Department invites you to discover the rhythm within you. 

The city is getting set to kick of its drum circle program, which is about self-expression, creativity, community and fun - and even managing stress.

In the workshop you will learn drumming techniques from professional drummer/percussionist Marlon Sobol. No musical experience required and drums and rhythm instruments are provided. 

If you have a personal drum…bring it along.    

The workshop begins Wednesday, April 24, and runs through June 5 at Ebersole Ice Rink, 110 Lake Street from 7:30 – 8:30 p.m.  

Participants must be 16 years of age or older. 

The program fee is $78 for residents and $96 for non-residents. Registration is ongoing at the White Plains Recreation and Parks Office, 85 Gedney Way. 

For more information, call 914-422-1423.

About Marlon Sobol:

The manager of the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function (IMNF) at Schnurmacher Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing in White Plains, Marlon Sobol runs the facility’s music therapy programs. Board certified in Music Therapy and a Licensed Creative Arts Therapist, Sobol’s lifelong passion for music, his training and an innate sense of empathy are essential elements in his ability to care for people with a broad range of afflictions including Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia, Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, aphasia and depression.

In addition to his professional certifications and credentials, Sobol earned a BFA from New York’s New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, where he studied percussion with jazz greats Bobby Sanabria and Charlie Persip. Indeed, he was the first student to go through the school’s Creative Arts Therapy Program and continue to a career in music therapy.

An accomplished percussionist in his own right Sobol plays congas, djembe, drumset, melodica, and vibraphone. In 2006 he joined Mickey Hart (of Grateful Dead fame) and renowned fellow music therapist Christine Stevens as a Drum Circle Facilitator. Subsequently Sobol opened the 2008 "Living Well with Dementia" Conference and demonstrated his drum circle facilitation abilities on an instructional DVD sponsored by the New York State Department of Health entitled "Rhythmic Activities for Everyday Care.” Sobol’s original composition "Banks to the River" was the DVD’s featured soundtrack. In 2010, Sobol created a follow up audio CD entitled "Keep On Moving" Music for Therapeutic Rhythmic Activities to increase patient outcomes and staff involvement while enhancing the clinical workplace environment.

Sobol’s musical pedigree runs in the family. His father is a master clarinetist and concert producer and his mother is a concert pianist, as well as a music teacher for special learners. The younger Sobol has shared the stage with musical legends Richie Havens, David Amram, Candido Camero, as well as hip hop artist Dres from the group Black Sheep, and pop reggae star Matisyahu. Sobol was featured on the Grammy nominated album, "Youth", has performed at Madison Square Garden and appeared on the Carson Daly Show. He is the leader of the NYC based Hip-Hop/Reggae band Shem's Disciples, composing, arranging and producing the band’s music.

His work as both musician and music therapist has been featured in "DRUM!" Magazine; in "Preserving Your Memory" Magazine and in the Journal News, the Gannett newspaper serving New York’s Westchester County and the Lower Hudson Valley. Marlon Sobol is endorsed by Toca Percussion.