Steve Dodge has spent the better part of the last 30 years on a journey of musical discovery. A product of the turbulent Vietnam era, Dodge started his musical career with his first drum lesson in 1960.

“I did what a lot of kids did … went through my school music program then played in some garage and weekend bands,” Dodge said.

Dodge didn’t stop there. He went to Ohio State where he received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in percussion. After the birth of his twin daughters, he had to postpone work on his doctorate, of which he was approximately two-thirds the way through.

“Since them (the twins), graduate school is on the back burner, so I have turned my attention to live gigs,” Dodge said.

The 55-year-old Columbus native’s newest project, The Steve Dodge Drum Circle, could be better described as a managed jam session, followed by a drum circle. Dodge invites audience members and local musicians to join in the performance by bringing an instrument of their choice and playing along.

Dodge said musicians of all skill are welcome.

“I have a number of hand drums and tambourines for those with less experience, I even have a full drum kit for those who have a little bit more training,” Dodge said.

Dodge came up with the concept of the organized drum circle last May.

“It is a funny thing. Throughout all my life I have taken part in spontaneous jam sessions with anywhere from two to 20 people. It just never occurred to me to make it a part of my performance,” he said.  

Initially, the foundation for the drum circle came from an experience Dodge had at a Connecticut pop festival in 1970. The concert was to take place at Powder Ridge ski resort, had the same sound system and virtually the same line up as in Woodstock the year before. However, it was cancelled because of an injunction acquired by the local townspeople.

“So after all the acts … Joplin, Hendrix, Cocker and the rest found out the concert was canceled, none of them bothered to show up,” Dodge said. “The problem was that all the ticket holders were already there, so there’s 25,000 to 30,000 people already partying their brains out with no one to entertain them. Saturday night. Me and the band that I played with at the time ended up playing the show.”

It was what happened next that caused Dodge to seriously consider the concept of communal music.

“A bunch of people down by the front of the stage, probably hundreds of them, started to play rhythms using the sticks, rocks, oil drums and anything else they could get their hands on that surrounded the area, some people even had their own conga drums,” Dodge said. “They began to play rhythms on them; this continued on until sun up. It was quite an important experience for me.”

Dodge admits the experience was not an epiphany that he quickly acted on, but just a gradual realization that just finally came to fruition last May at a venue called El Dorado.

“I approached the management at El Dorado with the drum circle idea and they gave me a couple of Mondays to try it out,” he said.

Dodge admits that at the infancy of the drum circle the management at El Dorado and even he himself had doubts about the success of the project. However, as more people began to participate, the circle was able to expand to other venues such as Ruby Tuesday’s and Andyman’s Tree House.

“It’s different,” said Scott Fotheringham, assistant manager at Ruby Tuesday’s. “He only does it (the drum circle) at a couple of places, but it really is neat to watch and see the customers take part in a show.”

However, Dodge admits that not everything works out that well all the time.

“From time to time we get a couple of people who have no idea what they’re doing. It’s hard to deal with that. I don’t think I do a very good job of it either,” Dodge said. “I could let them stay and watch them stink up the place all night, or I can just invite them to listen.”

On the whole, the circle usually has enough participants, that it would be difficult for one person to endanger the quality of the music, but he admits that it has happened.

“One night, a young attractive woman was all set up with an electric guitar, amp and tip jar before we even got there. As I walked in the barmaid came and asked if she could sit in with us. I said, ‘ Yes, it’s a jam,’ thinking she could play no problem. Well all night long she held the guitar upside-down and played with only one finger,” Dodge said. “That’s not the worst part. Every time I went to sing she came up with this kind of Arabic chant thing; it was bad. The funny thing is at the end of the night she pulled me aside and asked for her cut of the door.”

“That is the risk you take when you are doing a thing like this,” Dodge said. “It’s fun, but definitely unpredictable.”

According to Dodge, most of the songs played at the drum circle are recognizable rock ‘n’ roll tunes, but once in a while an abstract jam breaks out.

“Any attempt to orchestrate the circle is futile,” Dodge said. “It’s got a mind of its own, so I pretty much just go with the flow.”

Bongos to trumpets, music librarians to wood workers, the participants in the drum circle are as diverse as the instruments they play.

Some like John Shinkle, a fire fighter for the city of Worthington, participate just for the fun of it.

“We each have our own jobs, most of our jobs have nothing to do with music so it’s cool to be able to come here with Steve and jam a bit; it really gives you a release,” Shinkle said. 

Others like Blair Davis, a friend of Dodge’s, have their personal sense of adventure calling them to the drum circle.

“I’m just an aging hippie like Steve. I have always had an interest in the drums so the drum circle is really interesting and appealing experiment in music for me,” Davis said. “I get to go out and experience new things and maintain my creative vocabulary.”

Ultimately, Dodge said his goal is to set up a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week drum circle that could be broadcasted over the Internet.

“I think the interest to do this kind of thing is there, all we need is a place to do it and a consistent following,” Dodge said. “I just hope that people hear about us and join the circle.”

The Steve Dodge Drum Circle meets at 9 p.m. every Tuesday at Andyman’s Tree House and Wednesdays at the campus location of Ruby Tuesday’s.