By Mary Rose Roberts

Rhythm Quest’s cultural percussion rhythms will echo within the walls of two local coffee houses this weekend.

Christopher Austin, an ethnic percussionist from Bloomington, has worked on his musical art for five years.

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I picked up the Latino congo and taught myself, he said. My partner, Julian Douglas, started by beating on buckets.

The duet prefers performing in coffee houses to local bars. Austin said individuals frequenting establishments like Longbranch or Melange are willing to listen and are more receptive to the music because of the relaxed atmosphere.

People in the bar atmosphere do not seem to have the patience to listen, he said.

Austin said the percussion duet incorporates various drums with different sounds, the eastern tar and the doumbek. The tar is a frame drum, which means the diameter of the head is greater then the depth of the shell. The doumbek looks like a bowl on top of a cone and has various sounds from a deep tone in the middle to a sharper tone around the edges. Both instruments are used in larger ensembles like Rhythm Quest.

Austin said other drums used include the African ashiko, little sister to the African base drum djembe, and the dun dun or talking drum, which has a leather top on each end connected by a series of strings.

Each instrument adds to the polyrythmic overlays, Austin said.

Rhythm Quest is relatively new and has performed for five months. Between percussion performances, Austin and Douglas run sponsored workshops in the Midwest on individual styles of drumming.

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We hold these workshops in grass-roots types of communities, Austin said.

Austin said he is on a spiritual path when drumming.

I begin slipping into a meditative being, he said. I close my eyes and fly into the rhythmic landscape.

Rhythm Quest plays Friday at Longbranch Coffee House , 100 E. Jackson Ave., and at Melange Coffee House, 607 S. Illinois Ave. Both performances begin at 8 p.m. Donations will be accepted.