Tam-Tams

The Tam-Tams is the informal name of a weekly free festival around the George-Étienne Cartier Monument in Mount Royal Park in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

[1] Thousands of drum players, dancers, vendors and visitors come together every Sunday afternoon throughout the temperate months, occupying much of the open space on the eastern edge of Mount Royal Park.

Jeanne-Mance Park (also known as Fletcher's Field), located directly across Avenue du Parc from where the Tam-Tams take place, serves as the city's main outdoor sporting ground.

A group of students from the West Indies who lived in the area arranged to meet at the monument and practice in a public place to avoid disturbing their neighbours.

They were buying djembes and we had just attended a clinic with Memo Ascevedo, and bought traditional go-go bells, tambime (not tambourine), clave, talking drum, etc.

Today's Tam-Tams are still centred on the drum circle, but have evolved to also include artisanal vendors, DJs, performance artists, exhibitionists and a battle-royal for fantasy role players.