Mickey Hart, former drummer for the Grateful Dead, will play with an ensemble of world-renowned percussionists as a part of The Global Drum Project at 7 tonight at Eisenhower Auditorium.

Hart described the project as a "good healthy dose of rhythm."

"It's going to make you feel good," he said. "It's easy to hear and has a deep drumming groove."

The Global Drum Project features Zakir Hussain, who has had a musical partnership with Hart since the early 1970s.

Hart called the partnership "a continuing adventure."

After years of playing together in other musical ventures, the pair released Planet Drum featuring Sikiru Adepoju and Giovanni Hidalgo. Each drummer provided their own unique sound from their home country.

"These people are the best at what they do in the world," Hart said.

Hussain hails from India and provides percussion and vocals; Adepoju is from Nigeria and plays the talking drum; Hidalgo brings a Latin flavor to the mix with his congo playing; and Hart provides the American "backbeat."

The four created a fresh new sound that earned them the first Grammy Award for Best World Music Album in 1991.

The Global Drum Project marks the 15-year anniversary of Planet Drum's release.

The four drummers have reunited for the six-week tour, and Hart said the tour so far has been similar to a "paradise on earth."

The performance tonight will include a good deal of improvisation.

"It wouldn't be worth it for me to come to play a record you can listen to at home," Hart said.

Compared to Hart's days in the Grateful Dead and his past musical projects with Hussain, The Global Drum Project is "more modern sounding and features more exotic percussion."

"We are dancing in the digital domain ... We are now using very sophisticated robots," Hart said comparing the music from the '70s to the current era.

Hart said the group hopes to "transport you to another reality" at tonight's performance.

"I wouldn't miss it if I were you," he said.