Just a few
weeks ago, my mom and I attended a workshop to learn how to play Taiko
drums. Taiko is a Japanese drum and
super cool. What I love about Taiko is
that it’s not just about hearing the drums, but feeling it in your body. The beats are so loud and powerful, I could
feel it in the air and in my chest.
I think drums are great for deaf musicians because they mostly depend on counting and rhythm and not so much on pitch, which I find the hardest part of being a musician.
Playing on the drums is just as cool, if not cooler, than listening. At the end of the workshop, we did some improv; improv means playing in a group and watching each other for cues on beats and rhythm. Because of our skilled student teachers, we all sounded pretty good even after only an hour of playing.
Drums are not the only instruments that deaf can play. I believe that any instruments that can vibrate and be felt is playable without being able to hear. I will expand this in another blog, but Exhibit A is me! I play the violin, the viola, and the cello (and I’m learning the ukulele and piano), see Music to My Ears.
I think drums are great for deaf musicians because they mostly depend on counting and rhythm and not so much on pitch, which I find the hardest part of being a musician.
Playing on the drums is just as cool, if not cooler, than listening. At the end of the workshop, we did some improv; improv means playing in a group and watching each other for cues on beats and rhythm. Because of our skilled student teachers, we all sounded pretty good even after only an hour of playing.
Drums are not the only instruments that deaf can play. I believe that any instruments that can vibrate and be felt is playable without being able to hear. I will expand this in another blog, but Exhibit A is me! I play the violin, the viola, and the cello (and I’m learning the ukulele and piano), see Music to My Ears.
Two examples of professional deaf drummers are Evelyn Glennie and Vaughn Brown.
