Music on Deaf Ears

"Evelyn Glennie is simply a phenomenon of a performer."
— New York Times

Can a deaf person be a musician? In my searches through the web for good music-related stuff (so you won't have to) I came across a video of Evelyn Glennie that I had to share with you. Glennie, a Grammy winning percussionist has been profoundly deaf since age 12. She regularly plays barefoot for both live performances and studio recordings, to better "feel" the music, and says to have "taught herself to hear with parts of her body other than her ears".

Glennie has recorded with, among others, Bjork, Sting, Bobby McFerrin, Emmanuel Ax, The Mormon Tabernacle Choir and former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett. She won Grammies for her recording of Bela Bartok's "Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion" and also for collaborative work with Bela Fleck. Amazing.

Here's a youtube recording of her playing Scott Joplin's classic Maple Leaf Rag.



Unsurprisingly, Glennie has become a much-sought motivational speaker. If you really want to hear something amazing, see (and hear!) her "How to Listen to Music with Your Whole Body".