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December 26, 2005

What every artist needs, part IV [probably]

I spend many an hour wandering round the studio tapping random things, while waiting to want to continue to paint. Mostly this is a frustrating exercise as the sounds produced are jarring or timid. But what a brief delight it is when I chance upon a resonant paint pot or odd box.

I say brief because I have to be careful: paint pots and odd boxes aren’t designed for a percussive assault of the size often required. So here’s what you need:

Floor-Tom-013.jpg

A few weeks ago, in a moment of sheer indulgence, after a brief period of rhythmic frustration, I stuffed some notes in my pocket and set off into town to purchase a drum.

But you can’t purchase a drum – just a drum, and I didn’t want the whole battery. I should at this stage point out that I’m not musical; I like music, but I don’t know how it works. So a complete drum kit would be way too much egg for my particular pudding.

You can purchase just a drum, but it has to be ordered and takes a couple of months to arrive, and costs almost as much as the cheapest “full kit”. I understand the dilemma, and the guys in the music shop were most helpful, but there is a need for this kind of thing – it should be kept in stock in art shops, clearly.

Thanks to Daphne and Gareth for their hard work tracking this beast down.

Posted by john at December 26, 2005 01:39 PM

Comments


You should have gotten a Djembe Drum!!! You should also listen to Muddy Waters, maybe you'll have a revelation! -Adam Nisbet

Posted by: Adam Nisbet at December 28, 2005 04:59 AM

Oh yes, Muddy Waters is on my studio play list.

Posted by: john Coombes at December 28, 2005 11:33 PM