Experimenting with Global Percussion Techniques for Music Therapy/Percussion Pedagogy

Throughout my time as a percussion student and, eventually, percussion and music teacher, I have learned countless ways that one can strike a drum. One can use the tips of the fingers to strike a low pitched membranophone and produce a bass sound, use the hand or finger as a paddle and expel the full resonant sound of the drum itself, or use the tips of the hands or fingers to eliminate the fundamental overtones and only play the upper harmonic frequencies of the drum head (tabla players call this “na”). One could use any number of established techniques with sticks too, such as American, French, German, Traditional. Gyil xylophone players in Ghana use thick rubber mallets held in between the first and middle finger, thereby turning the stick into a direct extension of their arm and increasing control and power, while leaving behind large callouses in between the fingers, affectionately called “gyil certificates” or, the one the kids enjoy more, “monkey butts”. However, there is now a student of percussion in southeast Michigan who plays the drum set with one hand American grip, one hand Gyil grip.

I won’t reveal much of the student, but they are a successful business owner and professional dancer, and has a loving and supportive family. Whilst in the midst of battle with an avocado, she suffered a casualty, and stabbed a small hole through the flesh of her hand. After months of treatment it has healed quite nicely, though she is left with lasting nerve damage that affects movement in her hand. This became an issue during our weekly drum lessons when she began to have to frequently take breaks due to tension, or the stick would fall out of her hand. Frustration soon followed, and I watched as this activity that she enjoyed fiercely was now causing her great pain and began to sympathize with her. 

I have studied the work of Professor Michael Udow of University of Michigan, a multi-award winning multi-percussionist and percussion pedagogue, to learn how to teach percussion. Udow discusses accessibility often in his work, stating that there is not one universal technique that works for everyone 100% of the time; rather it is people becoming familiar with these existent techniques in their own way through experience that marks an aspect of a percussionist. Techniques are allowed to change as one discovers through time and experience what works best for them. Keeping this in mind, I immediately jumped to the Gyil, the instrument I have the most experience on. The grip behind the Gyil allows me to play quite complex material quickly and with full power and control. Plus, my student’s issue with grip mainly came from the first finger, which is more locked in place than actually utilized. 

When I started lessons with her after thinking of this concept, I pulled out a larger pair of marching sticks and taught her the gyil grip. She picked it up quite easily, and we used it in her left hand. With only about 5 minutes of practice she was able to play a double stroke roll in the new grip. She could play full, down, tap, and up strokes with the stick in between the first and middle fingers. It’s as if she simply regained control of the stick again!

This has transformed lessons with us. She now looks forward to jumping back into lessons with me and working through snare drumming material with the new grip, which she calls “The Wil Grip”. I’m not actually sure what to call the grip, but I’ve been considering “African Traditional” or just keeping my student’s “Wil Grip”. If anyone ends up reading this, let me know which one you would rather see or use with your students if any of them have similar nerve issues in the hands or want to experiment with alternative grips. Fair warning, extended use of this grip results in monkey butts between the fingers, and they hurt and take weeks to develop. If you seriously pursue this grip, please contact me for more tips and advice on how to treat it and effectively build the callous. Mine are quite pronounced right now, maybe I'll post a picture if I get a request, but otherwise I think I'll keep them to myself. 

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