Music and Memory Loss: An Interview with Percussionist David Naylor
After suffering a debilitating illness, David Naylor found himself in a hospital unable to remember who he was. During his recovery, he saw an online photo of himself sitting behind a percussion setup that would become known as the "Gathering of Drums." At the center of this setup was a Zenko Drum in the Akebono tuning - that seemed to David to serve as the "heart" of the collection. Upon being discharged, David returned to his home and was filled with wonder upon finding himself before these instruments in real life, unable to remember anything about how they came to be assembled or how he'd played them. And thus began a journey to reinvent and rediscover himself though music.
After hearing a little about David's story, We Play Well Together's Joule L'Adara invited David to join her on an Instagram Live to share more. What unfolded was a fascinating conversation about what's possible when we let go of the past stories of who we are and can live fully in the present moment.
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For a beautiful deep dive into mindfulness, memory, and rhythm, listen to this 75-minute long-form IG Live interview edited for YouTube with photos of David's percussion setup and live playing interspersed with the story-telling. Watch the video here...
