We're very excited to publish a guest blog by Kate Kuziakina, a young lady from Ukraine who is passionate about drumming.
Let's find out why...
Five years ago my family and me were at a fair or concert in the park. We stopped near the stage where a music band played their compositions. I looked only at their drummer, stamping my feet to the beat of the music. Suddenly the drummer stood up, approached me and gave me his drumsticks. I was speechless!
I don't know exactly who that man was - just a drummer, or an Angel who handed me my destiny 😊, but after that I began to drum everywhere and on everything: on chairs, tables and so forth. When I was 6, my dad bought me my first drum set. Since then I have never parted with the drums.
In the last three years I have won the Grand Prix's and first places at offline international competitions in the USA, Spain, Finland, and Ukraine. I was a finalist of the online Hit Like A Girl (HLAG) contest 2016 and the winner of the HLAG 2018 Week 1 (drumset category, division under 18 years old).
I performed with Ukrainian rock bands (Ot Vinta, Numer 482, Mad Heads, Tabula Rasa, Vopli Vidoplyasova, and High Score) on TV shows, at festivals, battle of orchestras and clubs.
I play drums for two or more hours every single day.
But even after all this I ask myself from time to time: "Why do I play drums?"
Drums Are Very Beautiful
Yes, drums, cymbals, stands, pedals, and drumsticks are very bright and beautiful! You can collect them and combine into drumsets just like LEGO 😊 You can tune and repair them with special tools, decorate with colorful stickers.
Drums are like large amazing toys for adults. So if you've got them, you are a bit adult too 😊
Drumming Helps to Make New Cool Friends!
When you are a drummer you may communicate or even become friends with people who are idols of millions. Drumsticks in your hands are real magic wands that in an instant turn you from a common boy or girl in the fan zone into a very special person.
You may play together with famous musicians and popular music bands.
They may give you priceless gifts: drum gear, t-shirts or drumming lessons.
Also, there is an amazing Internet drummer community which joins people who love drumming, make music videos, and post them on YouTube. This community is very supportive and can help you to understand what you do right and what wrong, and support you in your first steps in music.
Drumming Is Very Useful
(Kids: Tell this to your Mum and Dad!)
Oh, this is a very interesting topic!
We've been collecting facts and infographics about it. They are presented in the article "What Makes Drummers Different from Other People?".
Here is an excerpt from it (see further links and references in the post)...
Music is very useful for children. For example, "research reveals strong connections between rhythm skills and pre-reading abilities in toddlers."
Drumming helps to:
• Reduce stress, depression, anxiety, tension, and even chronic pain
• Boost your immune system and increase energy
• Boost cardio and lower blood pressure
• Release negative feelings and produce feelings of well-being
• Boost brain power, clarity of mind, concentration, creativity, and academic performance
• Improve confidence, communication skills, and sociability
• Burn calories and get fit
Moreover,
"Perhaps…drummers have fundamentally different brains than the rest of us"!
Cool, isn't it?
Drummers Travel All Over the World
Drummers travel a lot when touring with their bands or visiting different countries as an independent musician who conducts masterclasses, sessions, clinics, and so on.
An Incredible Journey and Business Challenge (If You Like Adventures)
The career of an independent or internet drummer may be like an incredible journey or business undertaking. There are a lot of inspiring examples out there.
Two of them we've tried to describe in the post "Sina and Kristina: Tips for Young Drummers".
This post tells about two girls - one from Germany, another from the USA - who dared to become drummers and succeeded in this.
A Large Space for Your Creativity
Drumming is amazing and can be part of your creative projects. For example, you can film you drumming outdoors with the help of drones, different tricks and filters, and other cool things.
Just imagine what your friends will say about you after watching, for example, a video like this:
Contests are a great and exciting way to compare yourself with other drummers, as well as to become acquainted with many interesting people in the music industry.
I've participated in five international art contests and festivals.
The latest of them was the Hit Like A Girl (HLAG) contest 2018, USA. I was the winner of HLAG 2018 Week One (drumset <18) and the winner of HLAG 2018 Techra Top Ten Award.
Here is my the HLAG 2018 entry and certificate:
The Truth
To be honest, I don't know exactly why I play drums. My love of drumming comes from my soul, not from the mind. But I hope that this post will interest you so that you begin to study drumming and the amazing world of music.
Happy drumming! 😄
Videos from: YouTube.com/KateKuziakina Photos from: Instagram.com/KatyaKuziakina Support: Patreon.com/KateKuziakina