Percussion clinic put on by U of L teacher

The power of music can liven up a person’s day in an instant. A University of Lethbridge percussion teacher put on an online percussion clinic today to showcase his talents and bring joy to viewers during the pandemic.

Joe Porter got his start with percussion when he was younger after his brother bought a drum set. The rest was history.

All of the sessions today were recorded previously and set up through Zoom for viewers to watch says Porter, “The program is a mix of classical music, jazz music, and a little bit of film music.”

“I started recording it at the Casa art gallery, but then it closed. Then I started recording the rest at home, and recorded the final bit at the University of Lethbridge,” adds Porter.

The clinic also featured choral music, which was played on a xylophone.

“I play on a hand drum, a Persian drum, and later on I hop on the drum set and play jazz music,” says Porter.

Porter says he had friends hop on Zoom all over the world to watch the clinic, “Music talks to everyone. It doesn’t matter what culture you’re from, or what language you speak. We can all hear and appreciate music. It’s a universal language that can really uplift our days.”