Drumming for Independence

The web was abuzz this week with the story of the young British girl drummer who challenged the Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl to a drum off and won. A search for blind drummers turned up two YouTube videos about Hibiki Sakai, who appeared with his favorite band, Def Tech. Beyond Hibiki’s appearance with the band is the story behind it, and how drumming set him on the road to learning the skills he needs to be independent and helped his parents realize he could live independently. Take five minutes to watch here and here. When Hibiki and his family speak, the English translation appears as text in the video, but the overall narration works well.