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R.Kašėta has been creating lunar drums for about seven years. Rokas, who studied sound conducting in England, is currently cultivating an intangible heritage with his wife Egle – Dzūk folk songs. He also goes on therapeutic sound tours together with Oleg Kovrikov and Agne Vasiliauskaitė at the Sound Dome on the outskirts of Vilnius.
R. Kašėta says that diversity is important to him in life: music, songs, writing, travel, creation, the world and Dzūkija, so lunar drums are just one of his activities.
Naming an instrument is not easy
Lunar drums, for which Rock himself coined the name, would sound a bit clumsy and completely dreamless when translated from English: the iron tongue drum. steel tongue drum).
“These instruments go by many names in different parts of the world. As it gradually became my trade, I started looking for a name for my drums.
It is a young instrument that has spread unexpectedly fast. Over a decade ago, someone tried to remove those spherical capabilities and then posted the video on YouTube. That news exploded, in many countries, different people started making them at the same time, and they all made up their own names, ”Rock said.
Moon Drum Maker personal file photo
Naming this instrument is not that simple. “It just came to our knowledge then. I remember that at first, until the name was established, I called them by various names: cosmic” torielka “, bell, kukuldunkšnis, dundulis, pus.
In fact, I’ve even given the 70 drums separate names because at first they were all quite different, each had a character. I experimented a lot creating them until a certain style was established, “says Rokas.
Playing leads each in its own way
This instrument is special for its simplicity and can be played by anyone, from a child to a grandparent.
“You don’t need to know the notes, know the music, or know what, for example, the term ‘bass key’ means to play. Playing takes everyone their own way. And reassuring.
It attracts me because it is a spontaneous instrument that does not require any musical knowledge, suitable for a person without musical background or education. And this is important: to melt the barriers that arise between music and man: after all, people are music, the human body consists of many rhythms. Your heart just: constantly beats to the beat, if you miss at least one beat, you really noticed. And playing and singing spontaneously is a great way to harmonize, ”said Rokas.
People are music, the human body is made up of many rhythms.
Why did Rock choose the name of the Moon for this instrument? Therefore randasi many interfaces with the Moon.
“It’s round, the iron is cold and reflects light, and its sound is like dreamer, relaxing. Thus was born the idea of naming these instruments Moon Drums. It seemed to be the best name for this instrument, ”Rock said.
Moon Drum Maker personal file photo
“I saw rabbits playing”
Rock’s journey with the Moon Drums has spanned seven years. “It so happened that one early morning I was growing like mushrooms in Dzūkija and I got lost. I went into some invisible places, I look, smoke was smoking in the distance.
I arrive and there the bonfire burns. Hares sitting, baking pancakes. I sat on a stump, they made me pancakes, and then one of them took out such a strange drum and started playing. I started to ask what instrument is here, ”says Rokas in a serious voice, adding that he tells a story like this about lunar drums to children.
After all, R.Kašėta not only produces these musical instruments, but also participates in educational activities and storytelling, leading classes for children and the disabled. Soon a new project will start in Klaipeda: children will be invited to participate in the process of creating the Moon drums.
“Those experiences, with children, with the disabled, give me a lot. I like children, they are not that old yet and growing up is dangerous,” said Rokas.
Moon Drum Maker personal file photo
To the world of music, without seriousness
Seriously, for the first time, Rokas saw these musical instruments not in the Dzūkija forest, but in Spain. Then, returning from a trip, he tried to recover.
Rock used five-liter Soviet gas cylinders to make the first jerry cans. Later, they began to manufacture them from iron bowls of different sizes by welding them.
Soon this hobby became a trade, and now he makes custom Moon drums and creates themed collections. As the circle of people looking to buy batteries continues to expand, Rock gradually formed a team to help him through the various stages of production.
Andrius, a former sailor of respectable age, who loves metal work, welds bowls. The music teacher Evaldas, who plays in the groups “Syrup” and “Ojibo afrobeat”, cuts her tongue for the drums, and the artist Roberta also plays an important role in the creation of instruments: she plays the drums, creates textures for them , sometimes recording them. Roberta’s mother sews drum bags and Aunt Birutė makes balls of wool.
Sometimes Rock Brother stumbles into the workshop to make drumsticks. “Well of course my wife Eglė, she is my muse and she is a great help and inspiration to me in all areas. I feel happy when I can involve friends and family in my activities, and together we can create something beautiful.” R.Kašėta said.
According to Rock, parents often buy drums for their children: “It is a great way for a child to enter the world of music and become familiar with music. Without all that gravity, you will need to learn the notes and understand exactly what you are doing. They can fly into the world of music with ease – these drums just pop in your hands and you’re done! you are in the music It does not matter what you do. “
In addition, Rock says, they are also bought by older people: “All kinds of people order, so it would be very difficult to name who the buyer is.”
Moon Drum Maker personal file photo
Colors are created by fire
Then as soon as he started making the Moon drums, Rock had a good time getting familiar with gas cylinders.
“First it was necessary to remove that rusty valve, then burn the cylinders in the scrap metal to avoid the smell of gas, to scrape off the rust well, because generally they were terribly rusty. And after that it was possible to start making drums with them, “said R. Kašėta.
One of the most important things to do is to cut the tongues and join them so that they all sound harmonious.
Now R.Kašėta makes them from iron bowls: “We ourselves create spherical plates by welding bowls. Then we cut and join the tongues. “
Then as soon as he started making the Moon drums, Rock had a good time getting familiar with gas cylinders.
The other part of the job is eye fats to make the drum beautiful and attractive. According to Rock, musical instruments are usually shaped like a flame, after the iron has been given some texture.
“Iron burned in this way takes on shades of blue, purple, blue, pink, brown. Different can be extracted depending on the cooking time of the drum. All colors are created by fire. I am still engraving various drawings on them, “said R. Kašėta.
The trips provided a variety of experiences.
About a year and a half after he began making Moon Drums, Rock embarked on a journey that lasted up to three years. Overall, Rock’s life journey began at age 19.
His path also led to the pilgrimage of the Camino de Santiago in Spain, when Rock traveled a 1,000-kilometer walk in about a month: “The pilgrimage left a deep mark, it is a journey of trust, he met people. Confrontation with yourself, with your “compost”. I feel that since then I have had more confidence in where life and those invisible hands of the Creator are leading me. “
Later there was science in London, roaming around Europe, South America, America.
“It just came to our attention then.” I lived in Guatemala for eight months, I spent a lot of time in Mexico, I visited Peru, Bolivia, Colombia, as well as on the other side of the continent, Canada, “said R. Kašėta.
“Interestingly, my return to my roots and birthplace was fueled by interactions with indigenous people in Mexico and Canada, where I had to live on their reservation, as well as by the time I spent in a Mayan village in Guatemala.
The simplicity of the locals, the closeness to nature, the songs … While traveling, I got to know the place, its people and its language through the songs. I learned local songs. Thus arose the desire to delve into the traditions of their countries. That’s what I started to do when I returned: delve into my dialect, the old songs, the archaic heritage. After a long journey, I returned to Lithuania and took up the Moon drums again, which I have been creating until now.
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