Interview with 9 year-olds Mira J. and Daquanna W. One of our visual artists-in-residence, Maggie Leininger, has been creating a weaving based on heart monitor patterns, and asked if we could create some kind of soundtrack to go with the weaving for exhibition. Mira and Daquanna were up to the challenge. We discussed the heartbeat; how it sounds and feels, how it changes, and why and when. I taught them one rhythm from Jamaica which is based on the heartbeat. From there we decided on instrumentation and made some recordings. We played with overlapping layers of us playing the rhythm on frame drums and vocal improvisations about their heartbeats. They were very enthusiastic and skillful collaborators. What was your first experience with creating music? DAQUANNA: It was fun, I heard a lot of beats, and also I made up my own words to my own song, and I enjoyed it. The first time I made real music was when I was with Jamie at Rush Hospital and me and Mira made music about our heartbeats and I liked it.   Tell me about your experience making music in the hospital. MIRA: I'm here at Rush Children's with Jamie, my musician-artist, and since I've been here Jamie's been such a nice friend. And we just made another song called "My heart beats FAST."   What has been your favorite project or piece of music that you have created? The music that we once made was a street vendor call for scans, like if the doctor had to sell them to me. Would you like to hear it? "Scans, scans, negative, positive, I got your chart right here, scans, scans!"   What do you enjoy most about creating music in the hospital? DAQUANNA: I like being with Jamie, and being with Mira. The thing that I like is when I first came here, we made a movie, that there's just a lot of things that are going on, and I love to do it.   Have you learned anything new while creating music in the hospital? MIRA: Yes. I learned something new, I learned a new beat, I learned that when you play the djembe you have to tilt it, so the beat can like actually come out, and I learned like in the middle, thatıs the bass, different tones, how you put your hand for the pa, the dum and the tek on the frame drums.   DAQUANNA: I learned beats, and I learned that some drums are made of goatskin! and then I learned that in Jamaica these are the drums that Jamaicans play, and here's a beat we learned. And Jamie also told us that in Jamaica sometimes they constantly play this beat and they don't ever stop all night long.   back to contents