William A Rodriguez - WAR

About the Artist

From a young age I was always intrigued with ancient cultures and my more “primitive” and distant ancestors. That tribal connection and the unique cultural perspectives called to me from the past, almost as if my DNA demanded it. At around 10 years old my interest in learning about ethnic traditions blossomed, which led me into finding “the zone” in karate, meditation, yoga, running and so on. As a teen I was entranced by the ancestral heritage ingrained in many of my ancestors cultures, and a few years later I found the drum.

The drum started me on my path of learning about a multitude of ancient instruments, then learning to repair and make those instruments, which then led into teaching. I started teaching about indigenous instruments when my oldest son was in pre-k and asked me to bring some in for show and tell, and what started as a few drums being brought to his school, ended up being large collections of instruments and detailed presentations in the later years as he aged.

Now I teach groups like scouts and at festivals and venues facilitating my instrument education presentations and instrument building workshops, braiding culture and traditional knowledge and myth into each presentation. My passion for learning and teaching about indigenous instruments constantly evolves and integrates new history, techniques and cultures. Each event is facilitated in an organic nature, with no two events exactly the same.