Let Us Build a Community
In the autumn of 1980, a handful of Norwegian percussionists sat down and decided that drums and percussion deserved something more than being each individual performer's lonely project. The result was Norsk Slagverk Klubb (the Norwegian Percussion Club), considered founded on 1 October 1980, with an interim board that was to chart the course. The story is drawn from the Slagverknytt archive, where the presentation of the club appears early in the booklet — well worth a visit for anyone who wants to see the original yellow magazine with their own eyes.
What is striking is how modern the thinking still feels. The club formulated three goals in line with the American organisation P.A.S.: to raise the level of percussion performance and teaching, to increase understanding of the needs and responsibilities of percussion students, teachers and performers, and to develop better communication between the various areas within the art of percussion. Behind the sober formulation lies a generous idea — that no one improves by sitting alone. A drummer in a korps (a wind band), a marimba player, an orchestral timpanist and a jazz drummer all had something to learn from one another, if only someone built the bridge between them.
Membership was open to everyone with an interest in percussion, not just the professionals. The fee was lower for students and amateurs than for professionals, and as a member you received the magazine and international specialist publications in the post. The idea was simple and inclusive: knowledge should flow, not be locked away.
Nearly 45 years later, the same idea lives on every time someone shares a grip, an exercise or a listening recommendation. Do you want to feel the spirit of the times for yourself? Turn to the original article in the archive.