World Beat

The roar of a cleaning crew’s vacuum cleaner forces Jamey Haddad to retreat from the living room of his new Oberlin home to the basement. The signs are all there that the space is destined to become the 60-year-old percussionist’s studio: A pair of wooden shelving units along one wall display various versions of the Hadgini, a ceramic drum he co-designed. The end result — a cross between the Nigerian udu drum and South Indian ghatam — resembles a bent elbow with an oversized light bulb at one end and a floodlight at the other. But there are still boxes to be unpacked and furnishings to be arranged. To read more, click here to subscribe. >>