STRIKING A GOURD : Darrell Cox Gives His Folk Tales a Unique Sound
Ahhh, the gourd, that tendril-bearing vine family whose offspring includes such versatile fruit as the pumpkin, key factor in holiday pies, breads and Halloween decor.
Oh, how we love the pumpkin. But how much thought do we give to its less-savory cousin, the inedible hard-shelled gourd? You know, that lumpy, bumpy and frumpy fruit most Westerners consider good for nothing more than a supporting role in the Thanksgiving centerpiece. That is, if we think of it at all.
Darrell Cox, however, thinks about gourds a lot. In fact, he has literally carved out a unique career with them.
A Lomita-based artist, musician and storyteller who has performed frequently at the Los Angeles Children’s Museum and schools across L.A. County, and who was featured in December at the L.A. Music Center’s 30th anniversary family festival, Cox has worked with gourds since 1978, first using them to make musical instruments for internationally known artists, then branching out into arts and crafts.
In recent years, he has been earning plaudits from local educators for his instrument-making workshops and his one-man show, in which he enhances his ethnic storytelling with music and sound effects created on exotic gourd instruments.
On Saturday afternoon, Cox, dressed in a colorful African agbadadh (a robe slit along both sides) and fila (a traditional cap), will present his one-man show at Borders Books and Music in Mission Viejo. Directed at children 5 and up as well as adults, the program is being hosted by Borders in conjunction with Black History Month. Special exhibits featuring books by black authors and on topics relating to black history are also on view at the store.
In a voice that’s a cross between Barry White and James Earl Jones, Cox said he’s been fascinated by percussion music since he was 7 years old, but it wasn’t until after college that he became actively involved in what he calls “world percussion music,” touring as a production manager with top jazz percussionist Bill Summers and his band.
In 1978, he started what would become Gourdifacts, a company that now supplies stores across the country with gourd instruments and art items that range from bread warmers to birdhouses. Musicians Stevie Wonder, Lou Rawls and Sheila E are among Gourdifacts’ better-known customers, Cox said, but the best part of his job is what he’ll be doing Saturday.
“The first reaction I get from the kids--it doesn’t matter what age--is ‘Ooooo, look at that! Can I play that?” recalled Cox, from his Lomita home. “Some children, maybe about 3 or 4 years old, can be a little (overwhelmed) at first, but eventually all the kids get into it.”
Though he varies his story selections according to his audiences’ ages and response, Cox expects his Mission Viejo program to feature a variety of exotic sounds, including shakers, whistles, drums and chimes--many of them built from natural products such as the pods of carob beans and various hard-shelled gourds. Stories, most of which have a moral or message woven into them, may include animal-themed tales from around the world, along with several featuring anansi, a trickster that Cox, a father of five, says children relate to well.
“Anansi is a cunning little fellow, a monkey with human-like tendencies,” explained Cox. “He’s curious (and) always gets into trouble, but he always comes out all right.
“There’s an anansi in every culture,” he said, with a distinctive warm, rumbling laugh. “And there’s definitely one in every family.”
Audience members may be called up to assist Cox at points throughout the show, either by contributing to the stories or performing on Cox’s instruments in a musical ensemble.
Though much of the program has African roots, as far as Cox is concerned, it is no way ethnocentric.
“There’s no ethnicity when it comes to stories and having fun,” said Cox. “Kids love all kinds of stories. If I can tell one that is memorable to a child through all of his life--if I say something that he’ll remember maybe at 18 or 20, that helps launch them into prosperity or gets them through a tough situation--I figure I’ve done my job.
* What: African and world stories and music by Darrell Cox.
* When: Saturday, Feb. 25, at 4 p.m.
* Where: Borders Books and Music, 25222 El Paseo, Mission Viejo.
* Whereabouts: From the San Diego (5) Freeway, exit at Oso Parkway and drive west. Turn right on Cabot, then right on El Paseo.
* Wherewithal: FREE.
* Where to call: (714) 367-0005.
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