Featured Artist's

Lead Voice Mr. Dudé & Tulio Fuzato' Drummer For me and for Tulio have the opportunity to tell our story to other people in another countries is something that will give more shine to our cause for the rights of the disabled here in Brazil. And that God bless the great masters of the art of life: people with physical disabilities and do not fear the barriers or challenges.-Mr. Dudé

Carpel Tunnel Dangers for musicians

Excerpt from Bass Player Magazine interview with bassist John Wetton of Asia who has a severe case of CT: "...We had fun putting the album together (Phoenix); the only drag was my hand problems."

What’s the current status of that? "Still not great, I’m afraid. It has been almost two years since I was diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome. It’s a swelling of the casing around the nerves in my hand, causing them to be trapped. I had an operation a few months after diagnosis to relieve the pressure, but it hasn’t really helped. I need to have more surgery; I may have originally waited too long to treat it. My doctor said most cases like mine are among cellists because of the angle they hold their right hands at, to bow. For me, it started with a numb, pins-and-needles feeling, and now it can be painful and achy, quite unpleasant. I can’t even hold my phone, much less a pick. So we tape a thumb pick on my right thumb, and I can pretty much play only down strokes. Fortunately, being a lefty who plays right-handed, I’m able to fret the notes with my strong hand. Ultimately, this injury causes the muscles in the hand to wither, so my recommendation, if you discover symptoms, is to seek medical advice immediately." 

	NEW on 09.09.08 -André Fontanelli Paraplegic  Bassplayer from Brazil  "No matter what the difficulty, we all have our limitations, but with a little determination and strength of will, we can have everything we want!"		NEW Chris Cox - In March 2006 Chris’ life changed. Diagnosed Multiple Sclerosis. In terrible pain, with damage to his hands and feet, music was the last thought on his mind. Chris’ guitar case didn’t open for nearly a year.
	Derek Mortland whose life was changed dramatically due to a paralyzing semi-pro motorcycle accident in 1997; relearned guitar and broke through new musical barriers...“I had to totally re-learn how to do many things we generally take for granted.”  New CD "SKETCHES IN TIME"		Disabled Musicians Play With Heart Even under the best of circumstances, playing the Japanese drum (taiko) demands dexterity, rhythm, and hearing ability. But what if the taiko musician is hearing impaired and can't hear the music?
	Miss Money: Musician - Rap, R&B Gospel DJ Urban music producer. Muscular dystrophy. Miss Money has been featured here a year ago but you HAVE to check out her new site and new music.		Tracy Marie  has had both hips replaced... On a normal day, though, she has problems standing for more than 5-10 minutes before pain sets in because of the dysplasia and osteoarthritis.
	Chazz deMeyer -  A disabled musician (spinal chord) for over thirty years, and for the life of me I do not know why it took so many years to seek others in a similar condition. After all this time I have finally gotten around to writing and singing about it. I have a new CD (Recovery) and a new book (The Fire Within) recently released.		SIMON ILLA A quote from New Mobility magazine posted on a wall in his living room reads; "He’s 3 feet tall, his bones are brittle, and he uses a wheel chair - what makes him think he can make it in the music biz? He believes in himself, and that’s all he needs.”  He's barely three feet tall.
	Greg Harry: Writer, Producer, Vocals, Midi, Quadriplegic, political philosopher.		Andrew Hewitt: Drummer - has mild Cerebral  Palsy. Formed The "Drums in Motion Project" a drum therapy workshop program aimed at disabled children.
	Leroy F Moore Jr. Writer, advocate and journalist on issues and art involving disabled people of color. Leroy was born in Buffalo, NY in 1967 with Cerebral Palsy. "Krip-Hop displays the beauty and strength of collaboration and disabled music history, present and future." Leroy is one of the leading voices in the field of police brutality and wrongful incarceration of people with disabilities.		TOE JAM MUSIC: Is Jose Melendez. Tony was born without arms because his mother was prescribed thalidomide during her pregnancy. He wore artificial arms until he was ten, when he disposed of them. "I didn't feel comfortable," he explains, "I could use my feet so much more."
	Bassist Bill Clements began playing at the age of 13, inspired by Chris Squire, and other progressive rock bass giants. Bill lost his right hand and forearm, 12/89 in an industrial accident, within three months, Bill was gigging again and he hasn't stopped since.		Beaver Felton: Bassist, Teacher, Businessman, Paraplegic- Interview with Beaver from Bass Inside magazine. Our second listing after Abon. Beaver operates Bass Central music store specializing in high end basses and amplification.
	Rob Richard: Drummer - Cerebral Palsy Creator of HANDIDRUMMER A website for disabled drummers made BY disabled drummers.		Wayne MacDonald: Singer - song writer - guitarist -  Paraplegic
	Gary Schooley: Creator of Future-Link. Being a (closet) Musician & (experienced) Paraplegic, I find it inspiring to come across talented musicians with disabilities. Although my music history is not much compared to the folks listed on this page, there is always room for improvement for learning and developing musical skills.		The Raven Drum Foundation Rick Allen the drummer for Def Leppard lost an arm in a car accident in 1984. "The first sound we ever heard was our mother’s heartbeat: The rhythm of life. Each and every one of our ancestors came from a tribe of people who all sat around a fire and communicated through percussion..."
	Mike Hamer: Musician, Hammered Dulcimer, Storyteller, Wheelchair Dancer, Quadriplegic		Ivan Collins - Well The need to express the Country Boy finally happened after my experience with a Spinal Cord Injury obtained in 1986 while travelling around Australia and crashing my Hilux ute...
	PROFESSIR X- DJ - Rapper - Video Editor - Advocate - Quad. Richard has founded an non-profit organization called, the I Believe Organization whose purpose is to promote awareness of the research being done and currently needed to help cure the diseases and conditions that affect him, and so many others.		Vic Chesnutt:  Singer, Guitarist, Paraplegic- "The big regrets have nothing to do with me. I look at the world and think, 'God, what a crazy world.' I think, 'God, it was so close. We could have lived with the Indians and not killed them all. That would have been great.' We were close, so close, right on the edge from realizing, 'No, you don't want to slaughter them.' We could have had a whole different world in the Americas. That makes me depressed."
	ABÒN: Musician, Paraplegic- Music Genre: Electronica. Abon was the first musician listed on Future Link.		Anthony Rain Starez: Writer, Musician, Paraplegic; sings with the rock/pop trio Free Spirit in the Tampa Bay Florida area.  Tony sings with acoustic guitar and violin
	Curtis Mayfield: A founding father of Soul music...		Pastr S'wayne of Metro Houston has been rapping since 1983. But since 1991, he has been flowin' to heal, empower, lead and encourage. He is the first known person to record over five projects with a tracheotomy to be in use.
	Russ Ward: Singer Guitarist  Genre: country, bluegrass, folk and rock - Multiple Sclerosis		Jon Weems: Musician Music Maker Quadriplegic
	Kina Diamond: Singer, Songwriter, has Muscular Dystrophy.		Rob Da Noize Temple Musician Keyboards Producer  is Noizemozis with John MoSis Miller: Rob has Erbs Palsy limiting him to the use of only one arm. Genre: R&B, Hip Hop.
	Van Gogh: Touring Band. Despite their enormous popularity in disability circles, Van Gogh’s songs are notoriously free of references to disability. “We don’t write message songs... We hope our message is in our actions. The fact that we do it well says more than if we gave a seminar.”		Flame - The lead singer, an amazing woman who plays guitar and sings, has autism. The drummer sings background, is blind and mentally retarded. The bass player is paralyzed from the waist down. The rest of the band are background singers, percussionists and 3 dancers.
	Kevin Reed:  Drummer -  Traumatic brain injury survivor - Creator of the Trash Kat garbage can drum.		Anne Bostwick: Songwriter, Singer, with the band Raven Blue, Paraplegic
	The Future Link front page filled up to the point where we had to add a BACK PAGE Jimmy Carter Rocks & Music and Healing: The Therapeutic Power of Music		This site uses only 100% Recycled Electrons ... because we care about our children's tomorrow... (Borrowed from Steampunkworkshop.com)
	A hard road to travel - Kavelle Anglin Christie - Jamaica Gleaner - Talks with 3 musicians who are disabled. Picture on left: Popular duo Father and Son. - Photo by Herbert McKenis		Evelyn Glennie - Percussionist Solo Drummer & Deaf (We are of the understanding that Evelyn is 80% deaf?)
	Robert Wyatt: Musician, Drummer, Writer, Paraplegic  A 54-year-old communist and veteran of the psychedelic era, may be the most compelling pop musician working in 1998. Flagpole's Phil Waldorf caught the artist on the phone at his home in England...		J.P. Williams, Singer Guitarist - Blind - JP is now an active part of the music landscape in Music City and is considered by many critics as one the best emerging artists in the Southeast.
	Neil Murray: Drummer; cerebral palsy		David Gregory Lee:  Singer - Multiple Disabilities
Finally!	U.S. Congress Recognizes School-Based Music Education. NAMM efforts lead to unanimous vote for U.S. House resolution 121 and first-ever Senate resolution proclaiming support of music education; Senate calls for study of access to arts education. In an important victory for music education, members of Congress unanimously passed House Concurrent Resolution 121, a bipartisan resolution stating that learning music in schools is important because it develops skills needed by the 21st century workforce, such as critical thinking, creative problem solving, effective communication and teamwork; keeps students engaged in school and makes them more likely to graduate; and helps students achieve in other academic subjects such as math, science and reading.	This is not a book written for musicians w/disabilities.	But, it is a must read for anyone interested in the history, concept, and origins of music. it is written for Songwriters, Performers, Music Students, Musicians, Producers, and answers questions such as 'Why Is There Such A Thing As Music? I have been reading this for weeks and am still not through the 3rd chapter. The information in this book boggles the mind. Chapters include: Evolution, the Brain and Rhythm - Evolution, Music, and Emotional Arousal - Where Chords Come From - and a lot about human evolution and both the church's and Religions roles in suppressing certain forms of music through out history.  This book would serve as a music students bible. -Bassinat66
Music Benefits	Now Hear This! New findings by the US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health show that there are significant differences between the hearing abilities of people from different ethnic backgrounds as well as between men and women. Specifically, people of African decent hear better than people of European decent, and women hear better than men, the government study finds.	21 articles about the benefits of music You don't need to know about music to enjoy it. And it is tempting to conclude from that that you don't need to know about music to understand it, either.	Older Adults Benefit from Music Making Results from an ongoing study strongly indicate that musical activity carries significant wellness benefits for older adults, according to study leader Dr. Gene Cohen. The research project, called “The Impact of Professionally Conducted Cultural Programs on Older Adults,” is looking at a group of seniors averaging 80 years of age taking part in chorale programs at The Levine School of Music in Washington, DC. The study began in December, 2001.
	DRAKE MUSIC PROJECT provides opportunities for disabled musicians of all ages and abilities to explore, compose and perform music and brings together disabled and non-disabled artists... ...Our vision is a world where disabled musicians have the same opportunities to make music as their non-disabled counterparts, and a culture of integrated music-making where disabled and non-disabled musicians work together as equals.		can you hear what you think you can hear? i discovered that i had lost 80% of hearing in my right ear b-4 i noticed it! duh hello? Are You at risk? It's not cool when You can't hear. HEAR NET
GET YOUR BASS GEAR FROM BEAVER FELTON			Electronic Musician explores how physically disabled musicians use technology to help them record and perform their music ... Greg Harry is featured in this article.
	NAMM 2008 - Welcome to the EM, Mix and Remixmagazines Winter NAMM exclusive site, brought to you by Intel. We've packed in all of our trade show coverage in one easy-to-find spot. So for those of you who can't get to Anaheim, Calif., for the show, bookmark this page for late-breaking news. If you're at the show, see Winter NAMM through the editors' eyes with our Tech Minutes video, listen on the podcast and read about all of the happenings on our blogs.		E mail: Future Link Musicians Counter added on June 1st 2008 by Bassinat66 The BACK PAGE: Jimmy Carter Rocks-- Music and Healing: The Therapeutic Power of Music
	Leroy Moore Interviews:  Disabled Hip-Hop Artist Keith Jones: FEZO Who is planning a run for a Senate Seat in Massachusetts.		Using Music to Lift Depression’s Veil --by Parker-Pope Excuse the folks who run this site; physical (ear surgery) and mental issues (stress) have us out of commission for the time being. Know of a musician with a disAbility? Have her or him contact Future Link, we will get the listing up quickly. This opening page filled up to the point where we had to add a BACK PAGE