LITTLE SILVER — At just six years old, Joseph Ferguson asked his parents if he could take piano lessons.
“My dad, when he was younger, played the drums; my mom played, too, so when I was younger I would always see these instruments around the house — the grand piano in the living room, the drum sets and the guitars in the basement — and music since then has just been a passion and inspiration of mine,” Ferguson said.
Eleven years later, Ferguson has taken that passion for music and used it to help make a difference in the lives of young students who might not have had the same exposure to music as he has had.
Recently, Ferguson achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest rank in scouting, and decided to infuse his love of music into his project as he supervised the construction of 10 cajones — a member of the percussion family.
“When I started thinking about what I wanted to do for my project, I had a number of ideas, but none of them I was really passionate about.
“I kind of thought back to when I was younger and how I saw all these instruments around the house, and I thought about how there are people who haven’t had the opportunities I have to be exposed to music and instruments,” he said.
The discovery of a “build-your-own cajon” kit in an Asbury Park music store helped him finally embark on his project.
A cajon is a six-sided, box-shaped South American percussion instrument that is played by slapping the front or rear faces (usually thin plywood) with the hands and fingers.
“Music is my passion,” Ferguson said. “I had the pleasure at an early age of being exposed to it and have enjoyed many opportunities because of it, and I thought it would be nice to do something involving music and to hopefully give the same opportunities I have had to younger students so they may also find the joy in music that I have.”
Through fundraising and soliciting donations, Ferguson was able to acquire wood, snares and other necessary materials to create the instruments.
By late last fall, he was able to supervise some 16 volunteers, including fellow Scouts, family and friends, as they all worked together over several weekends to construct the cajones.
“I wanted to build something that would be a good learning tool for a school and that would hold up well with little kids,” he said. “So I researched it and designed a more professional model to build.”
Not long after the construction was done, Ferguson said he was able to deliver the 10 cajones to the Thurgood Marshall Elementary School in Asbury Park.
“To see the reactions on the kids’ faces, they were so excited to have new instruments and to learn something new, and I think that is great,” he said.