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A while back, the NY Times wrote about Joseph Pereira, a percussionist and timpanist in the New York Philharmonic, and his search for new and interesting sounds to incorporate into his pallet:

His work also involves arduous, offbeat projects like searching for gongs and temple bells when the Philharmonic tours Asia or soaking imported Irish calfskins in the tub of his Upper East Side apartment to soften them up before stretching them over the circular hoops of the timpani.

A few years ago, while visiting with his wife's family in Kentucky, Mr. Pereira went trolling through junkyards, where he found some brake drums that when struck with a mallet proved ideal for producing specific clanks and plinks in John Adams's ''On the Transmigration of Souls,'' a 9/11 memorial piece, which won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize in music.

''I found everything I needed for that piece in the Kentucky junkyard,'' Mr. Pereira said recently, including brake drums for vehicles ranging from a Toyota compact to a Mack truck.

Right on, Joe! There's nothing like expressing your soul by way of Kentucky junkyard!

The entire article is a fascinating look at a very creative musician.

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