PITTSFIELD, Mass. — By all accounts, to hear Christopher “Stix” Hairston’s drumming was to peer into his soul.
Aimee Gelinas has heard that rhythm since 2007. Hairston, then freshly a graduate of Taconic High School, joined her as part of the Berkshire Rhythm Keepers, an intergenerational group of local percussion students and performers. Gelinas said he had an innate ability to connect with the group’s members across a wide range of ages with his drumming.
He brought an exceptional level of skill to the craft, and a “young energy” that inspired others around him, Gelinas said. She could hardly believe the intensity that he brought at just 19 years old. Hairston came to Gelinas to expand his knowledge of African-rooted drumming.