KKFX San Luis Obispo, Santa Maria, Santa Barbara - News-Blind Student Plays in School Band
Member Center:
4/7/09
SANTA MARIA - The music instructor for the Santa Maria Bonita School District is learning braille and helping transcribe music notes so one blind student can participate in band.
Eighth-grader Jazmin Lupercio is visually-impaired and plays percussion in the Arellanes Junior High School band.
"It's really fun when I go," she said. "It's fun because I get to learn new music."
Jazmin is learning to play thanks to band instructor Charlotte Belyea.
"She didn't know a thing about braille," said Jazmin. "The book that we got in the beginning had so many mistakes, so after a while we got sick of it, and she started to learn. I have no clue how she does it."
Belyea has been working with a transcriber to figure out how to turn the printed music notes, into a braille code for Jazmin to read.
"Music for braille has a whole separate code, and there weren't a lot of people in the braille department who could help her with that. So she and I are kind of learning it together," said Belyea.
Jazmin can now follow along the song sheet, and play with the rest of the band.
"I wanted her to have the same experience all the other kids were having," said Belyea.
Jazmin said it is "really cool" that Belyea is learning braille, so she can continue participating in the school band.
