Evelyn Glennie

Evelyn Glennie (born July 19, 1965) is a Scottish percussionist who has become one of the most accomplished and celebrated musicians of her generation, despite being profoundly deaf since age twelve. Born in Aberdeen, Scotland, she began learning music as a young child and was determined not to let her hearing loss derail her musical aspirations. Glennie studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London and went on to become the first profoundly deaf performer to forge a full-time international career as a soloist in classical music. She has performed with major orchestras worldwide, including the Berlin Philharmonic and New York Philharmonic, and has won multiple Grammy Awards for her recordings. Beyond her impressive discography of over 100 albums, Glennie is a passionate advocate for music education and has worked to break down barriers for deaf musicians. She communicates through vibrations, lip-reading, and sign language, revolutionizing perceptions about what deaf individuals can achieve in the performing arts.