Deaf news: Music and the Deaf’s Paul Whittaker marks 25th Anniversary

The Huddersfield Daily examiner has an interview with Paul Whittaker, the founder of the Music and the Deaf charity, on its 25th anniversary.

Paul, who was born in Huddersfield, talks about how he got into music, even though he couldn’t hear it.

Extract:

“From the age of 12 this is what I  wanted to do,” he said.

“I had a naive, child-like idea of  what I was going to do. It involved  having a big house for one.

“I had a vision, some might say a  calling, like I was put on earth for a  purpose.

“The success has been amazing.  When people come back to you all  grown up and say they have been  inspired and you have changed their  life it is humbling.”

When he was seven, Paul joined a  church choir and pestered his  parents to take him to concerts and  recitals.

Put simply he was music mad,  unusual enough for a seven- year-old. Unique for a deaf child.

“I never thought it was unusual,”  said Paul. “It’s only when other  people point it out that I think  maybe it is out of the ordinary.”

Read the full article here