T he Hurd y – Gurdy Man
M usician Ben Childs is the kind of guy struggling musicians love to hate. Since the age of 7, Childs, now 44, has had the uncanny ability to pick up an instrument and effortlessly learn to play it. “I started playing piano when I was 7, then saxophone, then guitar,” says the Tequesta resident who today plays dozens of instruments including drums, bass, banjo, mandolin, and even the tin whistle.
Yet there was one instrument that always eluded him. “Since I was a child, I have always been fascinated by the hurdy-gurdy,” says Childs. “I find the way it sounds bewitching.” He recalls first seeing the instrument played in his uncle’s English folk band, Blowzabella, and wanting to try it himself. But at a cost of $3,000, a new hurdy-gurdy was out of reach for the young musician.
He shared his passion for the instrument on his podcast, 561 Music , and Justin Hucker, owner of Live Music Community in Palm Beach Gardens, was listening. “Justin started a crowdfunding effort to get me a hurdy-gurdy,” says Childs. “All these people helped me buy one, which was just the nicest thing anyone had ever done for me.” In January 2023, Childs’ new hurdy-gurdy arrived from Poland.