Instrument inventor, musician comes to Iberia Parish

Mike Anderson, a storyteller and musician who has been coming to Iberia Parish “for years and years,” is making his appearances for 2008 at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the Loreauville library and 2 p.m. Wednesday at the Coteau library. He is also performing at 7 p.m. Thursday at the main library in New Iberia.

Iberia Parish Library Community Relations Coor-dinator Gail Garcia said Anderson has “junk music instruments” and “shows children how you can play with anything.”

“He uses just about everything,” Garcia said, adding instruments include a comb, noseflute, jaw harp, banjo, guitar and dulcimer.
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Garcia said the dulcimer is what Anderson, who lives in Illinois, is “really known for.”

Anderson, who has been coming to Iberia Parish for more than 20 years, said he has created more than 20 different instruments.

He had been making some traditional instruments, and began making more bizarre ones one hot day in Illinois.

“I started playing with my garbage, just for something to do,” he said.

“I had guitar tuners, string, scrapwood. It just came from being too hot” and being unable to work on anything “legitimate.”

He developed a comedy routine that went with the instruments, and an act was born.

A schoolteacher and writer, Anderson also tells stories. Many of his stories are about “the types of things that kids do growing up.”

He said his stories give children a sense of community and the feeling they are not the only ones who have ever experienced what he is writing about.

Anderson said there is no particular age group for his performances.

“I work hard at making sure there’s multiple levels of humor and understanding in it,” Anderson said, adding performance would appeal to those aged “5 to 500.”