Maleah Evans

Daniel Baird plays the handpan for residents at Homestead of Wichita. Baird played familiar songs like “Home one the Range,” “You Are My Sunshine” and “Can’t Help Falling in Love.”

Daniel Baird is one of just 30 people in Wichita who plays the handpan. Equipped with the unique instrument, Baird travels around Kansas to various health care facilities to play for the patients there.

“I was already playing for memory care residents, but I was just playing my own songs and reading how familiar music impacts them,” Baird said. “(That) kind of inspired me to start learning familiar songs, and now I’ve learned over 100 cover songs for residents.” 

Growing up, Baird played the saxophone and guitar. Then he wanted to try the harp, but he heard the handpan when listening to Shpongle in 2009 and became fascinated by the instrument.

“I was like, ‘What is that sound?’ It sounds like a harp, but they were doing percussive knocking sounds,” Baird said. “It just really drew me to it.” 

The handpan is one of the newest instruments to be created. It originated in 2000 in Switzerland. 

Listen to Handpan Dan here:

Baird was able to get his own handpan in 2017, and it has since become his greatest passion.  

Baird attended Wichita State and got a degree in psychology, and while attending, took some music classes for elective spaces. It was in one of these music classes that Baird read research articles about the benefits music had on people in memory care. 

“I’ll play those songs, and they’ll (the health care patients) talk to me about how they feel like they were outside for a little bit,” Baird said. “This is kind of what drew me to the handpan to begin with, it kind of transports the mind.” 

Among Baird’s cover songs are “Yellow Submarine,” “Shake it Off,” “Yankee Doodle” and several Christmas songs. Baird also had nearly two hours of original songs that he is working on compiling into an album. 

While, for right now, Baird plays in Kansas, he is looking to expand his performances to Guthrie, Oklahoma, since his handpan was made there. He makes regular trips to have it tuned there when necessary. 

“It’s just a short drive down to Guthrie, and then Edmond, (Oklahoma), is right there, and there’s a lot of health care communities around that area,” Baird said. 

He also gives classes and lessons to those who might be interested in the handpan, with a class coming up on April 12 on campus. 

“They’re really hard to find at music stores, and it’s a pretty big investment, so I want to give people a chance to try them out and decide if they really connect with it enough to make the purchase,” Baird said.