Drum Lessons in Chicago, IL

Instruments: Drums Orchestral Percussion Conga Latin Percussion Djembe

What advice do you have about practicing effectively?
Set a realistic and achievable goal for every practice session and work towards that goal the best you can. You'll find that setting smaller goals and achieving them will give you better results than trying to reach an enormous goal in one practice session.

How do I know if my child is ready to start lessons?
It is important that your child shows interest in wanting to learning how to play an instrument. If the interest is not there, the dedication and progress will not be there.

When will I start to see results?
All students are different, learning styles are different, and learning speed is different. It is up to the instructor to tailor the lessons to best develop their student. Usually, results can be seen after a lesson or two and individual practice time. Lessons are important but practice time is even more important. Lessons are not practice.

Did you have a teacher that inspired you to go into music? How did they inspire you?
I was initially inspired by my father to start learning how to play the drums at a young age. I was a member of the school band all the way to high school and that was when my high school band director inspired me to make music my career. He was a great jazz saxophonist and introduced me to jazz and other amazing music played by the most talented musicians alive. Thanks to my high school band director, I went to college for a jazz degree and am now pursuing music as a career.

Why did you choose your primary instrument?
I chose drums because I always had an interest in wanting to learn how to play them. My father had a band and i would always watch and listen to the drummer when they rehearsed. He ended up teaching me the basics and I took off from there trying to teach myself how to play more and more. Playing drums is definitely my number one passion.

What musical accomplishments are you most proud of?
I am most proud of performing in a professional setting with top musicians such as Jason Marsalis, Vanessa Rubin, and Andy Martin as well as playing a St.Louis tour with my jazz ensemble and playing a high class wedding on the 95th floor of the John Hancock Building downtown Chicago. Im still working towards bigger and better things.

Have any of your students won awards or been selected for special honors? How have they succeeded?
I taught at a music shop near my college and I had many beginning students. One of my beginner students put in a lot of practice time at home and was progressing really quickly. He became so good within such a short period of time that he was selected to be the drummer of the new children's rock band at the shop. Another student I had was much older than me and wanted to go back to college for a music degree. I taught him how to read music, play jazz drum set and how to play mallet percussion. Within two months, he auditioned at a local college and was accepted into the music program.

What do you think is the hardest thing to master on your instrument?
The hardest thing to master on the drums is limb independence. It's hard to get all of your limbs to play something different all at once. It takes a lot of patience and dedication to get past that initial hump.

Do you use specific teaching methods or books? (Ex: Alfred, Bastion, Suzuki, Hal Leonard) Why did you choose them if you did?
I do use some method books for teaching my beginning students and anyone who wants to start reading music. Method books are not a 'must have' in order to learn to play drums but it definitely helps for furthering your abilities.

What does a normal practice session look like for you?
When I practice, I like to warm up my hands with a 10-15 minute jam while throwing in some rudiments and licks I've been working on. After that, I have a goal in mind like learning a new lick I heard on an album or playing through a new jazz standard that I need to learn. Its good to set goals for yourself when practicing. Having gigs helps with practicing as well so have have upcoming material to work on.

If you have a Music Degree, what is it in (Performance, Education, Musicology, Theory, Composition, etc) and why did you choose that degree?
I have a Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Studies/Performance. I chose this degree path because jazz is a very complex form of music that really speaks to me. Being able to master the jazz genre is no easy task and it is something that even the top professionals work towards every day.

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