Christopher O
Instruments: Drums, Bass Guitar, Mallet Percussion, Orchestral Percussion, Conga, Latin Percussion, Djembe
Styles: Classical, Jazz, Pop, Rock, Blues, R&B, Musical Theater, Latin, Funk, Hip Hop, Electronic, Reggae, Swing, Bossa Nova, Soul, Marching Band, Punk, Avant-garde
Christopher O
Instruments: Drums, Bass Guitar, Mallet Percussion, Orchestral Percussion, Conga, Latin Percussion, Djembe
Styles:
Classical, Jazz, Pop, Rock, Blues, R&B, Musical Theater, Latin, Funk, Hip Hop, Electronic, Reggae, Swing, Bossa Nova, Soul, Marching Band, Punk, Avant-garde
Where I Teach:
Ages Taught: 10-80
"NET WORK" 2021 Selected Artist - Tetractys New Music
2018 - Louis Vyner Scholarship
1st Place - Louis Vyner 2017 Solo Competition
Concerto Soloist - Millersville University Winner's Circle Concert
I have a deep love for music, and one of the ways that I express that is through teaching! I primarily teach drums and percussion, which has been my main focus since 2011 when I entered high school. From there, I began a path that led me to Millersville University and NYU, where I earned a Bachelor of Arts in Music Business Technology and a Master of Music degree in Percussion Studies respectively. Instruments that I play and teach include but not limited to drum set, snare drum, mallet percussion (marimba/vibraphone), conga and djembe. Some of my favorite music falls in the realm of electronic, rock, r&b and hip-hop!
I've taught in a myriad of environments. My earliest goes back to instructing marching band/indoor percussion programs. My most recent marching program was Fusion Drum & Bugle Corps. My college studies helped me branch out musically, and thus I started dabbling in private instruction which I found very fulfilling. I was a graduate adjunct instructor at NYU, teaching primarily concert snare drum. Nowadays, I teach at private music studios (a la School of Rock) and am building up a studio of my own!
For beginning students of any age, I focus a lot on technique and building good habits. I will always use Stick Control by G.L. Stone, which has great material for a beginner drummer/percussionist. This is a stage where I will lightly introduce concepts of beat, tempo and rhythm, to help establish a musical vocabulary. Once I've determined that they have a good grasp of time and rhythm, I slowly begin to introduce rudiments and reinforce them lesson by lesson. And if I feel that the student is ready, we will begin to tackle learning a musical piece, be it out of a method book, or off of the student's favorite record.
Although I have my own methods and "prescribed" teaching materials, I love to keep a dialogue with the student. I always ask what their goals with music are, as I will then tailor the lessons accordingly. If a student says to me that they want to work towards an audition, I know that I can push them harder in terms of expectation and material. Or, I've had students who want to learn how to play a specific style or song, and those lessons can be much more mellow. Generally, I'm a very patient teacher. What I try to do is give students space to do what they want in lessons, while also giving them the necessary instruction and material to succeed.
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