Thomas W  
Instruments: Piano, Drums
Styles: Classical, Jazz, Pop, Rock, Blues, Country, Latin, Funk, Reggae, Latin Jazz, Swing, Samba, Bossa Nova

I first began teaching at a music enrichment program for elementary school children.  I enjoyed this experience because it taught me how to work with younger children. And I have found that by teaching younger students, they are very eager to learn.  During my last two years of college I began private teaching at a local high school. I currently teach privatley in students homes as well as in my home studio.

My approach to teaching is individualistic. I try to accomodate the students interests in the most effective way possible. The fundamental books and methods that I teach to all my students are: Stick Control by George Lawrence Stone, and Syncopation by Ted Reed. These two books are absolutely essential to understanding the basic technique and fundamentals of drumming. For beginning students who are young children, I typically start with simple counting and clapping rhythms, and very simple technique excersises then progress from their. For older children and adults I start with the two books mentioned, as well as learning to read and count rhythms as well as basic music theory knowledge. I then progress to learning the fundamnetal grooves of Rock, Swing, and other styles, just to introduce the student to a variety of vocabulary on the drumset. All the while I will encourage the student to lead me towards his/her interests. After all it is the STUDENTS lesson.