During my teenage years, I would discover Hip Hop music and Jimi Hendrix which seem at total opposite ends of a spectrum of sound, however opened my mind to new sounds and experiences to explore and understand music as deeply as I could. The sample based sound of Hip Hop, taking exisiting music and reshaping it into something new fascinated me. Combined with the unbelieveable sound of what Jimi Hendrix did with a guitar struck a chord within me.

I feel like I have been a self led student of music for a lot of my life and by the time I turned 19, I decided to get a drum kit, give it a shot and see where my passion can take me. Back in Black by AC/DC was the first taste of the fundamental rock drum beat to work on and explore how this instrument is played. (I’m grateful to my parents - who were so patient with the early days of noise in the house!)

Over the next few years, I threw myself into self-directed drumming, learning as much as I could about the instrument, the great players before me, different techniques, and the deeper musicality behind it all. This was right around the time YouTube and digital music on my iPod became easily accessible, giving me unlimited material to listen to and learn from.
I would play along to my favourite songs, focusing on getting my sound and feel as tight as possible.

I also devoted many hours to the PlayStation game Rock Band, which transformed practice into something both engaging and musical by allowing me to play along with real songs. While the drum kit was a controller, the repetition, coordination, and focus on proper hand and wrist technique closely mirrored real practice.

Drums are a powerful instrument with a wide dynamic range, shaping not just the sound of the music but how it’s felt. Because of that, I’ve always believed in an open-minded, eclectic approach to playing drawing from all genres, styles, and sounds.

My biggest advice to anyone who wants to learn to play the drums or any instrument, is to focus on being yourself and creating expression through your music and rhythm.

I live my life to the beat of my own drum - and music helps me express creativity. I love helping people find their groove and tap into their musical rhythm with drumming.

Let’s play!