Content Marketing Institute University 2...
Since joining Yamaha as the Percussion Product Manager in 2014, I have been on a path to improve my knowledge of business and marketing. I just completed a great online training program offered by the Content Marketing Institute. The training session was taught by Joe Pulizzi and Robert Rose. The 12 modules are supplemented with books, handouts and videos. This was an excellent training session and I am looking forward to reading Joe Pulizzi’s Epic Content Marketing.
Enkor International Music Competition 20...
Last year, I had the honor of judging the Enkor International Music Competition. The jury is made up of 500+ members from 70+ countries on 6 continents. I was selected to judge the 2016 ENKOR Int’l Percussion Competition and I will be judging chamber music in 2017.
Yamaha Appoints New Product Manager
On December 15, 2014, I began my tenure with the Yamaha Corporation of America as the Product Manager of Percussion. You can read the announcement here. This has been a new transition for me. Previously, I taught at CSULB in the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music as the Director of Percussion Studies. I applied for the job last year and didn’t get it. I plan on writing more about this transition in the future. Thanks for your continued support.
Concert Programming
I am always looking for ways to improve the concert-going experience. As artists, I think we need to find a better way to attract and retain an audience. We need to think about concert programming and how to put pieces together that will be interesting to the audience and help our students learn about musicality and programming. I have always disliked going to percussion concerts and/or recitals and watching percussionists move equipment in between pieces. For this reason, I generally choose to have three parts on my percussion ensemble programs with minimal (or no)...
Technology in the Modern Percussion Stud...
We are all bombarded with technology everyday. Laptops, smartphones, tablets, and recording devises have had a positive impact on the way I teach lessons. It seems like everyday there is a new app, device or service that promises to change the world. Without going into a debate about which platforms are better, I am going to detail how I use technology in my percussion studio. I hope this article will lead to a discussion about what others are using in their classroom. Obviously, this post doesn’t apply to only percussionists and it will be great to hear what other...
PASIC 2013 – Thursday Recap
My morning started off with a visit to the exhibits. I can’t imagine a PASIC without a trip to the exhibits and the Steve Weiss booth. After a quick visit to the booths, I went to see the Michigan State Percussion Ensemble. They preformed the entire program from memory including Rain Tree and Xenakis’ Peaux. (For a complete listing of all of the College Percussion Concerts, check out the post I wrote on DrumChattr.com). After this performance I attended a Brazilian clinic by Marcos Santos and Grooversity. He introduced Brazilian rhythms to the audience in a... PASIC 2013 – Wednesday Recap
It is Wednesday night and PASIC is in full swing. Today was a travel day and I arrived in Indy around 6pm. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to attend the Technology Focus Day hosted by Blair Helsing. The evening concert featured performances by “Emerging Artists.” Some of the highlights included: Stop Speaking by Andy Akiho Performed by Gordon Hicken fzzi by Dan van Hassel Performed by Joseph van Hassel Songs I-IX by Stuart Saunders Smith Performed by Gene Koshinski Rogosanti by James Wood Performed by Garrett Mendelow The weather is extremely cold (as you...
Snare Drum Warm Ups
As an educator and professional performer, I have noticed that over the years, my practice time has decreased for one reason or another. I have also noticed that the older I get, the harder it is for me start playing without first warming up. This summer, I decided to sit down and write out a snare drum warm ups/routine that I could do every day that would take 10-15 minutes. Today, I want to present my warm-up and talk about each exercise that comprises the warm-up. I know there are a ton of other warm-ups that have been posted and written down (see below for a brief...
Teaching Musicality to Percussionists
Am I the only one who doesn’t understand why young percussionists are not being taught musicality? Why is this and how can we fix it? My wife is a flute teacher and she teaches musicality to kids in 6 grade. So why is that percussionists get to college and don’t know the basics about shaping a line? Here are some of my beliefs as to why students don’t get taught about musicality: 1) Percussionists don’t learn a mallet instrument until high school. 2) High school percussionists don’t study mallet instruments with a private teachers. 3)...Follow
Gear I Love
IronWorks CD
