Teaching

My Teaching is the fuel that drives much of what I do as a performer, composer and administrator.

Teaching affords me the opportunity to utilize a uniquely divine gift to make a positive impact on the world, by educating and mentoring future generations of musicians, listeners, consumers and industry partners.

The Teaching relationship inspires me to inspire my students, in their development of systematic, practical practice regimens that will facilitate their growth and improvement in “Seven Comprehensive Performance Areas,” which are applicable to all instruments and musical styles. However, in the case of Drumset Education, these are:

1. Hand to Hand Fluidity
2. Coordination and Independence within Diverse Musical Styles
3. Chart Interpretation
4. Snare Drum Reading
5. Listening, History and Transcription
6. Repertoire and Improvisation
7. Practical Experiential Projects

Author Credits:

2019, Contributing Author, Sonny’s Bridge, Charlesbridge Publishers
2017, Author of Forward, Alan Dawson, Manual for the Modern Drummer
2009, Author of Creative Jazz Improvisation for Drumset, Hal Leonard/Berklee Press, DVD
2008, Present, Author and Online Professor, Drumset Fundamentals, Berklee Online

Faculty Affiliations:

2019 – Present: Chair and Professor of Percussion, Berklee College of Music

2017 – 2019: Interim Chair of Percussion and Professor of Percussion, Berklee College of Music

2000 – 2017: Assistant Chair and Professor of Percussion, Berklee College of Music
1. Private Lessons
2. Private Recital Preparation Lessons
3. Advanced Jazz Lab
4. Advanced Brush Lab
5. Brush Techniques Lab
6. Graduate Level Mixed Ensembles
7. Various Berklee On the Road Small Group Ensembles

1996 – 1997: Adjunct Faculty, William Patterson University
1. Private Lessons
2. Small Group Jazz Ensembles

1993 – 2000: Adjunct Faculty, Rutgers University, Newark Campus
1. Private Lessons
2. Percussion Ensemble
2. Contemporary Small Group Ensemble

1992 – 2000: Adjunct Faculty, Mannes School College of Music, New School College
1. Private Lessons

Artist in Residence Programs:

2017 – 2019, Berklee at Umbria Jazz Clinics
2016 – 2018, Berklee Global Jazz Workshops, Newport Jazz Festival
2013 – 2016, Berklee in San Domingo at the National Conservatory of Music
2013, 2012, 1998, 1997, Litchfield Summer Music School
2013, University of Wisconsin, Madison
2011, Peace Festival, “Common Language – Common Sense”, Augsburg, Germany
2011, 2010, 2006, 2004, Semanario de Jazz, Xalapa and Puebla Mexico (University of the Americas)
2006 – 2009, Hokkaido Groove Camp, Sapporo, Japan
2001 – 2006, Berklee in LA, Fullerton College
1998 – 2000, “Jazz for Teens”, New Jersey Performing Arts Center
1998, Portland State University
1993 – 1997, Vermont Summer Jazz Camp
1993, Cornish University with pianist/composer James Williams
1993 – 1995, Camden Middle School, Newark NJ
1990 – 1991, Harlem School of the Arts
Topics of Expertise Include:
1. Ensemble Workshops and Coaching
2. Drumset Clinics and Masterclasses
3. Private Instruction
4. Jazz History and Survey Classes
5. Music Business and Career Planning
6. Composition and Arranging Coaching
7. Praise and Worship Ministry Workshops

Clinics / Master Classes:

2019，Black Sea Jazz Weekend Clinic and Workshop, Odessa Ukraine
2012 – 2019, Adjudicator, Berklee High School Jazz Festival
2017, Shanghai Modern Music Camp, China
2017, Jiong Summer Drum Camps, Beijing and Wuhan China
2017, 2015, Ensemble and Drumset Workshops, Music Settlement, Cleveland OH with Eric Gould and Leon Dorsey
2014, Conservatory of Pescara, Italy
2014, Drumset Clinic, Art Music, Bologna Italy
2014, Workshop, Jazz and Rock Scule, Frieburg Germany
2014, Drumset Clinic, North Shore Drum Shop
2014, Drumset Clinic, 247 Drum Shop
2013 – 2016, Drumset and Ensemble Workshops, Berklee in Santo Domingo, National Conservatory of Music, Dominican Republic
2012, Ensemble Workshop with Joanne Brackeen, Havana Jazz Festival
2012, Ensemble Clinic, Ki Kula Ni’hau School, Kauai HI
2009, Performance Clinic with vibraphonist, Jay Hoggard, PASIC, Indiapolis, IN
2009, Ensemble Clinic, Belmont College, Nashville, TN
2009, Drumset Clinic and Ensemble Workshop, Seoul Jazz Academy
2008 – Present, Co-Director, Clinician, Performer, Berklee Percussion Weekend, Boston MA
2004 – 2008, Ensemble Performance Clinics, Young Audience of Massachusetts
2003, Drumset Clinic, Ensemble Workshop, East Carolina University
2002, Musical Brushes, Drumset Clinic, IAJE, Toronto
2001, Musical Brushes, Drumset Clinic, PASIC, Nashville TN
2001 – 2007, Co-Director, Clinician, Performer, Berklee Percussion Festival, Boston MA
2001, 1995, Ensemble Workshops with James Williams, Bill Pierce and John Lockwood, University of New Hampshire
1998, Ensemble Workshop with James Williams, Bill Pierce and John Lockwood, Purdue University
1997, Performance Clinic with Joe Lovano, University of Colorado at Boulder
1997, Drumset Clinic, San Francisco State University
1996, Drumset Clinic, Agostini Ecole de Batterie, Toulouse, France
1995 – 2000, Ensemble Performance Workshops, Young Audiences of New Jersey
1995, Ensemble Workshop with James Williams, University of Southern Maine
1994, Drumset Clinic and Ensemble Workshops, Roosevelt University, Chicago IL
1993, 1992, Ensemble Workshops, Allentown Community College
1991, Ensemble Workshop, West Palm Beach Community College

Formal Education Background:

Doctoral Candidate, Worship Studies, Liberty University, School of Music Master of Music, Jazz Studies, Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts Bachelor of Music, Percussion, Roosevelt University, Chicago College of Performing Arts