Bio
Music was always in my genes having been born to a music teacher mother and a musically inclined father. So it was no surprise that in fourth grade I gladly jumped in to an after-school music class. My first instrument was a French Horn. I dragged it home the first day and promptly switched to the xylophone on day two. I stuck with it just long enough to learn the basics of music theory. The percussive element really stuck on me though.
In junior high I finally got to play a drum kit. I quickly joined the symphonic and jazz bands at school and formed a rock band with Rob Morris. We became quite popular at our school (and unpopular with neighbors who would frequently call the cops on our rehearsals), played hard-rock covers from our favorite bands (Metallica, Megadeth, Pantera, etc) and wrote some original songs. By freshman year in high school we recorded a demo and began playing Bay Area clubs. All before we could even legally drive to our gigs.
Meanwhile, I dove head first into every music class I could sign up for in high school. Luckily my high school had one of the best music programs in the state. I also began studying privately with Terry Carleton. Freshman year I auditioned for the jazz big band and got first chair with the top ensemble. I also joined the symphonic orchestra and the marching band. With the marching band I got instruction from some of the best rudimentary drumming instructors from Concord Blue Devils and Santa Clara Vanguard. A little later I formed a Jazz Combo band to play some paying gigs and even took music theory (the only drummer in the class). The climax of my high school music career came during two World Music Festivals we played. Once our Jazz and Symphonic bands travelled to Hawaii where we competed and took top honors. The second time was after my graduation when the two bands travelled on a tour of Australia and New Zealand where we got to play the Sydney Opera House stage among other venues.
In high school my hard-rock bug ran its course, and again with Rob Morris, I formed Shades of Blue. This blues project lasted into our college days. We wrote material we were very proud of, recorded a demo and played locally. Most notably we were billed to open for George Clinton and P Funk at a music festival in Angel’s Camp, California. It became difficult to progress with members of the band in college on different coasts and only having summers together.
While I was in college I started an event production company and artist management firm. This quickly grew into regular events catering to the electronic music crowd with up to 5,000 in attendance and a roster of 25+ artists under management. That too ran its course but offered lots of experience in the business and event production sides. While in college I also minored in Digital Audio Production and played with a number of different rock, jazz and blues bands.
For the next couple of years I did a number of sideman projects playing with various Bay Area bands both live and in the studio. The genres were as various as the bands with jazz, blues, rock, metal, and even a jam band. In 2005 I joined a Russian Rock band Mobius, where I helped the band produce and arrange a full set of original music, play a number of shows through-out California and record a demo. Our biggest show was a last minute opening slot for Vyacheslav Butusov (lead singer of the legendary 80s & 90s Russian rock band Nautilus Pompilius) where we performed in front of a 1,000+ crowd and afterward got better reviews than the headliner.
In 2007 I got to spend a bit of time taking master classes with some of the top drummers in the world: Dave Weckl, Horacio "El Negro" Hernandez, Steven Smith, Jason Bittner, Pat Petrillo, Jason Gianni, and Glenn Weber.
I take pride in being the utmost professional. Years of recording and live experience, learning material quickly, top notch reliable equipment, and productive feedback. I’m open to long and short term paying live and studio gigs. Please, get in touch with me to discuss your project. I’m based in San Francisco.
Genres & Influences
| Rock/Pop-Rock/Blues | Fusion/Jazz | R&B/Soul/Funk |
|---|---|---|
| Aimee Mann | Buddy Rich | 5nizza |
| Coldplay | Chick Corea | Earth, Wind & Fire |
| Dave Matthews | Dave Weckl | Erykah Badu |
| Dream Theater | Duke Elington | Esperanza Spalding |
| Eric Clapton | Fahir Atakoglu | Jamiroquai |
| Incubus | Herbie Hancock | Jill Scott |
| Jeff Buckley | Heracio "El Negro" Hernandez | Maxwell |
| John Mayer | Michel Camilo | |
| Muse | Miles Davis | |
| Radiohead | ||
| Sting |