Staff Announcement: Welcome to Dan Ciccone!

Very glad to announce that Dan Ciccone has joined the studio’s staff as a drumset instructor. Dan is one of our own: he studied drumset with Bryan Tuk here from 2020 to 2023.

Dan performs with his own band, Cicco, which gigs in the region and has recorded and released several singles that are streaming on all major platforms.

Dan also performs locally with The Sermon! and the Eight Hands Quartet as well as his own jazz/funk trio. Dan will work with the studio’s beginner drumset students. Dan is attending Temple University School of Music and is majoring in Jazz Performance.

Djembe Master Class Notes

Last night an enthusiastic group gathered here at the studio to learn from djembe master Pape Demba Samb. We spent a fun and energetic 90 minutes together communicating through drumming.

It really is something you have to experience live, and whatever you may have heard on a recording, hearing the sound of all those hand crafted Senegalese instruments played in a group really is an incredible experience.

Pape teaches individual lessons here at the studio. Please email me for more details.

We are planning on running another master class in April. Please join our email list by texting GROOVEKSQ to 66866 on your smartphone to stay up to date with the studio’s events.

New Faculty Spotlight: Introducing Pape "Paco" Samb

Pape Demba "Paco" Samb comes from a family that have been griots in his native Senegal for hundreds of years. As a griot, Paco is one of the keepers of the ancestral history, stories, and music of his Wolof peoples. As a master hand drummer, Paco not only plays the instruments but he and his brothers build several types of drums as well. He performs both contemporary and traditional Senegalese music, as well as reggae, rap, funk, jazz, pop and a variety of other styles. Paco heads his own drum ensemble called Super Ngewel and released his first album in 2014.