community

, ,

Student Spotlight: David R.

, ,
IMG_0428.jpeg

Congratulations are in order to David R, who has been prepping for his University jazz program audition here at grooveKSQ. As one progresses through high school and into the college and university ranks, the material gets tougher in all subjects. This is also true with music schools and the audition process gets more and more competitive as well at the university level.

So, those going through University auditions know that they have two challenges: 1) harder audition material, plus 2) more competition. The audition material David had to navigate was some serious stuff.

David worked hard to prep all the audition material here at groove and once he was ready, we filmed and recorded his audition video here at the studio.

Again, we see that hard work pays off.

David was accepted into the jazz program and University of Delaware for this Fall semester. Congrats, David!!

,

In Person Lessons to Resume June 6th

,

Very pleased to announce that in person lessons will resume Saturday, June 6th. The studio will be cleaned (again!) and we will observe the following protocols:

  1. Masks are REQUIRED of students and any family members to enter the studio. No exceptions.

  2. Social distancing will be observed.

  3. No handshakes, fistbumps, etc. Peace signs or shaka signs are encouraged however.

  4. Students should make sure they have their own sticks. We will not need headphones because all the practice tracks will played through the PA.

  5. If you have a fever, or have any symptoms, please do not come in. We will make arrangements to provide a credit or video lessons.

If students or parents are uncomfortable with in person lessons, that is totally respected, and we can continue by video. There are some significant upgrades to the studio happening in the next two weeks to enhance our ability to deliver education over video.

There will be a separate announcement about Virtual Vinyl, the Summer Groovefest, and related activities coming soon.

(PS…this announcement assumes that Chester County is moved to the Yellow Phase by June 5th as the Governor’s office previously announced).

,

Introducing: The Wednesday Throwdown

,

There is a new program offering here at grooveKSQ: The Wednesday Throwdown. This is a weekly short group workout focusing on building speed and endurance for your hands. All you need is your pad, a pair of sticks and your smart phone.

This program is delivered by Zoom, so click the links for the monthly pass or the weekly pass. If you stick with these sessions, your hand speed will greatly increase, I promise you. But you have to prepare and do the work.

**NOTE, this event is free to current drumset students, but email me for the materials.

Weekly grooveKSQ Challenge: Singles!!

Weekly grooveKSQ Challenge: Singles!!

There are a few things you need to do for fast (and smooth) single stroke rolls. A lot of younger players think that if you just blast the sticks down on to the playing surface as fast as you can. Wrong. That will sound like you barfed all over your drum. Gross. We definitely don’t want that.

The secret is this: 1) staying loose; 2) knowing when to switch your mechanics up (wrist vs. fingers, etc). and 3) keeping your check hand in time with whatever tempo you are playing at, whether just in your head or within an ensemble.

This exercise below will help you do all three things. Watch the video below for more explanation.

New Additions to the Spotify Playlist; Virtual Vinyl Update

This month’s Thursday Night Vinyl went virtual (hence, Virtual Vinyl, get it?). Using Zoom videoconferencing as a platform was somewhat of an experiment, but one that worked well. Next month, expect some refinements so I can deliver a better remote experience. Of course, the idea is to build a community with everyone in the same room, but we can only do our best under the circumstances we have.

New artists added to the playlist: Miles Davis, Tony Tixier, Buddy Rich and Joni Mitchell. You can check out the Virtual Vinyl Spotify playlist below. Enjoy and stay tuned for the next event Virtual Vinyl in May.