Jill M is on the scene!

Drummer Cat

Get ready to be blown away, Virginia!  Jill M., drum and percussion extraordinaire, is the newest teacher to explode on the B&B scene. And with years of experience, she’ll make an incredible instructor for any of you future drum masters out there.

Dedicated to giving each student a perfect experience and understanding that each student learns differently, Jill creates individual lesson plans for each of her drummers. And her enthusiasm is contagious. Jill’s passion, patience, and relatability keep students motivated and eager to play lesson after lesson.

When Jill’s not busy teaching new drummers how to hold sticks or bang the bass, you can find her at the Guitar Center, where she was hired as a member of the drum department. And for any worrywarts out there, rest easy when you’re with Jill. She’s also a licensed EMT.

Jill also teaches guitar which is an excellent asset to families with multiple children.

Learn more about Jill by visiting her B&B profile here.

Jonathan S. Blues Guitar

Meet Jonathan, King of the Blues

Look out B. B. King. B&B officially has its very own resident “King of the Blues.” Jonathan Sloane is not only B&B’s newest all-star instructor, but he’s also winner of the Guitar Center’s 2011 Washington regional “King of the Blues” competition. And as a guitar instructor well-versed on teaching students how to read music notation, build chords, play scales, and learn rock and blues progressions, we couldn’t have asked for a better addition to the B&B team!

But if you think Jonathan’s only into Eric Clapton and Stevie Ray Vaughan, think again. He’s also plays lead guitar for Yellow Dubmarine, a reggae/dub Beatles tribute band that’s toured extensively throughout Canada and the U.S. The group, which also includes B&B’s own Robbie Cooper on drums, has even opened for the Wailers, Burning Spear, and Sonny Landreth. The band recently released their first recorded album, “Abbey Dub,” an imaginative interpretation of the Beatle’s classic, “Abbey Road.” To hear a few tracks from the album, check out their Web site: http://yellowdubmarine.com/

And then, be sure to take a look at Jonathan’s B&B teacher’s profile to see all of the other cool projects he’s been working on. If you’ve been thinking about guitar lessons for your child, he may just be the perfect teacher for you. After all, who better to teach students how to play guitar than the king?

Gary knows about drum equipment.  He also knows about teaching and performing.  

Useful information for drummers

 Using a practice pad is very beneficial. There are wooden based practice pads with rubber on tops and Plastic pads with adjustable head tensioners, Both work very well.

These days you can find great deals on full adult and junior drum kits starting around $300 dollars. These deals can be found at The guitar center and Chuck Levens Washington music center (Talk to Coleman) in the drum department, Tell Him i sent you and he”ll take great care of you.

For great deals on vintage and second hand Drums check out Atomic music in College Park (talk to Lewis). They have tons of great drum kits at great prices. The benefits of buying a vintage drum are that they sound great and the value over the years will possibly increase.

http://bnbmusiclessons.com/learn-piano/gary-i-2/
                                   

When we think of music, we think of harmonious, pleasing sounds that create or recall emotions and memories.  In that sense, it may be hard to think of banging on a drum as “music”. Few of us would want to sit through an entire performance of drum solos;  yet, drums and other percussion instruments play  an important role in any performance;  as much as the piano, the violin or guitar.

Drums set the tempo and rhythm of the music, adding emotional shadings and emphasis to the music being played.  Drums in an orchestra are like the sound track in a movie; always in the background — adding color, emotion and tempo to the scene — but only rarely, if ever, becoming the scene or the performance itself.  Traditionally, drums and percussion instruments play supporting roles to the “musical” instruments; they provide rhythm, shading and texture, but are not the music itself.  

Yet, despite its supporting role in traditional music, it is an integral part of the performance itself.  

The emergence of Jazz and Rock n’ Roll has often put drummers in the forefront of the performance. They are not just “bit players” doing backup, but star performers, virtuosos in their own right.  Who has not been thrilled by a drum solo from such legendary drummers as Gene Krupa, Keith Moon, Mick Fleetwood, or Ringo Starr?

 Like any other instrument, playing a drum badly is just making noise; but playing a drum with style; in sync with other instruments or as a solo performance, is a skill that rivals the virtuosos of any other instrument.   But does a drum “make music”?

The dictionary defines “Music” as:

1. The art of arranging sounds in time so as to produce a continuous, unified, and evocative composition through melody, harmony, rhythm, and timbre.
2.  Vocal or instrumental sounds possessing a degree of melody, harmony, or rhythm.

Drums are all about rhythm.  They don’t create melodies or harmonies. The sound of a drum is as basic and visceral as a heartbeat. Drums interpret the rhythms of nature into musical forms:  the ominous rumble of thunder from the Tympani, or the pattering of raindrops on a roof from a snare drum.  That is what we sense when we hear the beat of a drum: the rhythms of life itself.    

Children are capable of learning to play a musical instrument at a very young age, but not all instruments are appropriate for certain ages. Starting a child out on an instrument that is within his or her capability will build confidence and make them eager to move on to bigger musical challenges. There is a natural order of progression in learning instruments that works best for most children, and will keep their enthusiasm for learning intact.

The easiest instruments for the youngest of hands are simple percussion instruments like hand drums, tambourines or rattles. Even very young children show a natural understanding of rhythm, perhaps a “sense memory” of the rhythm of  their mother ‘s heartbeat while in the womb is what  sets the stage for this natural ability. In any case, children as young as six months old can enjoy playing simple percussive instruments, and by age five they can be ready for moving on to more advanced percussion instruments such as a piano that actually produces a tune when a key is struck. The transition from just making a noise when striking a drum to making an actual musical sound when striking a key, and then discovering that different keys make different sounds, and that striking several keys in succession creates a “tune”,   is a discovery that encourages a child’s natural sense curiosity and wonder;  and the first step to “music appreciation”.

At the age of five, some children have developed the needed strength in their hands, along with coordination, to try out a violin, or child-sized guitar. By age seven, most children will have hands that are big enough for a regular sized guitar or perhaps a cello or viola. By seven, children are also old enough that they can begin learning how to read musical notation. At earlier ages, children can remember only simple tunes and rhythms. Only later can they attempt to master chords and harmonies.

Woodwind instruments like the trumpet, flute, recorder, trombone or saxophone require a larger lung capacity than a small child has, as well as the careful control of lips and mouth for producing sound. These skills are usually out of reach until a child is at least ten years old. Waiting until then will maximize the chances that the child will have success, and the desire for learning more complex music will be evident.