Christopher Hull is a percussionist and ethnomusicologist whose work focuses on tensions between tradition and innovation in contemporary music. As a passionate performer of solo, chamber, and orchestral percussion, he seeks to ground his work in his classical training while simultaneously transcending the conventions of the conservatory. With classical percussion degrees from Wilfrid Laurier University and University of Alaska Fairbanks, a performing arts certificate from the Arts Institute of Indonesia Denpasar, and his current studies in ethnomusicology at the University of Toronto, Christopher’s genre-defying work exhibits a world of experience.
As an orchestral percussionist, he frequently works with the National Academy Orchestra of Canada, the Hamilton and Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestras, and Sinfonia Ancaster. He has appeared as a chamber musician and soloist in festivals such as Open Ears, International Gamelan Festival Munich, Young Artists Niagara, and Sacred Rhythm Jakarta, and can be heard playing drums, vibraphone, and synthesizer on commercial recordings by Call Me Moon and Treephones. He is also Associate Artistic Director of Toronto-based Evergreen Club Contemporary Gamelan, commissioning and premiering new works for Sundanese degung, and director of the University of Toronto’s Balinese gamelan ensemble, Dharma Santi.
Get to know Chris…Beyond the Bio!
Hobbies: Reading, cycling, and synthesizers
Musical influences: Jojo Mayer, Benny Greb, David Garibaldi, Gary Burton, Tony Miceli, Steve Reich, Glenn Gould, Bill Evans, I Dewa Made
Favourite food: Noodles
Least favourite food: Quiche
Favourite music: R&B, hip-hop, funk; Western modernism and minimalism; Balinese gender wayang; Sundanese degung; Orchestral; beatsce Favourite song:!
Favourite movie: The Departed
Favouirite movie music: Old modern romantic soundtracks (eg. Spellbound)
Favourite musical theatre/opera: West Side Story/Turandot
Best quote from your teacher: “When we perform, we smile. If we make a mistake while performing, we smile bigger.” -Dewa Suparta
Favourite quote: “I’m a man who leaves nothing to chance.” -Maestro Boris Brott
Favourite book: Dance, Dance, Dance by Haruki Murakami
Best thing about teaching at ABC: The lovely students
Latest Homework from CHRIS
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Tuesday, January 21st
Lila – Great first lesson today! Congratulations.
Warmups:
–8 on a Hand
–Single strokes
–Double strokes
–Paradiddles
Technique: the grip and playing position (V-shape, dribbling the basket ball, backs of hands facing up)
Basic Beat Level 1
Step 1) Count “1 2 3 4”
Step 2) Play the Hihat with your Right Hand (RH) on all the counts
Step 3) Add in the Bass Drum with your Right Foot (RF) on “1” and “3”
Step 4) Add in the Snare Drum with your Left Hand (LH) on “2” and “4”
Required Materials:
–Sticks
–Metronome
–Notebook, binder, etc for handouts and notes (please bring to lessons)
Recommended Materials:
–Hearing protection
–Practice
–Method Books
Visual Drumset Method p.14: exercises 1 and 2
–You can find this in the google drive>Frequently Used Resources (please bookmark for future use)
Myles
Drumset Musician p81 ex. 9-12
–Polish these off this week
Weezer: My Name is Jonas
–Drill the intro and main groove on p.1
–See worksheet for additional exercises on Bass drum variation
–For next time, we’ll learn the other two prominent fills in this song
==Xylophone==
Warmups (***G Major):
–Scale, one octave, ascending and descending, saying the note names as you play them (G-A-B-C-D-E-F#-G’)
–Arpeggio (G-B-D-G’-D-B-G)
–Broken thirds (G-B A-C B-D…)
Cirone Book: “Step Six” ex. 5-8
–Flashcards for note identification
–Next time we’ll do eartraining
Finn
Warmups (30sec each, counting aloud):
–Single Strokes
–Double Strokes
–8 on a hand
Joan Jett: I Love Rock and Roll
–begins with “watermelon watermelon” on the snare
–Play the main beat (1+2 3+4)
Fruit Salad game
–Four fruits: pear, apple, blueberry, watermelon
–Each fruit has a rhythm. Experiment mixing up to four fruits together to create your own rhythms!
Visual Drummer: Drum Beats ex. 7-9
–Try to play these without any extra bass drum notes!
[Like a stone or one headlight]
Francisco
Warmups:
–Stick Control first page ex. 14-18 (4x each, **120bpm goal tempo)
Tommy Igoe Groove Essentials book: Groove 1 Slow (in google drive)
–Drill the three groove variations
–practice playing along with the track, 8mm of variation A and 8mm of variation B
–As a bonus, add in drum fills (to taste) to signify each transition
–As a further bonus, go ahead and look at the next section (Groove 1 Fast)
–Please speak to your father about buying this book – it is something that we can use a lot in your lessons and for years to come.
Noah
Warmups (1min each per practice session):
–Paradiddle combo exercise with bass drum on quarter notes
Paul Simon: Late in the Evening
–You’ll find the chart for this song in your google drive folder
–Good work with this one. The biggest challenge right now is making sure you stay in time with the song. Try playing the feet only for a long time with the recording until you lock in, and then add the hands.
–This week, begin trying to figure out the drum fills found throughout the song
Jonah
Warmups:
–Paradiddle combo exercise with bass drum playing quarters. Accent the beginning of each paradiddle
NEW SONG Paul Simon: Late in the Evening
–You can find the chart for this song in your google drive personal folder
–This week we learned the main beat. Continue getting it clean and up to speed
Xylophone Warmup exercise (Eb maj) see video in google drive:
1) Scale, one octave, ascending and descending
2) arpeggio
3) Scale in broken thirds, one octave, ascending and descending
Reading exercises: please make sure to READ when we’re working on reading
Ear training:
–Identifying 3rds and 5ths
–Playing simple melodies back by ear
Saturday, January 25th
Nova–xylo day
Warmups:
–C Major Scale and Arpeggio (C-E-G-c-G-E-C)
–Now, add in G and F major scales (on handout). Note that they each have one accidental (black key)
Cirone Book: “Step 7” ex. 1-2 ***
–Great work on Step 6!
–Learn these exercises in the same way: singing the note names aloud as you play them
Ear training: pitch matching
Aleksander
Warmups (30 sec each) goal tempo 80bpm playing four notes per beat****:
–Single strokes (R L R L…)
–Double Strokes (R R L L….)
–Paradiddles (RLRR LRLL…)
–RLLR LRRL
–FLAMS*** pay close attention to the stroke setup: one hand high, one low. After the stroke, set up the opposite way
Drumset Musician p39, introducing sixteenth-notes
–Learn the different rhythms on this page (especially the three examples at the top of the page). Once you have the first three, can you think of how to play the others?
Drumset Musician p14 ex. 7-8 (2min ea.)
Lenny Kravitz: Are You Gonna Go My Way
–everything up until the chorus
–drill speaking that syncopated fill from before the chorus with only your voice and clicking the beat with your sticks, then apply that to the drums
Tracie
Warm-ups:
–Triplet ex. (85bpm)
–Rhythmic Alphabet
Groove Essentials: Groove 1 (find chart and backing track in the Freq. Used folder)
–Basic beat with “Chad Kroeger” drum fill in measure 8
Montell Fish: Don’t you Love Me
–see the handout, drill the main groove
Jonah — xylo day
Warmups:
–Paradiddle combo exercise with bass drum playing quarters. Accent the beginning of each paradiddle
NEW SONG Paul Simon: Late in the Evening
–You can find the chart for this song in your google drive personal folder
–This week we learned the main beat. Continue getting it clean and up to speed
Xylophone Warmup exercise in C, G, F and Eb Major
Reading exercises: please make sure to READ when we’re working on reading
Ear training:
–Identifying 3rds, 5ths and 2nds
–Playing simple melodies back by ear
Jonah
Warmups (1min each):
–Triplet Ex. 125bpm
–Ride pattern exercise with sixteenth exercise on the cymbal (goal tempo 90)
Tommy Igoe’s Groove Essentials: Groove 11 SLOW (track twenty-one)
–This week, get comfortable playing the main groove along with the song
–Goal tempo is roughly 85bpm
–Begin learning the other variations
Duke of Edinburgh
–Koel logs the hours
–Smart goal: measurable, achievable, and in a timely manner (end of school year)
–SMART GOALS: 1) triplet exercise up to 140bpm 2)sixteenth-note exercise up to 110bpm 3) Master six new grooves from the Tommy Igoe Groove Essentials book (2x rock, one funk, one r&b/hiphop, one jazz, one world) 4) Learn one new song
Mario
Warmups (1min/ea)
–8 on a hand
–Single Stroke Roll (R L R L…)
–Double Stroke Roll (R R L L…)
–Imagine the playing surface is a hot burner on the stove…get the stick down and up fast or you might get burned! Really quick contact–jump off the drum (piston/full strokes)
MGMT: Kid
–Building consistency will be key for this song. Play with your metronome (goal tempo ca. 126) to help develop this
We also played along with I Love Rock ‘n Roll (Joan Jett) and We Will Rock You (Queen)
–Developing the audiation (inner voice) and adjusting (listening and matching) these songs
Drumset Musician p27 (in google drive) – 8th-note Fills, ex. 7-9
–This week, focus on keeping the 8th-note steady through your fills
Mateo
Warmups (30 sec each):
–8 on a Hand
–Single Stroke Roll (RLRL…)
–Double Stroke Roll (RRLL…)
**Think more skin on the stick (but not squeezing)
**Let the stick bounce off the drum
**Remember to dribble the basketball
Drumset Musician p27, ex. 1-3 (in Freq. Used Res. google drive folder)
–Three times through the beat, play the fill, then end with a crash
–Aim to keep the flow of the eighth-note pulse STEADY
–try looping these exercises, so that the crash after the fill becomes beat 1 of the beat again
Tommy Igoe’s Groove Essentials, Groove 1 SLOW
–Find the chart and backing track for this in the Freq. Used Resources folder
–Practice playing the basic beat along with the song. Make sure to listen carefully to stay on pace
Queen: Another One Bites the Dust
–Find the chart for this song in your personal gdrive folder
–This week, we’re just working on the material from p. 1
Preferred Books for TCHRNAME Students
Click to buy them here, and they’ll come right to your house! What could be easier?
BOOK TITLE
COMING SOON
BOOK TITLE
COMING SOON
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COMING SOON
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