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
Is Chris Your Teacher?
Sign up now to get your weekly assignments delivered, and never lose your homework sheet again!
Tuesday, June 18th
Nova
Xylophone:
–C Major Scale and Arpeggio (C-E-G-c-G-E-C)
–Piano Adventures p 46-47 (counting in 3)
Myles
Survivor: Eye of the Tiger
–Great!
–Now you’ve actually learned all the music, it just repeats the different parts you’ve learned. Keep playing along and we’ll be finished with this song next week!
Xylophone
–Review of C major scale, identifying the musical alphabet
–Page 33 in the piano book
—-Great work! This was awesome this week. Next week, we’ll learn a new song (so bring ideas :))
Jonah
Warmups (1min/ea)
–Triplet Exercise (Goal tempo=115)
–Sixteenth-note exercise (goal tempo=100)
Herbie Hancock: Watermelon Man
–You forgot your sheet here! I uploaded it here so you can print it and continue to work on the new material
–Everything up until big shots
Xylophone
–C Blues Scale**
Noah
Warmups:
–Triplet Exercise (1mm RH, 2mm LH) @ 95bpm
–Sixteenth-note Exercise 75bpm
Lenny Kravitz: Are You Gonna Go My Way
–Attitude!
–Good luck at the Talent Show
Xylophone
–C Major Scale
–Reading in the Piano Adventures book p44
Saturday, November 2nd
Jack
Benny Greb Rhythmic Alphabet
–Learn each letter in the “binary” part of the alphabet (counting 1-2-3-4)
–try building small words!
Tragically Hip: 50 Mission Cap
–Learning the beat (Bass-Snare-Bass-Snare) and playing along with the song while I play piano
Xylophone
–Learning the musical alphabet (ABCDEFG)
–Visually identifying C on the keyboard
–Spelling “Dad” and “Egg” on the keyboard
Nova
Warmups:
–C Major Scale and Arpeggio (C-E-G-c-G-E-C)
Cirone Book: “Step 6” (pdf in Nova’s personal gdrive folder)
–Finish of the last three exercises, singing the note names aloud as you play
–Ear training
–Visual training on the keyboard
DRUMS next week:
Warmups:
–Stick Control first 13 exercises (trying for 50bpm goal tempo)
Remi Wolf: Photo ID
–Finishing this song off
–Work on adding the Chorus fill (on handout) into the second chorus
Jonah
Four-mallet Xylophone chords
–Learn the shape of the C Major Triad (C-E-G-C)
–Using that shape, play along to Bill Withers’ “Lean On Me”. It plays the same triads on different roots (C…C.D.E.F…F.E.D.C…C.D.E.E..D..) etc
Jared
Warmups:
–Stick Control ex 1-13 goal tempo: 80bpm***
—-Play each exercise ***4 times***
Bruno Mar: Locked Out of Heaven
–Chart is now in your personal folder
–Playing through the whole song, the only bit we don’t know is the half-time drum groove near the end. Try working this out on your own, we’ll polish it off next week
–Drill all the small transitions (eg. end of chorus back into verse)
Tracie
Warmups:
–Triplet exercise (85bpm)
–Rhythm Ex. 60bpm–>counting! (quarters-eighths-quarters-triplets-quarters-sixteenths and reverse)
White Stripes: Seven Nation Army
–Learning by rote
–Great work! Sing along, and get the chorus variation in time with the guitar
Mario
Warmups (1min/ea; slow, med, fast speeds)
–8 on a hand
–Single Stroke Roll (R L R L…)
–Double Stroke Roll (R R L L…)
White Stripes: Seven Nation Army (up to ca. 1:000
–LISTENING is the key skill to playing in time with the recording
–Use listening to help you adjust when accidentally playing too fast/slow
***Drumset Musician p11, ex. 1-3 (find a PDF in the google drive “Frequently Used Resources” folder)
–Learn exercise 3 on your own, counting aloud, four repeats each
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
BOOK TITLE
COMING SOON
BOOK TITLE
COMING SOON
