Toronto Drums & Percussion Teachers • Chris Hull • ABC Academy

BMus (Wilfrid Laurier University)

MMus (University of Alaska Fairbanks)

Darmasiswa Certificate (Arts Institute of Indonesia Denpasar)

MA Ethnomusicology (University of Toronto)

PhD Ethnomusicology (University of Toronto) in-progress

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
Saturday

Tuesday

Tuesday, September 19th

MYLES

-Warmups (try at three speeds)
8 on a Hand
Single Strokes
*Basic Beat Level 4
Same as 3, but LH plays on the crash and Left Foot (LF) plays Hihat on “2” and “4”
Worksheet: Alfred, Lesson 1. Ex. 1-7 (please print from Google Drive)
*Combination Study next week

JONAH

Triplet Exercise (Goal tempo = 100)
1 measure RH, two measures LH
1 minute without a break
Sixteenth Note Exercise (goal tempo=80bpm)
Stick Control Ex. 43-50 (120bpm)
*Joel Rothman Lesson 15 – 2nd segment this week
Lenny Kravitz: Are You Gonna go my Way? (please print from google drive)
*Please learn the first page – play along with recording
Xylophone
-Ex. 1 and 2 from Lesson 1 in the GH Green book
G Major Scale
F Major Scale
New Scale next Week
*Pno book pg 42

JOSH

-Warmups (slow, med, fast):
8 on a hand
Singles, Doubles, and Paradiddles
Roll Exercise
New Beat: Smooth out the transition – the crash is “1” of the beat, so after you play it just slide your hand over to the Hihat and keep going
Fruit Salad Game
Worksheet – Alfred Lesson 4 ex 1-5
Xylophone- C Maj scale; reading C and G (p37 in piano book)

NOAH

-Stick Control first page ex. 1-8
-Xylophone
*New Song: Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana (please print from Google Drive)
*Work on the chorus beat that I wrote out for you, Spend a few minutes each practice session getting it up to speed

WILL

Pad Exercises (1min/ea):
Triplet Exercise (goal tempo=120)
Sixteenth-note exercise (goal tempo=90)
Roll Exercises (80bpm)
Flams and Flam Taps (80-90bpm)**
***Paradiddles and Paradiddle-diddles WITH ACCENTS
Syncopation Set 1 ex. 1-8
Basic Swing Brush Pattern
try at 80bpm – 120 bpm. Look for drumless swing tracks on Youtube and try it out
First four exercises from Syncopation
*Zackgrooves thing – get comfy
*Ghost Note Exercises (Drumset Musician p.11 #5** this week)
A) on the “a” of 2 and 4
B) on the “e” of 1 and 3
C) Both A) and B)
D) on all the “e”s