M.Mus (UofT) in-progress
B.Mus (Eastman)
Gordon is a percussionist and educator interested in performing, creating, and engaging within a multitude of musical styles, invested in how music might be embodied in a variety of forms through joyful exploration.
From Tampa, Florida, Gordon became acquainted with music through piano lessons, eventually moving on to drum set and marching percussion in high school. In 2019, Gordon completed his undergraduate studies at the Eastman School of Music under the tutelage of Michael Burritt. At Eastman Gordon performed and premiered works with the Eastman Wind Ensemble, Eastman Percussion Ensemble, and Musica Nova in addition to serving for two years on the board of the student-led new music ensemble, Ossia.
He is also interested in the intersection between music and technology and has contributed to creative projects with the Eastman Audio Research Studio and the University of Toronto Percussion Ensemble.
Gordon is currently working towards completing his Master’s degree at the University of Toronto under the instruction of Aiyun Huang.
Get to know Gordon…Beyond the Bio!
Hobbies: Spending time with family and friends, watching movies, reading, spending time outside, tossing a frisbee and playing Spikeball
Musical influences: Rush, Mutemath, Max Roach, My Brightest Diamond, Son Lux, Rachel Podger, Michael Burritt, Steve Schick, Paul Rennick, Sarah Kirkland Snider, Jess Ray, Mark Andre…
Favourite food: Kanafeh (Middle-Eastern dessert)
Least favourite food: Brussel sprouts
Favourite music: Rock, Jazz, Contemporary Classical, Indie-folk, Electronic
Favourite song: One favorite is Humble Heart by Jess Ray
Favourite movie: Another favorite is Tree of Life by Terrence Malick
Favourite movie music: Bernard Herman in Vertigo, Ennio Morricone in Once Upon a Time in the West
Favourite musical theatre/opera: Hamilton, Invisible Cities by Christopher Cerrone
Best quote from your teacher: “Listen…”
Favourite quote: Romans 8:37-39
Favourite book: The Giver by Lois Lowry
Best thing about teaching at ABC: Sharing music with the students.
Latest Homework from Gordon
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May 5th Assignments
Lucas
Recommended Practice Time: 15-30mins every day
What to practice: This week I want you to play all of the beats in Lesson 3 eight times!! How to practice effectively: First get the hi-hat part solid while counting OUT LOUD, then add the snare drum, and then when you’re ready, figure out the counts the bass drum comes on and add it in! Between the three beats the bass drum is the only thing that changes so putting all the parts together every time should be pretty easy. Don’t give up! Shoot for one good repetition at a time, and then when it feels more comfortable try repeating each beat 8 times without stopping and when that feels good, try going a little faster!
Really awesome to see your improvement with this Lucas! Also don’t forget to lower your snare drum!
Ella
Recommended Practice Time: 30mins every day
What to practice: Practice through the bridge of Verbatim.
How to practice effectively: Remember to put the bass drum after the drags and just keep working through things slowly, there’s no rush to getting this material down and it can be frustrating that way haha. Just focus on getting it good slowly and then getting it up to tempo will be a piece of cake! Also try to focus on giving an 8th note pulse to all the 16th note beats.
Really great work on this song so far Ella, keep it up!
Jonah
Recommended practice time: 30mins every day
What to practice: Congrats again on the recital! This week I want you to come up with 3 simple ideas that we can develop into solos next week!
How to practice effectively: Come up with some fun rhythms and then see how they work around the drums and with the feet, be creative!! Give me your best ideas!
Samson
Recommended practice time: 30mins every day
What to practice: Great job again on your recital and talent show performances! This week I want you to play this beat to Rock with You at least 16x at a 83, 95, and 108 bpm. Use the metronome on your drum kit! Try it with the song at least once as well!
How to practice: Start at each tempo with the hands playing the 16th notes VERY relaxed and NOT TENSE, keeping the stick heights down is crucial for this. Add a little bit of accent or oomph on the first right hand of each beat, then when you feel confident with that add the kick and snare. Aim for a nice, cool, and relaxed feel!
Super excited to work on this song with you!!!
Sylvie
Recommended practice time: 30mins every day
What to practice: Work through the paradiddle-diddle patterns from Lesson 9 with the right hand on the floor tom and the left hand on the snare drum with the bass drum on the first quarter note and the hi-hat pedal on the second and third quarter notes. If you have time start looking through the Lesson 10 reading too!
How to practice effectively: These coordination exercises with the paradiddle-diddles can be very challenging to get through on the first go. Try to avoid just repeating them aimlessly and hoping it sticks. The best approach is going slowly and getting a feeling in your limbs for how it feels to play it correctly. You can work into this by playing the feet and the hands separately and then putting them together. Work one good repetition at a time, and then once you get the hang of it you can try repeating it without stopping.
You can do it Sylvie!!
Preferred Books for Gordon’s Students
Click to buy them here, and they’ll come right to your house! What could be easier?
STICK CONTROL
George Lawrence Stone’s Stick Control is the bible of drumming. In 1993, Modern Drummer magazine named the book one of the top 25 books of all-time. In the words of the author, it is the ideal book for improving: control, speed, flexibility, touch, rhythm, lightness, delicacy, power, endurance, preciseness of execution and muscular coordination, with extra attention given to the development of the weak hand.
Reading, Rudiments, and Rock Drumming
This beginner book contains the basic 3 R’s of drumming-Reading, Rudiments, and Rock, in an easy to learn format.
Intermediate Snare Drum Studies
The Art of Bop Drumming
The definitive book on bop drumming—a style that is both the turning point and the cornerstone of contemporary music’s development. This comprehensive book and audio presentation covers time playing, comping, soloing, brushes, more jazz essentials, and charts in an entertaining mix of text, music, and pertinent quotes.
