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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March 3rd Assignments
Lucas
Recommended Practice Time: 15-30mins every day
What to practice: This week Lucas I want you to play through Lesson 2 and write in all of the counts for the Reading portion
How to practice effectively: Remember that we are just writing in the numbers exactly like how they are written in the first line, but for every line. Ask your parents or your brother for help if you need.
Good work today, keep asking questions and figuring out everything that confuses you!
Ella
Recommended Practice Time: 30mins every day
What to practice: Next week Ella I want you to play through Etude IV from Mitchell Peters Intermediate Snare Drum Studies and play through all of Verbatim with the 16th note beat.
How to practice effectively: For the Peters etude, focus on keep the accents big and stopping the stick with the back fingers when it hits the drum so that the taps can be really quiet. Just go slowly and take some time everyday on it. For Verbatim, focus on just practicing that hi-hat technique as much as possible, feel the way the arm pumps and the wrist relaxes to get the notes out. Keep in mind this is a slightly more-streamlined and different technique than the accent-tap stuff we are learning. They are very similar but lets think of them separately for now.
And here is some fun listening if you’re interested:
Imogen Heap, Speak for Yourself
Muse, Black Holes and Revelations
Keep the groove going Ellas!
Jonah
Recommended practice time: 30mins every day
What to practice: Next week Jonah I want you to work on the beats for Lesson 10 again. Also come up with 2 or 3 songs that you might want to learn.
How to practice effectively: Good work today Jonah with the reading. Don’t forget to count and then play, keep the process. You can do the exact same thing with the beats.
Think up some drumming robots too!
Samson
Recommended practice time: 30mins every day
What to practice: Next week Samson, I want you to play through the beats and hand exercises to Lesson 8 again.
How to practice effectively: We did ok today with the hand exercises and the beats but next week I want to hear the beats a tad bit more polished. Think about smooth timing and counting out loud!
Keep up the practicing Samson!
Sylvie
Recommended practice time: 30mins every day
What to practice: This week Sylvie your goal is to play all of Starlight for me next week! Here are the transcriptions of the beats. And here is a form chart of the song.
How to practice effectively: Listen carefully to the song, work out the fill at the end going into Beat C, and jam out!
Great job Sylvie!
Preferred Books for Gordon’s Students
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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.
