Drumming With The Stars
I keep missing the TV show “Dancing With The Stars”… been trying to catch it for ages now. The reason being is that Ralph Humphrey, the drummer on the show, has been a fantastic teacher to me for the last few years. He’s the head guy at Los Angeles Music Academy (LAMA) drum department, along with Joe Porcaro.
The show appears to have come to a conclusion tonight, with the winner being a Brazilian race car driver Helio Castroneves. More details in this Reuters article.
I can’t speak highly enough of the lessons I’ve had with Ralph. When I first went to him I said something like “I need vocabulary.. I need way more words on the drums and way more ways to say them”. Since then, to say he’s blown the barn doors off everything I took for granted about drumming, what was and is possible, would be no understatement.
The mind expanding moments I’ve experienced in his drum studio during lessons have often reduced me to laughter at the ridiculous things I suddenly understand that come into focus with those “Aha!” moments. For example one day 5 over 2, and 15 over 16 all made perfect sense without that much effort. He has an amazing ability to be able to impose structure on what sounds like something that’s completely random and bring a clarity to it I’m certain I’d never find own my own. I need to ask just how he comes up with all this stuff!
Get more information on Ralph about the show “Dancing With The Stars”, and what he does when he’s not laying down the groove for “Dancing With The Stars” at the LAMA site, and DrummerWorld.
Anyways.. if you need lessons, and you’re in Los Angeles, look him up! If you’re super nice, get in touch with me and I can forward your number to him.