What's Great About YouTube Drum Videos And What's Bad: Why You Need A Coach/Teacher

Similar to metacognitive knowledge, metacognitive regulation or "regulation of cognition" contains three skills that are essential.[2][18]

1. Planning: refers to the appropriate selection of strategies and the correct allocation of resources that affect task performance.
2. Monitoring: refers to one's awareness of comprehension and task performance
3. Evaluating: refers to appraising the final product of a task and the efficiency at which the task was performed. This can include re-evaluating strategies that were used.

​From: Metacognition - Wikipedia

In 2021 information on learning to play the drum is easy to find. It's pretty much all out there for "Free". While writing this I searched, "How many drum videos are there on YouTube?" Answer: 192,000,000

Where to start? Good question if you've never played before. 

First let's consider what's good about YouTube drumming videos.

1. They are fun. I love them.
2. They inspire.
3. They help us develop an identity as a drummer.

Second, what's not so good about YouTube drumming videos.

1. They focus on gymnastics. What my wife, a Professor of Education, calls the "male Olympic" syndrome: faster, stronger, louder. More aggressive. In short being the centre of attention. 
2. They often misrepresent what the role of a drummer is in a band: keep time, work with the bass player, interpret the song, and fill the dance floor with smiling people. 
3. Students will cherry pick what to work on. Rarely staying long enough to learn anything really. 

So, what does a coach/teacher do in 2021?

1. Diagnostic Assessment: I will assess your prior musical experiences, musical goals, gear set-up, practice situation and more. In short, I get to know you so that I may tailor a program for you. Only an experienced teacher is qualified to do this. 
2. Plan: Using my knowledge and experience as an educator and considering my assessment I can suggest the appropriate strategies to move foreword. By putting them in some sort of logical order. And teach you how to practice. (For instance, we will learn the ergonomics of drum set up before stick tricks.) 
3. Monitor: Help you keep track of your progress. Answer your questions, encourage effort, cheerlead when you slide of course and help you celebrate and understand your successes.
4. Evaluate: Feedback is the breakfast of champions. Weekly feedback, kindly given, is what keeps us all moving foreword. Great athletes don't practice alone. Musicians don't either. On a personal note, I've had weekly coaching for the last 18 years in piano, music education, and for the last 11 years, drumming. I've found drumming coaches/teachers in the GTA, the USA, Italy, and Poland. This coaching continues online. 

​So, if you are getting frustrated with spinning your sticks while watching YouTube and not moving forward consider calling me.  I can help get you started.

David