JOHN ARRUCCI
Educational Programs
Assemblies
The History Of The Drum Set & Jazz
Workshops
The Art Of Improvisation: The Guided Drum Circle
West African Drumming Workshop
Other programs
Percussion Around The World
The “Percussion Around The World “ assembly celebrates the rich diversity of percussion traditions from around the world. I demonstrate and discuss instruments from Brazil, Cuba, Nigeria, Zimbabwe and Trinidad. Instruments presented include but are not limited to: Berimbau, Steel Pan, Cuica, Shekere, Conga and Mbira. We see how percussion is used to add color and rhythmic interest to music. History, Social Studies, Acoustics, an appreciation of Cultural Diversity and Character Development are addressed in this program.
Music Of The Rainforest
Music of the Rainforest: a real-time demonstration of how percussion can be used to evoke images and sounds of nature. The students will witness the creative process.
The History of the Drum Set & jazz
The History and evolution of the Drum Set: an American invention alongside another American invention, Jazz. I play the drum set along with pre-recorded tracks and describe and demonstrate how the Drum set components and role in the ensemble changed through Work songs, Dixieland, Swing, bebop, modern jazz and world music influences. Although it sounds sophisticated, it is actually very accessible for young people, especially because the drumming is exciting and they get to see how things work. There are a lot of cultural influences in the drum set's origins including marching band music, Blues, Chinese instruments and of course, African Rhythms.
Music on recyclables
Music on Recyclables: A program presenting the unlimited potential for all things to be used to make music as well as the many traditional percussion instruments from around the world which were adapted from utilitarian objects. Music played on hanging flower pots, metal tubes, canister shakers, etc.
The Art Of Improvisation: The Guided Drum Circle
The Art of Improvisation: The Guided Drum Circle serves as a wonderful opportunity for children of all ages to explore their creativity and imagination in an ensemble setting. Through the fun of spontaneous music making, participants develop teamwork. empathy, confidence and listening skills (all important for character education). As we embark on a series of musical journeys, players are made aware of a multitude of ingredients that go into a musical composition such as form, meter, tempo, dynamics, timbre, rhythmic variation and many others. I provide instruments and we can integrate any instruments that you may have at your school. The ideal group size for each class is 30 students or less. An important feature of the experience is the listening to each other and responding. Students experience an appreciation and respect for the unique contributions that they and their classmates make. In addition, improvisation makes us more flexible in all the we do and gives us confidence in our ability to take on challenges. Students develop a wealth of devices for generating new strategies.
samba drumming workshop
Brazilian Samba drumming Workshops: Students will learn to play together on Agogo Bells, Tamborim, Ganza, and Reco-reco. I provide the heartbeat pulse of the Surdo drum. Students experience the joy of ensemble music making while learning the importance of teamwork, responsibility and listening. The Samba Drumming Workshops would work best with smaller groups (30-60 students) in each class.
west african drumming workshop
West African Drumming Workshop: A workshop that introduces technique for playing Djembe as well as accompanimental drums ( Kenkeni, Sangban, Dundumba). Traditional repertoire is played. Some drums are provided. This program works well for grades 5-12.
percussionist master classes
Available Percussionist Master classes:
• Afro-Cuban Drumming-Conga technique and introduction to repertoire
• Afro- Brazilian percussion- including an introduction to playing Berimbau and Pandeiro.
• Introduction to Tabla (North Indian Drumming)
• Bongo technique and introduction to repertoire
• 4 mallet technique for Marimba and Vibraphone.
• Vibraphone technique- dampening and pedaling.
• Jazz improvisation for Vibes
• Shekere master class
• Drum set master class.
• World rhythms as applied to the drum set.
• Snare drum technique and rudiments.
• Timpani essentials - tuning, technique, posture, dampening, mallet choices.
• Orchestral percussion: Triangle, Tambourine, Cymbals
• Care and maintenance of percussion instruments
ensemble coaching
Available Ensemble Coaching classes:
• Percussion Ensemble Coaching
• Jazz Ensemble Coaching
music master classes
Available Music Master Classes:
• Composition Primer
• Rhythmic Training
• Improvisation