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Micah McClain

Drummer | Educator

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Splash

Micah McClain

Drummer | Educator

lesson information

StorytiMe

I have worked with drum set students of all ages for 32 years, and 2024 marks my 20th year of teaching music in the classroom. I constructed my first drum set at age five from a collection of tupperware bowls and pan lids. Family inspiration, a strong school music program, and generous mentorship from Shawn Pelton, Kenwood Dennard, and Kenny Aronoff paved the way for early performances with jazz luminaries David Baker, Dave Liebman, James Moody, and Red Rodney. I attended Indiana University on a jazz studies scholarship and later landed in Chicago where I immersed myself in the rich jazz, funk, and soul traditions that still survive there. I have performed music on six continents, and studied West African drumming and dance in Ghana, North Indian classical music, and royal Ugandan court music. I am a certified in the Orff Schulwerk approach to teaching music and movement. I have lived in the San Francisco Bay area since 2004 and currently teach drum set and music and movement classes at East Bay Montessori in El Cerrito and my home studio in Oakland. I also work as a freelance drummer. My current projects include My 3 Sons, Andre Cruz & Chris Lujan, and the Pentatonics.