Things have changed a lot over the last 10 years or so. Internet speeds have massively increased, online video has completely taken over from traditional media and the population as a whole has become much more accustomed to learning new skills through online platforms. I’m delighted to welcome you to Drum101.com – a sister site of Beginner Drums delivering online drum lessons focused entirely at beginner level.
Until now, if you wanted online drum lessons from a UK teacher you were almost completely out of luck – you can count the options on one hand. There’s a handful of American and Canadian courses such as Stephens Drum Shed, 180 Drums and Drumeo but a lot of these are better suited to more advanced players. If you’re just starting out, never picked up a pair of sticks before and genuinely don’t know where to start, where do you go?
Well hopefully Drum101.com is the site for you. Drum 101 has been in the making for almost 7 years and is based on thousands of hours of professional drum teaching experience. Best of all, much like this site, it’s specifically aimed at absolute beginners on the drum kit. It’s open to a worldwide audience, all provided from a UK-based teacher.
I’m Andy MacLellan (Andy Mac) and I’ll be your drum teacher on this course. I’ve played the drums for most of my life – well over 30 years. In that time I’ve conducted thousands of professional face-to-face lessons for my wonderful students. Sadly this had to stop when a family member fell ill a few years ago – a very difficult decision. I always loved the idea of starting to teach again but through a more modern medium. So I recorded everything I would teach to students (this took a LONG time) and turned it in to an online course just for beginners!
Drums is an instrument you have to be passionate about and I guess spending 7 years recording videos on the off-chance that someone watches them illustrates this passion. The course is now open for a limited initial membership. The beginner level course can be completed in as little as 1 month. You can progress through the course material entirely at your own pace – you even get a certificate at the end of it!
The course is suitable for all ages – 8 to 80+. As there’s quite a lot of reading to do younger students will need some support from their parents. The beginner level course consists of 34 lessons spread over 5 modules covering everything from how to hold a pair of drum sticks through to setting up your kit, playing your first beat and reading drum music. It’s designed to give you good foundations on which to develop your own playing. You can have a look at the full course contents here.