A Musical Passion
Friday, March 16, 2012 at 4:27PM 
I have been teaching my nephew drums for the past two months now. Not only is this great bonding time with one of my favourite little dudes, but it's incredible to watch the little guy progress. Nolan is now a 7-year-old drummer. This year on January 28th Nolan received a full sized fusion drum kit for his birthday. The Sonor Force 505 is not a bad kit to have at all when you’re a man of his age; hell, it's not a bad kit for a man of my age. I watched Nolan start off by hitting the drums all over in no particular order as hard and as fast as he can, it’s been great. I can see it in his face, he cares. He looks just like me, the look of dedication, like your about to get into a fight with Muhammad Ali but nothing can stop you. Bring it. Hit me, because in the end, I'm going to be the one taking you out. You need this fight in you, it will push you to go further and never stop, how could you? Music is amazing because there is always something new to learn. I love that he loves smashing drums, just like me, his uncle Alex. Now, after just a handful of lessons I can see the progress so clearly.
It scares me; he's growing up so fast. It's not the easiest task to move all four limbs with different timing while staying in time. He can keep a beat going for two minutes. To me that is golden. Even though he seems to find it the longest two minutes of his life from me nagging, and telling him to start over if he messes up. The key point is he tries and he succeeds. This kid tries so hard that he tells me he is soar and tired by the end of our session. Once the session is done, he usually wants to go watch drumming videos directly after, that is if he doesn't have to practice his grade one spelling. The excitement he has seeing all these drummers and beats that are new to him is great, I too share this same excitement after 10 years of drumming. It's insane how nice it is to have such a young person in my life that shares the same "sport" I do. I have never had anyone to show me around the shells and cymbals of a set so it feels pretty good to be able to offer some assistance. Who knows, maybe he’ll be the next Buddy Rich.
Reader Comments (1)
What a great gift to have in your life - and your nephew is lucky to have you teaching him too! Loved reading about his dedication to drumming, and how you are encouraging him. If he's this keen at age 7, who knows what he'll be doing at 17. Maybe a real talent there!