About Me:
My approach to teaching is made of two elements: listening and expressing. In order to play what you want to express, I believe you need to hear it first. Then you need to be able to play what you hear.

I believe each student deserves an individual lesson plan. I would be happy to provide practice materials selected according to each student's musical goal.

Styles:
Musical Theatre, Jazz, Rock, Blues, Pop, R&B, Hip Hop, Funk, Fusion, Latin

Subjects:
Harmony, Theory, Ear Training, Songwriting, Arranging, Orchestration, Jazz Music History, Rock Music History

Ages:
Pre-teen, Teenage, Adult

Availability:
All of Manhattan, Downtown, Midtown, Upper East Side, Upper West Side, East Village, Chelsea

Major Influences:
James Jameson, Jaco Pastorius, Paul Chambers

Experience:

• Faculty member at National Guitar Workshop, New Milford, CT, teaching drums, bands, music theory [1997 - 2004]
• Faculty member at National Guitar Workshop, Mclean, VA, teaching drums, bands, music theory [2007 - Present]
• Drum teacher at Roosevelt Island Youth Program, New York, NY [2004 - 2005]
• Translator/event coordinator for Jazz Workshop for children, Yamaguchi, Japan [2003 - 2006]

Education:

• Master of Art in Music (MA), The City College of New York, CUNY [2000]

Studied With:

• Joe Hunt [1992 - 1994]
• Jon Hazila [1991 - 1992]

Seminars and Workshops Attended:

• Berklee in Japan, Berklee College of Music [1990]

Awards:

• Percussion Department Award - Berklee College of Music, Boston, MA [1993]
• Cuccinello Percussion Award - Cuccinello Foundation [1992]

Recent Performances:

• Yuichi Hirakawa Jazz Group at Arthur's Tavern, New York, NY [February, 2008]
• Yuichi Hirakawa Jazz Group at Blue Note Jazz Club, New York, NY [June, 2005]

Scholarships:

• Uchida Foundation Scholarship, Tokyo, Japan [1991 - 1993]