A MUSCAL JOURNEY
I am a drummer, educator, and researcher whose career combines professional performance with teaching and academic research in music and music education. Since 2004, I have been a professor in the Music Education degree program at the Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar), in Brazil.
As a drummer, I perform in rock, jazz, and Brazilian music groups, working in concerts, live shows, and recording sessions. I am currently a member of Orquestra Rock, performing in concerts with artists such as Dado Villa-Lobos, Dinho Ouro Preto, Di Ferrero, Maria Gadú, Os Paralamas do Sucesso, Barão Vermelho, Blitz, Ira!, Skank, Supla, and Marcelo Nova. Since 2018, I have also performed in the show Highland Echoes, touring throughout the United States.
Over the course of my career, I have worked with a wide range of artists and ensembles, including Casa de Marimbondo, Marise Marra, Jennifer Licko, Marília Corrêa, Tribores, Paulo Aggio Trio, Härd:On, Das Fossem, Violectra, Yumi e os Sensonautas, U2 Cover, Leandro Bonfim e Banda B, Remo Pellegrini, Karmanguia, Queentet Jazz, and Scottish Link Pipe Band.
I began studying drums with Jayme Pladevall in 1985 and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Popular Music from the University of Campinas (Unicamp) in 1992. In 1996, I moved to New York, where I spent three years studying at Drummers Collective and taking lessons with Michael Lauren, Kim Plainfield, and several other teachers.
While in the United States, I began working with Hudson Music, taking part in educational DVD productions featuring prominent drummers such as Gregg Bissonette and Thomas Lang. I also conducted interviews for DVDs documenting festivals organized by Modern Drummer magazine, speaking with musicians including Steve Gadd, Dave Weckl, Stewart Copeland, and Steve Smith, among dozens of others. This collaboration continued until 2006.
My work as a performer has included appearances at major music and percussion festivals and events. I participated in three editions of Batuka! (2002, 2004, and 2009) and in the International Percussion Festival at the Tatuí Conservatory (2005), performing with the drum quartet Casa de Marimbondo and the group Tribores. With the trio Das Fossem, I played opening shows for Scorpions at Credicard Hall and Winger at Carioca Club in São Paulo in 2010. From 2006 to 2016, I also performed extensively at SESC and SESI venues throughout Brazil, mainly with Tribores and Marise Marra.
My work in musical theater includes performances as a drummer in Suburbano Coração (2003), by Chico Buarque and Naum Alves de Souza, and Cole Porter – Ele Nunca Disse que me Amava (2004), directed by Charles Möeller and Cláudio Botelho.
My professional experience also includes work in the 1990s with the group Violectra, performing at festivals and cultural events. Among these was a 1994 performance with the Campinas Symphony Orchestra, conducted by maestro Benito Juarez. During the same period, I toured Brazil with international dance music artists, performing in dozens of shows with acts such as La Bouche, Playahitty, Nevada, Venus, and Joy Salinas.
Alongside my career as a musician, I developed my academic work in music education. I earned a Master’s degree (2002) and a PhD (2010) from the School of Communications and Arts at the University of São Paulo (ECA/USP), conducting research in music education, technology, and distance education. When I began my master’s research in the late 1990s, the internet was still in its early stages of expansion, and research into its potential for music education was an emerging field.
I also worked as technical coordinator for Batera & Percussão magazine for two years and wrote dozens of articles for the publication, primarily about the educational DVD productions in which I participated in the United States.
I continue to perform as a drummer in a variety of projects and venues throughout the state of São Paulo, while also conducting research in percussion and music education.