Lessons

Trent’s drumming journey began at age 12 when he got his first drum kit. He was surrounded by music his whole life growing up watching his father play in bands; music became a lifelong passion. After receiving a provincial and district scholarship, he continued his instrument studies by attending Capilano University for two years. Trent has been teaching drums professionally since 2016 and has learned the importance of patience when guiding a new generation. He can accommodate all ages/skill levels and many styles of music and wants to create a community by sharing his experience with the students. Availability:  Monday, Tuesday@ Commercial Drive

Joy Mullen, aka Joy On Drums, has been playing the drum kit for over 35 years. After graduating from the Contemporary Music and Technology program at Selkirk College, she worked professionally full time as a touring, recording drummer. She has performed at many festivals across Canada, US and Europe.including: Winnipeg Folk Festival, Vancouver Folk Festival, Aboriginal People’s Choice Awards, Dawson City Music Fest, and The National Centre for Truth And Reconciliation and has also been featured on soundtracks for CBC, APTN, and Mazinaw Rock Productions theatre company. Her local involvement includes City of Vancouver Artist Residency, Girls Rock Camp Vancouver, Music For Change, The Jazz Cellar and was the Artistic Director for The WISE Hall, and booking agent for The Waldorf Hotel and Brief Encounters. She has been teaching at Rufus Drum Shop since 2015 and her teaching style offers a low barrier approach that makes drumming accessible to beginners of all ages. Her lessons include music theory, 4 limbed coordination, multi-genre beats, songs, stick technique and rudiments
Availability: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday @ West 10th. Friday @ Commercial Drive

At the age of 10 drum’s entered Jay’s life and he found his passion and purpose from that moment on. Jay studied privately with some of the lower mainlands esteemed teachers and started playing Vancouver night clubs at 15 years old. He has been fortunate enough to have been selected as an in-house studio drummer for a Juno winning & Grammy nominated producer. He has secured resident gigs amassing him over 1200+ nights of live performance. Also no stranger to the road, Jay has played all of Canada’s biggest venues, as well as the smallest ones.
Jay enjoys teaching students drumming skills they will use to play along to their favourite songs and/or use in a band setting. With 15 years of teaching experience Jay likes to provide a comfortable environment for students to explore their own creativity and develop their own identity on the drum set in hopes that they can bring confidence and conviction to their playing!
Availability: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday @ West 10th

Having studied under international session musician and drum tech Jay Deachman for over a decade, as well as graduating in Recording and Sound Design from the late Columbia Academy in 2010, Sterling has been making his presence known in Vancouver’s Metal scene as a drummer to definitely watch. Sterling has been known for his technical but creative playing and innate well roundedness within Heavy Music and beyond, has played and toured in numerous small groups in several different genres around the lower mainland as well as opened for bigger acts such as Jinjer. He takes a technique based approach to his teaching to ensure every student, regardless of age, walks away with the tools to create their success in any capacity.
Availability: Monday, Tuesdays, Saturday @ West 10th. Thursdays, Fridays, Sundays @ Commercial Drive

Tristan began his teaching career in 2004 in Regina SK, teaching varying ages, and skill levels. In 2014, he moved to Vancouver and started teaching for Rufus Drum Shop when they first opened in 2015. Tristan remains one of the shop’s most popular instructors.
Tristan’s performing career has brought him to every corner of Canada, the U.S, and Europe. He has played with artists like Cindy Wilson of the B-52s, and played alongside bands like Canadian punk rock legends Propaghandi.
Tristan is a great choice for any age group or skill level. His passion for music rubs off on whoever he’s teaching, and he makes learning drums a truly fun, enjoyable experience.
Availability: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday@ West 10th. Friday, Saturday @ Commercial Drive.

Alexander is a lifetime Vancouver resident and has been playing drums for over a decade. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the Berklee College of Music, a school from which he received a scholarship to attend. During his studies, he was accepted into the prestigious Berklee Global Jazz Institute. He has had the privilege of studying with world-class musicians including Danilo Pérez, Joe Lovano, Ian Froman, Dave Liebman, Billy Kilson, John Patitucci, Ralph Peterson Jr, and John Hazilla.
As a teacher, Alexander believes it is paramount to create an adaptable learning environment and has something to offer learners of all ages, experience levels, and learning styles. Every student is unique, and so lessons will be personalized based on each individual student’s goals and interests. No matter what his student’s musical goals may be, he strives to make the learning process fun and pass the joy that he gets from playing music on to them.
Availability: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday @ Commercial Drive. Saturday @ West 10th

While Todd Stewart’s drumming expertise spans a wide range of musical genres and styles, he is primarily known for working within Vancouver’s Jazz scene as a sideman for a wide range of artists, including multiple Juno award-winner, Brad Turner (Metalwood, Seamus Blake) and Chris Davis (Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, Jon Batiste). Todd graduated from Capilano University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Jazz Studies in April 2021 and in Fall 2019 he was awarded the Lou Williamson Memorial Scholarship Fund, which is awarded to one drummer on a yearly basis.
In his teaching, Todd focuses on setting his students up with a positive and enriching relationship with music, referring to his core values of patience, perceptiveness, empathy, discipline and improvisation. He stresses equally the importance of developing proper hand technique and rhythmic fluency, as well as the freedom to explore expressive sound-making, while tapping into his knowledge of all genres of music to find songs that excite his students.
Availability:  Friday @ West 10th.

Leslie’s passion for drumming started when he was 15, his dedication brought him from a career as an Arborist in Hong Kong back to his birthplace, Canada, where he studied Contemporary Music and Technology at Selkirk College. This extensive education encompassed Music Production and Composition, where he was privileged to receive the tutelage of Steven Parish, Mike Rud, David Restivo, Larnell Lewis, Greg Wells, and many more elite musicians.
Currently, he is the lead drummer in the New Westminster Jazz Band, working on several projects, and has collaborated with a diverse genre of artists, performing across Canada and Hong Kong. Leslie strives to create a nurturing and non-judgemental environment so students can shine their brightest. His lessons are tailored to students’ individual needs and interests. His compassion and patience mean that age is no barrier. He has taught students as young as 2 years old. It’s never too early; or too late. Whether you communicate in English, Cantonese or Mandarin, he is here to guide you through your music journey.
Availability: Friday @ West 10th.

Michael Simpsonelli is a drummer, guitarist, composer, producer, sound designer, educator, videographer, and immersive 3D music experience designer. He has been a music educator for over 20 years, and is currently moving into his 3rd year at Rufus Drum Shop. Highly experienced as both studio and live session player, Michael has worked at countless recording studios, venues, and music festivals. One of his strongest assets is his musical diversity – he is comfortable performing and teaching a wide variety of genres, such as Rock, Jazz, Afro-Cuban, Brazilian, Metal, Punk, Blues, and Country. Michael believes that learning music should always be fun, and fills the silence between drum bashings at his lessons, with dad jokes. He likes to get to know his students well, and brings out the best in them, both musically and personally.
Availability: Saturday @ Commercial Drive

Karli Macintosh has been playing drums for over 20 years. After attending Selkirk College’s contemporary music and technology program in 2008/09, she relocated to Vancouver from Nelson BC. Since then she has toured, played multiple festivals, and recorded several records. Her teaching journey started 10 years ago when she, along with her band mates, began teaching rock camps/workshops instructing both kids and adults. She currently plays drums and sings in her band Space Queen, and hosts rock camps at the Carnegie centre on the down town east side.
Availability: Tuesday, Wednesday @ Commercial Drive

Iris Yakymyshyn has been studying drums since she started lessons at 5 five years old. She had the opportunity to study at MacEwan University, where she was mentored by the legendary Alberta jazz drummers Brian Thurgood and Thom Bennett. Her drumming takes inspiration from pocket icons like Questlove and jazz giants like JD Beck and Roy Haynes. She can be seen frequently drumming around Vancouver with queer artists like Dust Cwaine and Belle Tower.
Her teaching philosophy centers on getting the fundamentals right while having as much fun as possible. She has years of experience teaching from toddlers to adults, and can teach a wide range of skill levels. Whether it’s your first lesson or you’ve been playing for 10 years, Iris is thrilled to teach you wherever you’re at. She also has experience teaching children with developmental disabilities like autism and down syndrome. With Iris, every lesson is engaging and fun.
Availability: Fridays @ West 10th and Wednesday, Saturdays @ Commercial Drive