Spotlight on some of the youth drummers that will be at the next drum xchange...
Dane Tan
Dane has been active in the local music & drumming community for several years now, an avid attendee, contributor & committee member of Soft Drum Xchange Singapore programme. He juggles his time between different bands and teaching drums at Psalms Music School.
He was the winner of last year's Lamb Of God drummer competition, and took home a personally autographed Mapex Chris Adler Signature snare drum, a free ticket to watch Lamb Of God in Singapore, together with the chance to meet his drum hero, Chris himself!
Other than Chris, Dane also counts Aaron Spears and Benny Greb as his favourite drummers.
Catch Dane in action tomorrow evening at Stage Without Borders outside Wisma Atria!
Ritz
Teen drumming prodigy and the next upcoming local drumming sensation - Ritz!
Went to the prestigious Musicians Institute at the tender age of 15, and has performed in different venues in the USA, including, venues at the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, the Viper Room, BB Kings, Whiskey Agogo Club, The Key Club.
Not to be outdone by his own exploits in the US, he has also now been racketing up the hits on the local club circuits including Blu Jazz Cafe, Muddy Murphys, Clarke Quay, Ipanema, the La Salsa in Dempsey Hill.
Ritz has been honing his incredible chops, drawing upon his influences the likes of Vinnie Colauita, Teddy Campbell, the music of Earth Wind & Fire, the one and only Michael Jackson and other well-known hip hop and R&B artists.
The infectious groove and energy is something not to be missed!
Coming soon to a performance near you.
Melvin Tiong
Through his initial foray into drums in 2003, Melvin developed an instant love for producing and delivering addictive rhythm. His subsequent discovery of electro-house and related electronic dance genres was "an epiphany; with their virtually limitless sound palette and instant-hit basslines, how could one resist?" He has since then ventured into sound synthesis and digital music production, citing producers like Above & Beyond, Benny Blanco, and Mysto & Pizzi as his main influences.
His mileage is diverse and well-run. From playing drums with numerous bands during his school days, to mixing and editing music for his college's street dance group, to serving as Music Director for a fifty-strong SMU Samba Masala percussion group, and leading them to wow an international audience at Germany's samba festivals, he has been exposed to rhythms and genres of all kinds, always looking for new ways to blend the best of what he knows into crowd-winning arrangements.
Besides his musical interests, Melvin actively pursues Hip Hop dance, graphic design, and video production, enjoying the frequent creative overlap that accompanies these broad skillsets. He is also currently a psychology and marketing undergraduate at the Singapore Management University.
Together with Ritz, Melvin is looking forward to the next significant project - fusing analog percussion and digital electro, and delivering performances to be loved on many levels. Whether you're the discerning indie critic or the grey-haired aunty, be prepared to sit up, take notice, and bob to the beat.
Catch Melvin on Radio 98.7FM tomorrow morning at 10:45am, where he talks about himself and his music!!!
