DRUM HOUSE
VYOMA SHAH
A Drummer’s Paradise
Drummers in India, an incredible
opportunity to swiftly enhance your
skills has finally come knocking.
Here’s introducing Drum House,
a five-day immersive experience
dedicated to solely practising and
learning the drums in peaceful
locations away from the city.
A first of its kind in India, Drum
House is an initiative by Karun
Kannampilly, an established drummer
and music educator in the country.
He currently plays drums for The
Koniac Net, percussion for Mukti
Funk and collaborates with prominent
artists like Raghav Meattle, Kamakshi
Khanna and Bhrigu Sahni. Karun
was part of the core teaching faculty
at The True School of Music for four
years and has now decided to pursue
his own educational practice.
How Drum House came into existence
In 2011, Karun attended a drum
camp in California, hosted by
one of his idols, Mike Johnston.
The camp gave him a whole new
perspective on the instrument and
right then, he knew that he had to
bring that experience to India.
Drum House began in 2017. While
teaching at the True School,
Karun wanted to build a dedicated
practise program that focused on
the key aspects of drumming - time,
independence, improvisation and
groove - “I asked a few drummer
friends if they wanted to collaborate
on the concept and we packed our
kits, drove to my house in Goa and
Drum House 1.0 was born.” Their
first public camp for beginners was
held in December 2018 in Lavasa
and the second one in Karjat at The
Brook at Khanna’s farm, with Dhir
Mody, an exceptional drummer,
educator and long-time friend joining
him as his business partner.
What each day entails
Day one is setup and orientation.
The next four days have structured
sessions, with days four and five also
including lessons on recording. The
day starts with a healthy breakfast
at 9am, followed by two group
sessions focused on specific aspects of
drumming. After a quick lunch break,
there’s another group session centered
around learning well-known and
challenging grooves across different
styles. The last session of the day is
a mix of Q&A and discussions based
on a special interest topic picked by
the instructor. After all the sessions
end, campers spend the evening
enjoying the beautiful surroundings
of the carefully curated locations
at which the camps are hosted.
Who’s eligible and what campers can expect
If you can play an elementary groove
and can play a song from start to end
you’re eligible! Campers get a welcome
kit which includes a printed schedule,
a syllabus book, camp ID tags, a
practise pad and a pair of earplugs.
They have access to high end gear,
from leading drum companies like
Sonor, Gretch, Mapex, Zildjian, Meinl
and Dream. “Our aim is to assemble
a drum paradise where campers are
free to experiment with different
setups and sounds,” said Karun.
What campers have to say
Rohan Joshi, one of the campers
from the first public Drum House
said, “Drum House was the perfect
mix of challenging and relaxing.
There were times when that drum kit
was my worst enemy, but then after
hours of trying to nail down one basic
thing, there’d be that breakthrough
and that made it worth it. The
drum kit was my friend again.”
Pranay Chowdhary, another attendee
said, “It was definitely more than
I expected it to be, I was very
impressed with the structure and
professionalism with which Karun
conducted it. We have all upgraded
our skill level by a few notches for
sure. I can’t wait to go back!”
While currently the camps are for
beginners and lower intermediate
students, Drum house eventually
plans to cater to students at all levels.
“We are working on collaborations
with prominent international
teachers and looking to tie up
with brands such as Harman and
Bajaao to give our campers the
best experience,” said Karun.
If you’re a drummer, you do not
want to miss this! Keep a look
out for their upcoming camps.
The
Score Magazine
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