Brian Woodruff
Chair, Percussion | Co-Chair, Jazz Department
Drum Instructor
“Beyond passing on my love of music, I try give students a positive, one-on-one relationship with an adult figure who can perhaps fill some of the needs their parents can’t.”
Brian's earliest memories of music are hearing the drums at parades held at West Point near to his home in Newburgh, NY. He began taking drum lessons at age nine in public school and took part in the school orchestra, marching bands, jazz bands, and choirs throughout high school and college.
His musical taste evolved from 1970s classic rock to jazz and classical, and he believes that the Blue Note recordings of artists Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, and Joe Henderson are some of the greatest music ever made. His drumming has been influenced by a wide range of musical traditions, including Cuban son and mambo, New Orleans jazz, and Haitian kompa.
Brian has performed with Oscar Perez and Kuriko Tsugawa in the OKB Trio, and at venues including the Kennedy Center. Currently he plays with his own sextet and with Jeff Newell's New Trad Octet.