Fast Hands, Fast Beats
Musician Tim Hetu has played the drums for much of his life. With an appreciation for a wide variety of genres, he has a vast knowledge of rhythm and percussion. On Friday, May 26 at 7 p.m., Hetu will be sharing his knowledge at his Fast Hands Drum Clinic at E.L. Music, 332 W. Boylston St.
Hetu had returned to Worcester at 3 a.m. the morning before he spoke with Worcester Magazine. His grind band, Eaten, had just wrapped up an 11-day tour and the previous evening was spent driving between Binghamton and New York, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, before finally arriving in Worcester. Hetu sat behind a kit in the drum room of E.L. Music, next to him was an electronic kit, where he teaches 15 students each week.
“I’m trying to show people a clear way that they can practice and achieve the things they want to learn,” Hetu said of his upcoming clinic. “A lot of people tend to think that amazing drummers or musicians in general have some kind of magical craft, that they’re just gifted and there’s no reason to it, but that’s not true at all. You can get better through practicing, and practicing methodically, and learning from others that have done those same things.”
Hetu has been giving drum lessons at the shop for two and a half years, beginning just after the store opened. Before offering lessons at E.L. Music, Hetu gave drummers independent lessons.
“I’ve given lessons on my own for years, generally with adults at my practice space or at my house,” he said. “When I was in high school band I would help teach the younger kids in elementary school coming up with snare drum and stuff. This is the first music store I’ve ever been at. Teaching adults on my own, my practice space is shared by three metal bands that like to get rowdy. It’s not a great place for teaching kids. This allows me to give lessons to kids that want to learn drums that wouldn’t otherwise have access to that.”
Working with younger students offers its own sort of satisfaction for Hetu, who discovered music through his father’s record and eight-track collection. He was attracted to the action of playing drums and began taking lessons following the third grade.
“I like when kids come in,” he said. “Kids naturally like hitting stuff and being rhythmic, like most kids, but then you see their enthusiasm grow as they learn to do things, and learn control to do things and what they do, and are playing along to songs they like,” he explained. “They never imagined how that could happen. I like seeing their enthusiasm and commitment grow.”
With his Fast Hands clinic, Hetu hopes to help drummers discover their potential through hand techniques, speed and stroke exercises, effective practice methods and overcoming common pitfalls. Those interested don’t need to bring anything, and the event should take about an hour.
“You’re never done,” said Hetu. “You’re never done learning. You constantly get out of it what you put into it and you’re constantly surprised by what you can learn. No one’s ever done practicing. It can always be better and you can always do different things with it. It’s the most exciting thing to me to work on stuff. See something you’re doing today that you worked on three months ago and it turns into something you didn’t think it would. It’s the discovery of it.”
The Fast Hands Drum Clinic will take place on Friday, May 26 at E.L. Music, 332 W. Boylston St., at 7 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. For more information on E.L. Music, head to Elmusicllc.com.