Darren Ashford

Darren teaches Drums at BIMM Music Institute Birmingham. He started playing drums at the age of 11 and cut his teeth with the highly acclaimed National Youth Jazz Orchestra (NYJO) where he held the drum chair for 5 years. This gig led on to playing with the Andy Ross Orchestra of “Come Dancing” fame and then on to a 11-year stint with The Drifters (for the last seven years as musical director). During this period Darren was also the house drummer at the famous “Music Box” jam sessions held at the 10 Rooms in Piccadilly, London. This afforded him the opportunity to play with many of the leading artists in contemporary music such as Beverley Knight, Westlife, Will Young, Will Smith, Ja Rule, Lionel Ritchie, The Backstreet Boys and many more.

Darren's broad range of experience means that he is not only in demand as a player but also as an educator. Darren has also been a contributor to both of the UK’s top drum publications; Rhythm and Drummer magazine, covering topics such as drum-set ergonomics, odd time-signature playing, advanced techniques and more.

To this day, he continues to be an active session player and delivers numerous masterclasses at music schools and colleges throughout Europe, where he shares his knowledge, experience and passion for music and playing the drums. Darren also holds a PG cert qualification in higher education and is a fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA).

For more info check out: www.darrenashford.com