i'm rob.
10 years ago, i was trying to figure out what to do after high school, but now i play percussion with the greatest orchestra on earth: the metropolitan opera orchestra. before that, i studied at juilliard and i was a fellow in the new world symphony. i consider myself to be unbelievably lucky.
my story.
ever since i can remember, i've been obsessive. whether it was about collecting elvis stamps (what?), creating giant domino rally constructions and then knocking them over (omg), or playing diablo ii for more than a year (legit), i've always approached something all-or-nothing.
when i found music, i knew that i had found something to obsess over forever without getting bored. so, in high school, i threw myself in percussion, music, and auditions, and i never looked back.
why did i start a blog?
as i traveled along my percussion journey, from naïve high schooler to rookie met orchestra member (where i'm currently a 4-year percussionist), i always found myself hungry for information. if i was playing a tambourine excerpt, i wanted to know a thousand different ways to play it, who plays it each way, and a thousand more ways i could practice it.
before i got my job at the met, i failed my way through years of unsuccessful auditions and rejected applications.
my goal with this blog is to reach keen and motivated musicians like yourselves and help you get to where you're going quicker and smarter than i did.
so, how should you start?
the first thing you can do is tell me if you're here to learn about percussion or auditions. i have two separate communities: auditionhacker and percusionhacker. there's a super useful giveaway for either one, or you can get both! you'll also be connected with me through my newsletter.
show me some other stuff!
ok! you asked for it. here are some of the most popular things i've written. they range from audition-related things to my crazy and obscure album project, delécluse: douze études for snare drum.
what to do if you get rejected from every summer festival
the complete guide to self recording (part 1)
delécluse: douze études for snare drum and interview with jacques delécluse
released on october 26, 2014, delécluse: douze études for snare drum celebrates the 50th anniversary and the first-ever recording of snare drum's most influential and elaborate composition. i also traveled to hyéres, france to conduct an in-depth interview with mr. delécluse, and i asked him just about every question i could think of about his amazing works.
click here to go watch my cd/album, delécluse, douze études for snare drum
click here to read my in-depth interview with jacques delécluse himself
i'm nicole.
hello!! my name is nicole and i’m here to help rob with bringing you new content!
i do a little bit of organizing on the daily so rob can put all his energy in getting back to you with his thoughts, new videos and blog posts - all of which are heavily influenced by all of your content wishes. so dream big about what you’d like to see rob do…and then please share ‘em with us!
my story.
i grew up in miami until my senior year of high school, which i spent at interlochen arts academy. from there i attended university of michigan for my undergrad where i studied in both the percussion and jazz departments.
now i live in new york. i’m a member of mobius percussion and tour with anna burch. i play in various folk, electronic, improvised and indie bands. i co-founded and co-direct a local all arts festival called threads, and i love making any sort of pieces with friends.
what i love most are magical sentences like, “it’s hard to be ahead of people if you’re not already better than them, but it’s not hard to work harder than them.” (-rob) i’m thankful to be a part of this team that believes in this kind of hard work.
i’m aj.
i sort through the huge volume of emails we send and receive, keep up with the auditionhacker social media channels, and help the team with administrative tasks to keep all of courses up and running.
about me.
i’m also a drummer! i grew up in phoenix, went to college at the university of north texas, then did my master’s at the university of michigan. now i live in alabama where i teach percussion at the university of montevallo and make music with two bands, rude & true and wave the ocean. i met rob in 2015 in south africa at a chamber music festival and we’ve stayed in touch ever since. his attitude, approach, and practical techniques for self-improvement have helped me find a clearer vision of the road to success in what i do as a musician. i think rob is the man and i’m positive that you’ll think so too.