At Sidcot, we are incredibly fortunate to have such a talented and experienced team of music teachers. Together, they bring a remarkable range of professional performing, teaching, and musical experience to the School, covering a wide variety of instruments, styles, and traditions.
In our Meet the Music Teacher series, we take the opportunity to introduce some of the musicians who inspire and support our students every week. This week, we meet one of our drum teachers and discover how growing up with a love of music has led to an incredible career, from playing on records with Dua Lipa to touring the world:
Hi, my name is Garry Kroll, and I’m a drummer, session musician and teacher, and I’ve been playing drums for over 25 years.
I first started playing when I was 12. I was brought up by parents who loved music but didn’t play an instrument themselves, and from the very beginning I was encouraged to play along to songs, something I absolutely loved. I think this early experience shaped the way I approach music today. I was always more interested in playing, listening and feeling the music than simply learning notes from a page.
As I learned, my timing, feel, and confidence on the drum kit came naturally. Reading and understanding music notation, however, was a very different story! This became one of my biggest challenges at school and college, and it took a lot of work to develop those skills. I eventually got there, and achieving my Grade 8 was an important milestone. It ultimately helped me secure a place at London’s Drum Tech (the equivalent of BIMM today), where I studied for 3 years.
I started performing in talent shows and school assemblies at 14, and by 16 I had auditioned for and joined a 12-piece funk and soul band. Getting that gig really opened the door to the world of professional music. I suddenly found myself playing regularly on the pub, club and holiday-park circuit alongside musicians who were much older and more experienced than me.
I stayed with the band for five years and learned an enormous amount by playing in so many different situations, from weddings and private events to festivals, including Glastonbury. Those experiences taught me that being a good musician is about much more than just playing your instrument. It’s about listening, adapting, working as part of a team, and performing confidently in all sorts of environments.
After leaving the band, I moved to London to study and spent four years immersed in the music scene. I played in numerous bands, including running my own, and went through many auditions. Some of those auditions were more successful than others! I even auditioned to be the drummer for One Direction and James McCartney, Paul McCartney’s son.
Although I didn’t get every job I auditioned for, the experience was incredibly valuable. I learned a huge amount from the process and from the people I met along the way. During my time in London, I was also fortunate enough to play on recordings with artists including Mark Ronson, Katy B, Andrea Bocelli, Dua Lipa and Ed Sheeran. Perhaps just as importantly, I met many musicians and industry professionals who I still work with today. Moving to London and becoming part of that music scene was an invaluable experience and taught me a huge amount about being a working musician.
After London, I moved back to Somerset and began playing regularly at Mama Stones in Exeter, Joss Stone’s music venue. This introduced me to a fantastic pool of musicians, many of whom I still perform with today. I also began teaching privately before taking on teaching roles at various schools across Somerset.
I’ve now been teaching for around 20 years, and one of the things I love most about it is seeing young musicians develop their own identity and confidence. I particularly enjoy working with pupils who genuinely love music, old and new, and who are self-motivated and open-minded. I think those qualities are just as important as natural ability when learning an instrument.
Over the years, I’ve watched many of my pupils grow into incredible musicians and begin their own touring and recording careers. I still try to get along to their gigs whenever I can, and I enjoy continuing to support them as they develop, whether that’s helping with performance anxiety, technique, preparation for auditions, or simply being someone they can talk to about the challenges that can come with being a musician, particularly when touring.
I mainly play rock, pop, Americana and blues, but my heart will always lie with funk, jazz and 1960s music. What I particularly love about the drums is their combination of feel, energy and freedom. A great drummer can completely change the way a song feels, and I love the fact that there is always more to learn, whether it’s about technique, groove, dynamics, listening or simply finding the right thing to play at the right moment.
Over the past 25 years, I’ve performed with many different artists in venues and countries around the world. I’m currently working as a session musician for singer-songwriter Elles Bailey, as well as performing with artists including Adam Sweet and Demi Marriner. I also regularly work with artists such as Anna Sheard, Hollie Rogers, True Strays and Alex Hart, covering everything from folk and trip-hop to pop, blues and Americana.
I’m still ambitious about where music might take me next and, in some ways, I feel like I’m only just getting started. There are still venues and experiences on my wish list; I’d love to play the Royal Albert Hall, the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury and Red Rocks, and I’d love to record at Abbey Road Studios.
I’m also really excited to be starting my teaching journey at Sidcot. Alongside teaching here, I’m currently building a recording and practice studio in my back garden in Somerset. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for years, and I’m incredibly excited to soon have a space where I can record, practise and teach drums from home.
This October I’ll be performing and touring with Adam Sweet, and in December I’ll be back on the road around the UK with Demi Marriner, alongside shows with several other fantastic artists.
I’m really looking forward to bringing my experience as a working musician into the classroom and helping students discover what makes playing music so rewarding. For me, learning an instrument has never been just about getting the notes right; it’s about finding your own voice, building confidence, working with other people, and, most importantly, enjoying making music.