Session Drummer/ Producer

Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

A: I will do my absolute best to deliver drum tracks that are properly recorded, sound great, and fit the music in the best possible way. My goal is that the drum parts I play elevate the song and create the vibe, groove and colors necessary for the music to really shine. It is always about the music FIRST. I draw on the experience I have from all the years of working as a professional musician to hopefully help the artist and the song reach the next level.

Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?

A: I am very proud of my own albums as a band leader, because I had to wear many hats (producer, writer, arranger, drummer, etc) and these experiences became very deep and emotional - I always try to make my albums as personal as I can, while telling the story I do want to tell. I am also particularly proud of my drumming work with Dom Salvador, Eddie Daniels, MOZIK, and more recently as producer, arranger and drummer for Sergio Pereira and Reza Khan's new releases.

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Working on my new album as a band-leader, and keeping busy with several remote recording and production projects.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: I love playing drums, always have! I love that through the drums, I meet so many artists from different cultures and different parts ofd the world, and we get to play music together. It's incredible.

Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A: 1)How to send out the music/audio references to me? All I really need is a version of the music with drums, and one without, both starting at 0.0. Click track and BPM info too. If the song has different tempos/time signatures, then definitely a click track set to them (or midi) will be super helpful as well. 2) How they preview the song before finalizing? I send out an mp3 version of the song with the drum take, and we discuss it. If revisions are necessary, I do them and send out another mp3 until we reach the goal for the track. Then I send all the individual WAV files of the final take. I can also send a stereo mix of the drums if the artist requests it. 3)What is my favorite style/music to play? Not sure I have one. As long as I am drumming, I usually extremely happy. :-)

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: I like to ask several questions about the song(s), lyrics and the general idea of the music, and what the artist wants to deliver. I ask about their style and ideas, and what they initially hear or imagine that the drum parts would be on the song. Some artists have a more solid idea, but some don't, and it's all totally ok. From there, I like to ask for audio references for sound/approach, and discuss further what I could add/create/collaborate on the project. It's a super fun part of the process, while getting to know the artists and their art.

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: I started playing percussion as early as I can remember, and was drumming on everything I could find. While growing up in Brazil, I kept playing music and joined several bands - but also kept myself active with some other interests as well. After finishing a computer science college degree, I decided to go into music full-time. I was awarded a scholarship to Berklee College of Music in Boston soon after, and upon completing my music degree a few years later I began to perform live and record extensively throughout the US and worldwide. It's been more than 30 years now since those first band rehearsals carrying my first drum set around in Brazil.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: I think it's a mix of the energy of my heavy-metal early days with the joy of improvisation, and the delicacy of the jazz and Brazilian jazz. Although I work hard on drum parts and specific details for every song I record/play, I tend to always look for improvisational magical moments whenever the music allows it.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: I am always concerned if what I am playing at any given moment is making the rest of the band sound better.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: For recording a song, I usually chart it if it's complicated, and listen to the demo/reference many times. I prepare my session file on my DAW with some markers to help me with visual cues, and then I go for a take.

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: Since the pandemic, it's been mostly live drums recorded remotely. I also arrange and write music, and I have been involved in a few projects as a producer. Of course, performing and touring too.