Zeben
Dominic Bonnaire
Cobus Potgieter
Kristen Gleeson-Prata
Kristen is a Los Angeles-based drummer, percussionist, writer, and educator originally from Cleveland, Ohio. She has a bachelors degree in Drumset Performance from Berklee College of Music and a masters degree in World Percussion from California Institute of the Arts.
She has studied drumset with John “JR” Robinson, Chris Coleman, Aaron Sterling, Kenny Aronoff, John Blackwell, Terri Lyne Carrington, Kim Plainfield, Jamey Haddad, Bill Ransom, Steve Wilkes, and Dave DiCenso, and world percussion with Randy Gloss, Andrew Grueschow, Yeko Ladzekpo-Cole, Joe Galeota, Jamey Haddad, Marcus Santos, and Eitetsu Hayashi.
She has toured and recorded extensively with BØRNS, as well as worked with CAM, Scary Pockets, Trixie Mattell, ELLA VOS, Mike Taylor, LPX, Wilder Woods, Total Brutal, and more. She has performance credit on platinum-selling single “Electric Love” and gold-selling album “Dopamine” (BØRNS), has contributed drum samples and live loops to Output software Arcade, appeared on the TV show “School of Rock”, and was featured alongside Sheila E., Stewart Copeland, Kenny Aronoff and Evelyn Glennie in Hunger Relief International’s 2018 campaign. She was featured in Modern Drummer in 2017 and was nominated in the 2018 Modern Drummer Readers Poll in the “Up and Coming” category. She is known for her impeccable time, feel-good pocket, powerful yet tasteful touch, stylistic versatility, and bright personality.
Her playing was recently featured on the ABC show “A Million Little Things” and in the score of the Netflix show “Uncoupled”. She developed the curriculum for “Groove Theory” and “Arrangement” courses at ICON Collective College of Music, has taught African Drumming at AMDA-LA, is trained as a drum circle facilitator by Arthur Hull and Christine Stevens, and has an extensive private student roster. She is endorsed by Tama drums, Paiste cymbals, Vic Firth drumsticks and Remo drumheads and percussion and writes for Modern Drummer and Tom Tom magazines.
Kristen is passionate about providing outreach to women and girls in the music industry. She is a regular volunteer at Rock and Roll Camp for Girls LA, created the femme community group “Femme Frequency” at ICON Collective College of Music, and is a judge for the Hit Like A Girl drumming contest. She also spearheaded a campaign to send online lesson memberships, drumsticks, and drumheads to the displaced Ukrainian drummers who competed in the contest in 2022.
Notable TV appearances: The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, Late Night with Seth Meyers, CONAN, The Late Late Show with James Corden, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and Last Call with Carson Daly
Notable festivals and venues: Walt Disney Concert Hall, Coachella Festival, Lollapalooza Festival, Falls Festival, Reading and Leeds Festivals, Outside Lands Festival, ACL, PASIC, Greek Theater LA, Hollywood Bowl, Radio City Music Hall, and Amoeba Records
Samantha Lubin
Samantha Lubin is a busy Drummer, Percussionist and Drum Teacher based in North London, UK. Samantha’s main gig currently is playing percussion with various artists and bands. She most recently performed at the World Cup in Qatar and performs internationally on a regular basis as a session percussionist.
Samantha trained at Paul McCartney’s school, LIPA and graduated with a BA (HONS) Degree in Music. Prior to her degree she studied on the Diploma of Popular Music and Sound Technology again at LIPA. Upon Graduating, Samantha was awarded with the Zildjian Prize which is presented annually to one drummer every year in recognition of their hard work and dedication to their instrument.
Samantha’s original band “BABYTEETH” was part of the ISAWITFIRST music campaign and was the main support act for Adam Ant at The Roundhouse in Camden. Festivals they have played at include Kendal Calling, Neighbourhood Festival and Live at Leeds.
In 2022 Samantha was in the final 25 drummers in her age category in the Hit Like A Girl Contest and she came 2nd in the UK Territory. She is currently working on HLAG’s sister project, “Drumming Connects Us”, as the talent co-ordinator. Samantha is currently endorsed by London Drum Stick Company and Primas Custom Drums, specifically for snare drums. She also has affiliations with TunerFishLugLocks, Moises.ai and PaulEDrums.
Jason Gianni
Drummer/Author Jason Gianni is an instructor at the prestigious Drummers Collective in NYC and an adjunct instructor at the New School in NYC and the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. He holds a Master of Music degree from Pennsylvania State University, a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Delaware (both in Percussion Performance) as well as a Jazz minor degree.
A session drummer for countless television and radio commercials, he is most known for being the drummer for the theme song for the popular cartoon, ‘Spongebob Squarepants’ He is the co-author of the popular drum book entitled ‘The Drummers Bible‘ and is the featured drummer on the 2008 Hudson Music DVD called ‘Set Up, Tune and Play Your Drums.’
Jason was also the back up drummer for the Trans-Siberian Orchestra and is a guest artist on their popular platinum selling CD entitled, ‘Night Castle.’ He was a regular sub for drummer Mike Portnoy for progressive artist, Neal Morse, he had been an active drummer for the Broadway & touring hit musicals ‘Rock of Ages,’ ‘Kinky Boots,’ ‘Americano,’ and ‘Little Shop of Horrors,’ is the drummer for the Mark Wood Band (original violinist of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra) and was the house band drummer for the Hispanic version of the TV show ‘The Voice’ entitled, ‘La Voz, Kids‘ on the Telemundo network.
In recent years, Jason has toured with the Ed Palermo Big Band, Marc Martel & the Ultimate Queen Celebration, Rebel Rebel: The Many Lives of David Bowie, The Royal Scam: Tribute to Steely Dan and Rubix Kube: NYC 80s Tribute. As a clinician, Jason has performed & taught classes throughout Italy, Switzerland, China, in Spain at the La Rioja Drum Festival, and was a featured performer at both PASIC and Philly DrumPhest.
Carlo Salvaterra
Carlo Salvaterra is an Italian drum educator. He has been teaching for twenty years in several music schools in the north of Italy and now he’s teaching in MusicaBlu Bolzano in all levels of Drum Education.
Carlo was attracted to teaching since he was a teenager. That’s why he decided to pursue his dream of becoming one of the world’s top drum educators. He studied with Kim Plainfield, Bruce Becker, Claus Hessler and Dom Famularo as well as with leading Italian instructors Walter Calloni and Giorgio Zanier. In addition to attending The Collective in New York City, he received degrees from the Music Conservatory in Trento and C.P.M. in Milan.
He has played over 700 concerts in Europe and South America with an Italian-pop cover band and also has several projects for teaching music to students with educational special needs.
Carlo is an active member of SEN, the Sabian Education Network.
Charlotte van Geel
My name is Charlotte van Geel. I am 29 years old and I’m a professional drummer and teacher in The Netherlands for several years now. I started drumming at the age of 12 and I’ve played in bands ever since. I studied drums and after that I built a studio in a big old trailer. This is my own drumschool, @theyellowdrumstudio, and practice place.
My main band is the all female band SHE! but I do session gigs sometimes, as well.
I look forward to seeing all the talented drummers in the Hit Like A Girl contest!
Ciara Chinniah
Ciara Chinniah is a British Drummer and Educator from Essex in the UK. With a love of Odd Time signatures, Ciara has been described as a Pop/Rock drummer with a progressive edge.
Upon graduating from the ACM, Ciara played many theatre shows and performed in bands across the UK, Europe and America. She then went on to study intensively at LAMA in Los Angeles under Ralph Humphrey and Joe Porcaro. Upon returning to the UK, she studied with the great Jazz drummer Bob Armstrong.
Ciara currently has a busy schedule, teaching and recording from her home studio in Essex. She is the co-host of the Podcast ‘Drum Education Live’ and ‘Drummer Mamas’ a podcast opening up the conversation about juggling parenthood and a career in drums.
Ciara also plays for Electro Pop duo The Penelopes who regularly gig in Paris and London whilst she explores her love of odd meters with her band Red Monster and on her social media.
Martina Barakoska
Martina Barakoska is a drummer and musician who, in her considerably short career, has gained notable achievements. Deep and thoughtful yet energetic and playful, her style reflects her love of modern music and her fascination with the power of the drums. Throughout the years, she has maintained continuous growth and success preaching individuality, quality and persistency.
Winning an award for the best drummer at “T’k Tak” drum competition when she was only 17 was followed by many major music projects. She is quite active in the music scene in North Macedonia and the Balkans having played with Duper, Vladimir Chetkar, Luboyna, Skopje Brass Quintet, Sashko Kostov, Pijan Slavej, Dina Jashari, Funk Shui, DragiIvanov and other notable artists. In 2019 she toured Europe as part of an audio-visual project called Con-Front.
In 2021 she released her first solo album “Weird Fishes” and, following its success, played her first Drum Festival at Alteisa Drumfest, which took place in Zamora, Spain. She also played at Skopje DrumFest and Prvo Pa Zensko as a Solo Artist.
As of now, she is trying to leave her mark, both, online and offline, and empower others to do what they love despite the stereotypes with her project, “Martina Barakoska”.
Kelli Rae Tubbs
A working drummer and percussionist for more than three decades, Kelli Rae Tubbs‘ resume spans the musical spectrum, covering jazz, pop, country, bluegrass, drum corps, brass band, and children’s music. From 2017 to 2020, she served as the house percussionist at the Smoky Mountain Opry in Pigeon Forge, TN. She was featured in DRUM! Magazine.
Over the last decade, Kelli has established a formidable “second” career as a collector, researcher, and clinician. She has presented on the preservation and restoration of antique drums as well as historical drumming methods at the Chicago Drum Show, the Delaware Drum Show, and the Percussive Arts Society International Convention. Currently, she is writing a book with the noted drummer, author, and educator Daniel Glass, entitled “The Postcard Project: A Snapshot of Drumming Life, 1900-1930” (due in 2021).
She is the 2020 recipient of the Paul Charosh Independent Scholar Fellowship, 8 grants, and was an original music contributor to a Regional Emmy winning project in 2011. Her recent live and studio performances include artists Waltzing on Waves and international blues singer-songwriter, Annie Mack.
Kelli is a member of the Sabian Education Network and the D’Addario Education Collective. She has been a regular contributor to Vintage Drums Legendary Sounds and Tom Tom Magazine and served on the Scholarly Research Committee of the Percussive Arts Society.
Tammy Mitchell-Woods
Tammy Mitchell-Woods is an independent drummer in the Tulsa, Oklahoma area playing with many artists, teaching clinics, teaching drum lessons and founding member of her band Beautiful Chaos. Tammy is the founder of the largest female drumming community on Facebook, Drummergirls United, with over 7,200 members.
Tammy has been the subject of articles in Drum! Magazine, Tom Tom Magazine, Metal Mag, and won the Hidden Hero award and was featured in 21st Century Drummer’s first issue of their magazine in 2020. Tammy has also been featured by Women’s International Music Network, Drum Talk TV, many podcast and radio, TV and other print interviews. Tammy was in the documentary “Beatkeepers:Women with Rhythm” and was a keynote speaker for the premier in Nashville in 2019.
In 2020 Facebook featured Drummergirls United in a commercial for International Women’s Day and Tammy and 4 other members were chosen to drum in the commercial.
Tammy is an endorsing artist for Remo Drum Heads, Welch Tuning System Drums, Heartbeat Cymbals, Cooper Groove Drum Sticks, No Nuts Cymbal Sleeves, Sledgepad, Kick Strap, The Drum Wallet and Big Fat Snare Drum.
Sheila Klotz
Former Army Band Commander and Hit Like A Girl Champion Sheila M. Klotz started her drumming journey at 10-years old with rudimental great John Bosworth and is graduate of West Virginia University.
After serving with the USAF Band, she transitioned to the 257th Army Band in Washington DC and became commander. Sheila’s military career afforded her opportunities to perform in concerts and ceremonies all over the US and abroad including the White House, Pentagon, Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, Europe and the Caribbean.
She is the founder of SoMar Drummers, Inc, a nonprofit Percussion Collective helping to propel the art of drumming into the next generation. SoMar Drummers brings the best drummers in the industry to Southern Maryland to help inspire young drummers in the art of music performance. The clinics, camps and master classes are offered at little or no cost to the student. Past camps have featured drum set instruction by leading professionals such as Matt Garstka, Greyson Nekrutman, David Stanoch, Alex Cohen and more.
Sheila maintains a private teaching studio and serves as the Percussion Director for the Kings Christian Academy Drumline. An active, freelance drummer, percussionist and recording artist, she is also an Educator Clinician with WFLIII Drums.
Peiying Li
A drummer since the age of 7, today Peiying Li is one of the top drummers in China. Her unique ability to authentically blend traditional Chinese music with popular Western genres makes her the perfect representative of modern drumming on multiple continents.
She graduated from Shanghai Conservatory of Music in 2015. After graduation, she went to study in the United States and became the first Chinese musician to graduate from the Berklee Global Jazz Institute with a Master’s degree. In 2019, she obtained her second Master’s degree from the New England Conservatory of Music.
Also in 2019, Peiying was one of the winners of the Hit Like A Girl International Drum Contest and she performed at Sweetwater Gear Fest as the representative of the contest. After returning to China, she participated a Music TV show called ‘Me to Us’ and caught the eyes of the judges and the audience. This led to many appearances on popular TV shows.
Over the years, Peiying has worked with many Grammy Award-winning musicians, such as Dave Holland, Gary Burton, Danilo Pérez and George Garzone. Besides performing, Peiying has also devoted herself to drum education. In recent years, she has hosted numerous drum clinics, festivals and master classes and has been invited to be the judge a variety of drum competitions in China and around the world.
Peiying endorses the British Drum Co. and Meinl Cymbals.
Sam Landa
Samantha Landa is a Canadian metal drummer based in Montreal. Originally from Vancouver, Sam drums with Conquer Divide, The Anti-Queens, and Dead Asylum. She has toured as a session drummer with Nervosa and Introtyl and has played in 20 countries around North America and Europe.
Sam has been featured by outlets like Sick Drummer Magazine (including their first live stream to feature a female drummer) and DRUM! Magazine, and is the editor of The Drumeo Beat (www.drumeo.com/beat). She proudly endorses Mapex Drums, Sabian Cymbals and Los Cabos Drumsticks.