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Hello and welcome to my website. My name is Marco Ninni and I am a professional drummer and drum tutor. I am a session drummer and percussionist and play in a variety of UK acts in the London area. I graduated in Popular Music Performance (BMus Honours) from the University of East London.

I also play in two original bands. Swedish Death Candy, signed to Hassle Records, have recorded and released LPs and EPs, and have toured extensively throughout Europe and the UK. I also play in Detox From Grey, a dark-electro band based in London.

In the last two years I have set up a small studio from where I run a remote recording session service and a drum servicing and repairing workshop.

I work in numerous London recording studios as a drum tech, and I also have top-notch drum kits, percussion and cymbals available for hire for recording sessions and gigs. Whenever I am away from the studio or the road, I like to teach drums to share my passion and knowledge with students of all ages and abilities.

Please, navigate through this website to gather more specific informations about all the shades of my work and get in touch for any information.

About

From an early age I was hitting my mum’s pot and pans while listening to my dad’s record collection. Those years developed not only my passion for cooking, but also a love of 70’s progressive rock music and, more importantly, it helped me gain a deep understanding of time, groove and percussive instruments. The pots and pans became drum kits, I got lessons, did hours and hours of practice, and am now lucky to have honed my skills enough to be able to make a living as a working musician.

I am constantly curious, creative, and always eager to reach out of my comfort zone to challenge myself and grow as a musician and consequently as a human being. This relentless drive has brought me into contact with top musicians and allowed me to have played a variety of styles, from classical to jazz, folk to fun, rock to reggae, to name but a few.

I have had the honour of playing alongside musicians such as T.M. Stevens (Miles Davis, James Brown, Steve Vai), Nathaniel Peterson (Iggy Pop, Eric Clapton, Howlin’ Wolf, Keith Richards), top Italian session guitarist Andrea Braido (Marcus Miller, Vasco Rossi), Winston Delandro (Bob Marley, UB40), Roberto Manzin (James Brown, Donna Summer, Zucchero) and working with prestigious companies such as the Theo Adams Company.

Throughout my live performance career I have played in bands that have opened for Guns n’ Roses, Def Leppard, Motorhead, Biffy Clyro, KoRn, UK Subs, Wand and Rainbow, to name but a few. I have written arrangements with Audrey Riley (Muse, Foo Fighters, The Smashing Pumpkins, Nick Cave) and Maurizio Malagnini (BBC, Hollywood Studio Symphony Orchestra and Italian television station, RAI).

In 2004 I won the ‘Best Drummer’ award at the Emergenza National finals and in 2015 I achieved my honours degree in Popular Music Performance from the University of East London.

Recording

If you are after a great sounding drum take for your production at a very competitive price, you are in the right place!

I recorded my first demo tape almost 20 years ago, and to this day, to see people still grooving along with those tunes is one of the greatest joys I’ve experienced. That’s the magic of recording for me: to freeze a moment in time and translate the energy of a performance to a recording that be replicated over and over for the listener to enjoy. For me it is fundamental for every recording session to get the best tone and performance possible to support and elevate the track, to serve the music in the best possible way in order for the song to blossom.

Since that very first recording I have been in many studios, I have been recorded on many occasions and in many situations. I have developed a deep knowledge of the recording process, the techniques, the microphones, the drums and the sounds that work for a specific vibe or genre, whether they’re sparse and airy acoustic recordings or heavy processed electronic tunes.

With four different drum kits, a vast selection of modern and vintage drums and cymbals, a bunch of electronic drums and samplers, different percussions and an endless array of mallets to chose from, I make sure the sound of the drums is as accurate to the drumming itself for every recording session.

Since 2015 I’ve run a small recording studio where I have recorded for a number of projects, including my own original, and few pre-productions for bigger sessions. With a wide variety of services to suit your budget, you can be assured you will receive top sounding drum tracks for your project, recorded using the best techniques and instrumentation for your production, without breaking the bank. Based around the Focusrite Sapphire PRO40 interface, leader in its category for quality and transparency of its pre-amps and a selection of some of the best sounding microphones on the market, I make sure every recording meets the satisfaction of the customer, all and every time.

Instrumentation includes vintage Ludwig drums, classic Yamaha Recording Customs, punchy and more aggressive Tama drums, Jazz sized drums for classic bop and Motown sounds and a vast array of vintage and modern cymbals, a wide variety of percussions including congas and timbales and so on.

To discuss your project and how I can help you achieve the sound you need please do not hesitate to email using the contact form or phone for a free quote. There are different plans and options tailored for every kind of budget, so you can be assured when I say that everyone can afford this service and that my main aim is to do what’s best for you and your song.

Drum Servicing

One’s drummer ability is worthless if its gear is not efficient. Although John Bonham’s squeaky pedal might be part of its legendary sound, it is not a great feature in anyone gear’s arsenal. Starting from my early days as a working musician I begun a healthy journey in learning all about their built and their servicing.

Soon I discovered that a cheap drum kit, with the right tuning and the right drum heads sounds far better then any expensive drum kit poorly tuned, and that looking after your drums and your hardware can lead to many many years of highly proficient instrumentation, which in case of drums and cymbals, will get even better with age!

Despite all this, sometimes the gear breaks too, and I have learnt it the hard way over a number of occasions, in the studio and on the road, in situations less then ideals sometimes and with very few resources to fix the problem.

I run a small workspace where I repair broken cymbals and drums and where I offer a service of general drum maintainance, change of drum heads, tuning and fixing.

I do also take my toolkit with me and work on site, being it a recording studio, a rehearsal space or your house. I can come to your recording session to provide drums you would like to have for your session, or tune the ones you have for a specific sound for a session, or just look after them from time to time, so to make sure they are always in the best possible shape.

Teaching

When I am away from the recording studio or the road I like to share my experience with young and less young pupils who want to learn how to play drums or are just curious about them. I have experience and have trained students at many different levels. I can prepare you for an audition or an exam or work on your technique and skills.

I have focused my latest years of training on new teaching techniques, I am fully DBS checked and I have a history of happy students behind me.

I can teach you about general music theory as well as improve your aural and transcribing skills. I teach privately both individuals and groups, can come to yours or welcome you either at my studio in Wembley, London, or in my house in North West London. I teach via Skype too.

If you would like to enquire me about becoming my student, please do not hesitate to send me a line via the contact form on this page!

 

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