The Jim Howell Music Studio

Jim Howell is a full-time musician in Tucson, Arizona. He teaches most days of the week and performs regularly playing drums with one of many bands around town or playing guitar and singing in his own original country/rock/soul band. Jim's specialty is performance and private lessons for drum set. However, Jim also teaches lessons for snare drum, school percussion, a variety of other percussion instruments, piano, guitar, bass and voice. He teaches small group classes focusing upon toddler music, preschool and early elementary music, hand drums and drum circles, studio recording techniques, pop/rock band group performance and recording.

While his main stylistic influence has been Rock, Jim has a deep knowledge and appreciation of all American music genres and their rich history tracing back to Blues/Jazz/Country etc... His drumming work has veered in to Country and Roots music for the last decade. Jim believes that a solid foundation in all American styles will give a musician the depth, versatility, and confidence to play even the most contemporary musical styles. (Translation: Every drummer should learn how to play a shuffle and every musician needs to know a 12 Bar Blues progression!)

Jim teaches all private lessons and small group classes from his custom built music studio. However since 2014 he has also implemented music education and therapy classes for children and adults with severe developmental disabilities at a private facility called Creative Care. He does that at their facilites every other week during the school year and every Thursday in the summers.

Jim has organized, lead classes, and created the curriculum for rock band group camps for kids ages 8-18. He developed a Toddler Music program for children under age 3 and their caregiver which he has been instructing for six years now. in 2011 Jim conceived a preschool and early elementary class system called Music DRUMdamentals. This system focuses upon music concepts and movement applied to percussion and singing while providing lots of hands on (tactile) experiences and exploration of a variety of instruments on weekly rotations. During the 2014-2015 school year Jim taught his DRUMdamentals class as a Magnet elective class at Craigin Elementary School. (TUSD cut the funding for Cragin's Magnet programs in 2015/2016.)

From April of 2002 to August 2011, Jim was the principal drums and percussion instructor at all Beaver’s Band Box locations. (Unfortunately Beaver's has closed its doors permanently in 2011.) During the 2002-2003 Academic-year, Jim was the general music teacher for all grades (K-5) at Bloom Elementary (TUSD). Jim has regularly instructed group percussion and rhythmic notation theory clinics in coordination with band programs at local schools.

Three time recipient of Best Drummer (Tucson Area Music Awards), Jim is an active performing and recording musician locally, nationally, and internationally. Currently, he leads his own original country band, The Jim Howell Band, in which he tackles lead vocals and guitar live. On the recently released debut, Silver Clouds, he played many of the instruments while engineering and producing the whole effort in his studio. Jim has been playing multi-instrumentalist (drums/keys/guitar/vocals/harmonica/percussion) with REY after producing their 2015 self-titled album in his studio. Jim is a regular on drums with Jay Faircloth & The Loners, local ska group, The Vexmen, and frequently subs on drums in Michael P. & The Gully Washers, The Mission Creeps. Jim also is a rotating staff musician at Desert Hills Lutheran Church, in Green Valley, as the drummer for their weekly Saturday afternoon Country Gospel worship services.

In the recent past, Jim performed extensively with Rich Hopkins and Luminarios. recording several studio releases a live DVD and touring in the US and Europe. He was a founding member of The Wyatts. (2006, 2007 and 2008 TAMMIES winners for Best Band. Jim’s drumming is featured on the upcoming studio release Giddy Up and Go! Jim also freelances with a diverse collection groups about town and

Music has been my passion since I was a very small child. I have pursued my interest in musical expression and thirst for learning on various instruments throughout the years. Over the years I have logged thousands of hours of practicing and performing on many different instruments from cello to piano, voice, guitar, drums, bass guitar, and hand percussion.

Fifteen years ago I was offered two different paid positions to teach music. While embarking upon those I really developed a love of sharing my own enthusiasm and knowledge of music with others. I have lead many group classes and classroom sessions and thousands of private lessons over the last 15 years. It never gets old and continues to challenge me and provide ways that I can also learn in the process. Music is a lifetime journey of learning, even for the professional!