Sheila E Releases New Drumming and Percussion MasterClass

Sheila E, also known as ‘The Queen of Percussion’ teaches drumming and percussion on her new course on Masterclass.com.

Sheila E is one of the most influential drummers ever, she was named one of the greatest drummers of all time by Rolling Stone Magazine. She is well known for her collaborations with Prince and Ringo Starr, as well as her presence in many bands and her own solo act.

Beginning her career in the 70s, Sheila E is a celebrated drummer for her skill, musicality, and for breaking through gender-norms in music with great tenacity.

We’re also big fans of Masterclass.com, which have gone to the next level with their music courses, including courses by big names in music and production such as Herbie Hancock (Jazz Music), Tom Morello (Guitar), Hans Zimmer (Film Scoring), Danny Elfman (Film Scoring), and some great courses on music production such as deadmau5, Timbaland, and Armin van Buuren.

What is in the Masterclass

Have a look at the trailer for the Sheila E Masterclass below. There are 15 video lessons, starting with an introduction to Sheila E, then a lesson about finding your rhythm, then getting started with drums and learning basic drum beats.

Later she talks about some of her experience in bands and collaborations (including collaborating with Prince), and she goes through experimenting with different types of percussion instruments.

Lessons from Masterclass.com are generally useful for all levels. Most of their classes start at the very beginning, but even intermediate or advanced students can still learn many things along the way. Getting back to basics is a great way to help you re-focus on your skills and your musicality. That’s what the pros do really well.

What is Sheila E Known For?

Sheila E plays drums and percussion with great skill and soul. She’s a very talented musician, while being an extremely skilled instrumentalist.

As we mentioned at the start of this article, she is well known for her collaborations with Prince and Ringo Starr. However, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. She began her career in the mid-70s, and by the 80s, she was one of the top female musicians in the world.

She was on multiple tours with Ringo Starr’s ‘All Starr Band’, as well as playing timbales for Gloria Estefan. She toured and played all around the world with different acts. She appeared on a song for Beyonce in 2002, as well as touring for the Abe Laboriel Band, and the band of the famous Jazz musician Herbie Hancock.

Born into a musical family, Sheila E (full name Sheila Escovedo) starting playing drums at a very young age. Her father played drums, and one of the earliest things that Sheila did as a child was to copy her father’s beats and hand movements.

That gave her an incredibly early start in both the skill of drumming, as well as the musicality and vibe of playing music. Of course, people can start playing music at any age, but that headstart gave her a lot more time to develop and turn her skills into a very influential career.

Conclusion

It’s so valuable to be able to learn from a virtuoso in drumming. It’s great to learn from one of the best when learning drums, not only for the technical tuition, but also to give you motivation and set you on the right creative path. If you want to either start playing drums, or mix up your drumming a little, then this Masterclass by Sheila E might be one to check out.