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Alex Jenkins - Percussion: Due to his in-depth study of the music of different cultures, Alex’s
playing transcends musical traditions and boundaries. His expression
of rhythm is heavily influenced by his study of Tabla. As a result, Alex
has become known for his creative approach to music and being able
to fuse rhythmic ideas from various disciplines into one cohesive
performance.
His musical journey began at age 12 while attending Sacramento
Waldorf School in Sacramento, CA. Alex’s love for music, percussion
being his specialty, brought him to Sacramento High School where he
joined the VAPAC (Visual and Performing Arts Center) program. Upon
graduating in 1993, he went on to study music and percussion at
Sacramento City College for two years.
After City College, Alex spent two months in India doing an
independent ethnology project. It was during this period that he
became interested in Tabla. Subsequently, Alex spent most of his
time learning about North Indian Classical music and Tabla technique.
Returning to the U.S., Alex expanded his musical education by
spending two years in the Percussion Studies program (studying
Tabla) at California State University, Sacramento (CSUS) with Dan
Kennedy, as well as with the great Tabla Guru, Pandit Swapan
Chaudhuri, at the Ali Akbar Khan College of Music in San Rafeal,
Ca.
Currently, Alex teaches percussion at William Land Elementary School,
Sacramento City College and out of his home studio in Sacramento. In
addition, he has done workshops and clinics for various schools,
including CSUS, American River College, Cosumnes River College, UC
Merced, Wood Creek High School, Orange Open Middle School, Citrus
Heights Elementary, Unitarian Universalist Church of Davis, The Drum
Lab, Davis Waldorf School, Whitney Elementary, and various music stores around California.