Rob Wallis

Rob Wallis began playing drums at the age of 10 when he took his Slingerland set (with a Kent silver snare drum) to the local Kiwanis Club for a battle of the bands with The Revised Edition. He performed in bands throughout elementary school, high school and college, and later played in clubs in New York City and on Broadway, while also recording numerous radio and TV jingles. In 1980, while studying at a drum school on 42nd Street in New York City, he learned the school, Drummers Collective, was for sale and took over in a partnership with Paul Siegel. Soon after, they began the first instructional drumming video company in the world, DCI Music Video, debuting with such top artists as Bernard Purdie, Ed Thigpen, John Scofield and Lenny White. In late 1982, Rob convinced the legendary drummer Steve Gadd to participate in his own instructional video, and the result was “Up Close,” a title that broke through to set a new course for drum instruction. Two years later, Steve Gadd followed up with the “In Session” video, delivering a now-famous performance by playing brushes on a box held by Rob. Over the next few years, DCI Music Video released instructional videos with legendary bass player, Jaco Pastorius; Chick Corea; B.B. King; Carlos Santana; and Neal Peart, among hundreds of others. Rob went on to also co-found Manhattan Music Publications, the print arm of DCI Music Video. Manhattan Music released a large catalog of landmark books, kicking off with the release of the award-winning “Afro-Cuban Rhythms for Drumset,” by Frank Malabe and Bob Weiner. In 1992, DCI Music Video and Manhattan Music were sold, and Rob worked for the eventual owner, Warner Bros Music Publications, for five years. In 1997, when his contract expired, Rob left Warner Bros to start Hudson Music, which took advantage of evolving technology to produce a new series of impactful instructional products on DVD and online. Rob went on to found the Drum Guru App in 2012, expanding access to the world’s greatest drummers in short lessons that could be accessed by smartphone or tablet. Drum Guru, available now as an online app, has more than 100 lesson packs available with artists like Steve Smith, Steve Gadd, David Garibaldi, and many others. In 2018, Rob began Hudson Music Digital, the online “Amazon” of digital drum books. Two years later, the catalog has over 200 drum books available digitally, including virtually all of the classics. Recently, Hudson Music released a catalog of more than 200 drum-less tracks that allow drummers to play along. Hudson Music, Hudson Music Digital, Hudson Music Play-Alongs and Drum Guru continue to release and inspire drummers worldwide. Rob is currently expanding his catalog of biographies of drummers, after publishing autobiographies by Liberty DeVitto and Bobby Morris and deeply researched studies of Buddy Rich and, most recently, Jeff Porcaro. He is a popular guest on drum podcasts and works closely with the drum community to support drummers and drum education around the globe. Hudson Music released books with drum legends, Steve Gadd and Stewart Copeland.