James Murphy picked up his first pair of drumsticks at the age of 12 and has not put them down since. In May 2003, he graduated from The Berklee College of Music with a Bachelor of Music in Performance: Drum Set Principle. While at Berklee, James studied with some of the world’s most prominent educators and performers: Dave DiCenso, Mike Mangini, Jamey Haddad, John Ramsay, Skip Hadden and Kenwood Dennard. Upon graduation, James quickly immersed himself in the Boston music scene as an active player, educator and clinician.
Currently, James is a drum set player for the Blue Man Group and rocks the kit with several bands ranging in style from jazz to hip-hop to rock to world music. Over the past several years, James has had the opportunity to perform with many great bands and musicians: Eguie Castrillo, Ma'ayan Castel, Mike Verge, Shea Rose, Elephant House, Leo Mellace and members of Percy Hill, West 8 Five, Sam Kininger Band, Boston Horns, and John Brown's Body. He has also shared the stage with Howie Day, Rich Robinson of the Black Crowes, Ryan Montbleau Band, Antigone Rising, Fabolous, The Adam Deitch Project, Gary Cherone of Extreme, and J-Live.
In addition to his busy performing schedule, James is a sought-after drum set instructor. James is an Assistant Professor at The Berklee College of Music and teaches advanced technique lessons, geared towards injury prevention, to the cast of the Blue Man Group. Also, since 2003, James has maintained a full roster of private students at his drum school, Stix Drum Instruction, located in Essex, Massachusetts. With lessons in high demand and a booked solid teaching schedule, PeaceAndDrums.Com was born to accommodate his demand as an instructor. The site offers pre-recorded video lessons for beginner, intermediate and advanced players with lesson topics including: technique, fills and grooves. In addition, as an educational contributor to Modern Drummer Magazine, James’ unique teaching methods are shared with readers around the globe.
