Dubuque native performer and teacher Benjamin Drury is thrilled to join the Centrally Rooted team!

Benjamin is a graduate of Clarke University ’10 in Music Education and the University of Iowa ’15 with an MA in Trumpet Performance. A multi-genre player, Benjamin has experienced just about everything a performer can on the trumpet, from orchestral playing, big band, small jazz combos, solo work, and even playing with a touring funk band! He can be heard on Soul Sherpa’s albums Invest in This and Same Wave Train where he both wrote horn lines and as a featured soloist. Benjamin also recently started performing with The DZ Combo, headed up by Centrally Rooted’s own Danny Zanger, to bring more jazz to the Dubuqueland area.

As a teacher, Benjamin is experienced with a variety of approaches to the trumpet. At Iowa Benjamin broadened his horizons by studying the great brass pedagogues throughout the last century and assembling their best lessons into his own approach to helping students learn trumpet. In practice, Benjamin emphasizes mindfulness while playing as a way to reduce anxiety, build upon students’ strengths, promote cognitive and musical development, and channel their passion in a healthy way. If you want to enroll a student to give them a running start at the trumpet, bring in a young player in need of direction, fix problems in someone’s playing, or just look for a helpful teacher to help you pick up on a few things, Benjamin caters his teaching to your needs.