Benny Peng
By Ella van der Werff
Benny Peng first picked up a pair of drumsticks in the 6th grade when he joined his elementary school band. Two years later, Benny joined Collingwood and worked with the band teacher at the time, Mr. Smith, to lay a foundation for his drumming. Benny attributes his experience with his mentor as being characterised by Mr. Smith’s patience which helped Benny to make his first noticeable improvements. One of the skills that he has cultivated as a drummer is strong limb independence, which is when your arms and legs are playing different rhythms all at the same time.
As a drummer at Collingwood, Benny has had many interesting experiences, from performing at local events like Pumpkinfest to large ones such as the Anaheim Heritage Festival. His favourite of these experiences was the Anaheim trip that band and choir students attended where they were able to visit Disneyland and Hollywood. Trips like these will help showcase talented young artists in our community like Benny to a greater audience and open new opportunities to them. They also allow for more collaboration in preparation for them, which Benny believes is important to the art form because everyone is working to the same goal of simply playing good music together. His favourite people to work with are “the ones who are genuinely passionate about the things they do, as the process of working together becomes a lot smoother and a lot more enjoyable”.
However, there are challenges to being a drummer as well. Due to Benny’s commitment to both music and his other interests such as athletics, clashing schedules on top of schoolwork can make it difficult to be involved in both. Benny’s biggest tip to others is to build a strong foundation through patience before learning more advanced techniques. He also said that starting to sight-read early on can make your future in music a lot easier.
By Ella van der Werff
Benny Peng first picked up a pair of drumsticks in the 6th grade when he joined his elementary school band. Two years later, Benny joined Collingwood and worked with the band teacher at the time, Mr. Smith, to lay a foundation for his drumming. Benny attributes his experience with his mentor as being characterised by Mr. Smith’s patience which helped Benny to make his first noticeable improvements. One of the skills that he has cultivated as a drummer is strong limb independence, which is when your arms and legs are playing different rhythms all at the same time.
As a drummer at Collingwood, Benny has had many interesting experiences, from performing at local events like Pumpkinfest to large ones such as the Anaheim Heritage Festival. His favourite of these experiences was the Anaheim trip that band and choir students attended where they were able to visit Disneyland and Hollywood. Trips like these will help showcase talented young artists in our community like Benny to a greater audience and open new opportunities to them. They also allow for more collaboration in preparation for them, which Benny believes is important to the art form because everyone is working to the same goal of simply playing good music together. His favourite people to work with are “the ones who are genuinely passionate about the things they do, as the process of working together becomes a lot smoother and a lot more enjoyable”.
However, there are challenges to being a drummer as well. Due to Benny’s commitment to both music and his other interests such as athletics, clashing schedules on top of schoolwork can make it difficult to be involved in both. Benny’s biggest tip to others is to build a strong foundation through patience before learning more advanced techniques. He also said that starting to sight-read early on can make your future in music a lot easier.