Garet Speakman is a professional recording and touring musician based in San Diego. Garet's focus is on drumming. Recording, touring and teaching drums.

Drum lessons

Drum lessons designed to provide the techniques and concepts you’ll need to efficently learn to play, and then apply what you practice in the real world.

Getting Started
Mastering Fundamentals

I’m a college educated working professional drummer with degrees in music business, music performance, and audio recording/production and have been teaching drums since 2016. My lessons are focused on understanding the fundamental techniques and concepts of drumming so you can fully grasp what it is you need to work on to actually achieve your goals. We’ll cover everything from reading drum notation, utilizing proper technique, understanding how to write and play grooves and solos, how to listen to a record and understand what’s going on, how to improvise with other musicians, and so much more.

Book your first lesson
San_Diego_Drum_Lessons_With_Garet_Speakman
This is Garet's Drum Studio located in central San Diego

In-Person Lessons

In an effort to facilitate quality drum lessons to the high demand of students in San Diego seeking to excel at drumming, I founded the San Diego Drum Academy with fellow drummer and business partner, Victor Olavarria. The San Diego Drum Academy is focused on teaching students what they actually need to know to fully understand what it is they’re doing on the instrument. We have many students that come from other drum programs and quickly realize they weren’t being taught the proper techniques necessary to excel at the craft, and instead were unfortunately enrolled in a generic type of program that had a low ceiling on what it could actually offer it’s students. At the San Diego Drum Academy, we focus on bringing in the best drum instructors in San Diego County. These are real world professionals that have been focused on the art of drumming their entire lives. If you’re looking to learn to drum from the best in San Diego, the San Diego Drum Academy is the place to go, come see for yourself!

Lessons are offered Monday – Sunday at the San Diego Drum Academy in Kearny Mesa at 8280 Clairemont Mesa Blvd Ste 112 San Diego, CA 92111.

For rates and more information on the academy visit it here.

If you’re ready to start drumming now, send me an email and we’ll get things set up! 

Lets get drumming! 

Learn to Improvise

Seamlessly playing with other musicians without prior rehearsal is crucial in real-world settings. In this video, I improvise a drum part to a song I’ve never heard, demonstrating my ability to listen, adapt, and contribute on the fly. When you work with me, you’ll learn how to complement any ensemble, creating a powerful, cohesive sound.

Student Reviews

“Great drum lessons – Garet’s a very experienced drummer and teaches new concepts well. I feel challenged every lesson.”

Corrine

“Garet is a super experienced drummer, very approachable and a pleasure to work with!”

Alan

“Been working with Garet for years, highly recommend!”

Corey

“Nice and easy to learn lessons. Was patient and helpful with me. Great place to learn from”

Rod

“I love working with Garet. I was taking lessons with rock and roll san diego and felt as though i had reached the ceiling in what they could offer. fortunately i found garet and he’s been able to really help me meet my potential. highly recommend him”

Kristen

“Garet’s the man! super rad dude and a killer drummer. he helps me work out parts for my band mostly. love the dude. take lessons with garet!”

Taron

FAQ’s

What if I don’t have a drum set?

Don’t worry about buying your own kit—I’ve got two professional drum kits in my studio for our lessons. I recommend building solid technique before investing, and when you’re ready, I’ll help you find a great kit at a fair price. I’ll be with you every step of the way.

Is it possible to change my drum lesson date?

Yes you can change your recurring lesson date if there’s a change in your schedule or if you’re just needing to reschedule due to a last minute change in plans.

Tell me more about your cancellation policy.

Once accepted as a student, there’s a commitment to lessons. Cancellations within month of the lesson will still need to be paid, however I’ll reschedule you for the time you missed. Cancellations with more than a month’s notice are not required to be paid. Cancelations day of lesson won’t be able to be rescheduled as I will of already booked out the time and been present in the studio during lesson time.

How does the billing process work?

Billing is done monthly on the first of the month for monthly rates, visit, San Diego Drum Academy

How long will it take for me to play the drum kit?

Progress depends on your dedication to practicing outside of lessons—some students develop basic technique in weeks, while others take months. It’s essential to master proper hand technique on a drum pad during the first 1–3 months before transitioning to a full drum kit. With that said, I always like to keep lessons fun and structure them in a way we can both focus on technique and have fun on the drum kit as well.

Can you teach two students at once?

I can teach two students at once, but that splits the time and attention each student receives. For optimal progress, I recommend private lessons. If budget is a concern, consider back-to-back half-hour sessions; if it’s just scheduling, I’ll work to arrange consecutive hour-long lessons, as full hourly lessons yield the best growth.