THEY are the music lessons with a sprinkle of rock and roll added to the mix.

Ben Byrne from Starsailor has relaunched drumming tuition at his Stockton Heath studio where he teaches everything from technique to tips for getting into the music industry. The former Cardinal Newman RC High School pupil originally introduced one-to-one classes almost 10 years ago when the band, best known for Silence is Easy, was on a hiatus.

Starsailor reformed in 2014 and after a few busy years reacquainting with fans – including going back in the studio to record their fifth album All This Life – Ben felt the time was right to get back to it.

He said: “It’s got to that stage where I don’t want to be travelling the world all year when I’ve got family at home.

“It’s a nice balance at the moment between the Starsailor work and doing the teaching from home.”

Warrington Guardian:

The classes, for aspiring musicians aged eight and above, are aimed at beginners to intermediate players.

Ben, who has a six-year-old son called Connor, added: “My main thing is to boost the confidence of players and make it a lot of fun.

“But if they want to get into bands and all that stuff, I’ve got a lot of expertise in the music industry as well to help them take it to the next level.”

Ben currently has around 10 students that visit his home studio to learn on his Roland TD-30 kit and he has space for more.

The 42-year-old said: “It’s separate from the house and I teach on an electric kit so it’s not going to annoy any of the neighbours.

“I’ve got my vinyl player in there as well so it’s quite a cool little studio. I can teach grades. I do the Rockschool syllabus but then some people just want to play for fun.

“There’s nothing better or more therapeutic than hitting some drums for a bit.”

Ben was still in St Oswald’s Primary School when he fell in love with the drums.

His heroes were the greats like Led Zeppelin’s John Bonham, Queen’s Roger Taylor, The Who’s Keith Moon, The Jimi Hendrix Experience’s Mitch Mitchell and The Beatles’ Ringo Starr.

Warrington Guardian:

Ben added: “The guy at the back playing drums always seemed to be having more fun than everybody else. I got my first set when I was about nine but I didn’t start getting lessons until I was 11. My parents were very supportive from the off despite the noise!

“It was always the drums for me. I dabbled a little bit at college playing the piano just to get my theory better. But it was all about the drumming really. I used to take myself off to the practice room and just lay down grooves and solidly practice. That’s how I met the guys in the band.”

With more than 30 years’ experience as a musician and almost 20 as a professional, Ben can also tell within the first lesson who has a natural flair as a drummer.

He said: “It’s all about rhythm, coordination and good timekeeping. Some people pick it up faster than others but at the lessons they can go at their own pace. It’s something that can be learnt. Some of the teenage lads I’m teaching now who are at college are always asking about how they get recognised in the industry and I’m happy to help people in that way as well.

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“They’re into artists like Blossoms, Gerry Cinnamon and Twenty One Pilots but I’ve also got a few adults I’m teaching and they’ve all heard of the band from back in the day when Love is Here and Silence is Easy came out.”

Meanwhile, Starsailor have been on the festival circuit including last weekend’s Cool Britannia at Knebworth Park where the likes of Queen and the Rolling Stones have played.

Ben added: It’s great because a lot of students are interested in hearing about the shows I’ve done and some of them come out and watch us as well.”