WELCOME!
I am Paul Buyer, Professor of Music and Director of Percussion at Clemson University. I am a writer, speaker, musician, and author of five books including World Music, Drumline Gold, Working Toward Excellence, Marching Bands and Drumlines, and co-author of The Art of Vibraphone Playing. My mission is to help others grow and get better through leadership, excellence, and culture.
I hope you find the content here valuable, useful, and inspiring!
World Music
World Music: Diversity in Styles, Instruments and Culture travels to the United States, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, India, Japan, Indonesia, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba, and Brazil with a final chapter on Playing for Change. Written in an engaging, interactive, and concise format, students will explore diverse musical styles, instruments, and culture through compelling content, musician spotlights, and dozens of quality videos, audio recordings, and class activities.
World Music
World Music: Diversity in Styles, Instruments and Culture travels to the United States, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, India, Japan, Indonesia, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba, and Brazil with a final chapter on Playing for Change. Written in an engaging, interactive, and concise format, students will explore diverse musical styles, instruments, and culture through compelling content, musician spotlights, and dozens of quality videos, audio recordings, and class activities.
DRUMLINE GOLD
“Paul Buyer has provided a resource that is informative, educational, beautifully written, and significant to everyone who teaches a marching percussion ensemble. It is a must-read for students and members of any drumline and provides insight into how these leading educators think and what they expect.”
Dennis DeLucia
DCI, WGI, and PAS Hall of Fame
DRUMLINE GOLD
“Paul Buyer has provided a resource that is informative, educational, beautifully written, and significant to everyone who teaches a marching percussion ensemble. It is a must-read for students and members of any drumline and provides insight into how these leading educators think and what they expect.”
Dennis DeLucia
DCI, WGI, and PAS Hall of Fame
The Art of Vibraphone Playing
“An exceptional method book for the student vibraphonist that bridges the gap between existing materials for jazz vibes and classical instruction books for marimba and xylophone.”
Christopher Dean
Posthumous Emeritus Percussion Faculty, University of North Texas
The Art of Vibraphone Playing
“An exceptional method book for the student vibraphonist that bridges the gap between existing materials for jazz vibes and classical instruction books for marimba and xylophone.”
Christopher Dean
Posthumous Emeritus Percussion Faculty, University of North Texas
WORKING TOWARD EXCELLENCE
“Working Toward Excellence is an exceptional book about what it takes to stand out and achieve uncommon success in your industry. By breaking down values critical to achieving at a high level such as hunger, effort, leadership, time, and others, this book literally shows you how to work toward excellence and achieve it.”
Craig Duswalt
Speaker, author and creator of Rockstar Marketing and Rock Your Life
WORKING TOWARD EXCELLENCE
“Working Toward Excellence is an exceptional book about what it takes to stand out and achieve uncommon success in your industry. By breaking down values critical to achieving at a high level such as hunger, effort, leadership, time, and others, this book literally shows you how to work toward excellence and achieve it.”
Craig Duswalt
Speaker, author and creator of Rockstar Marketing and Rock Your Life
MARCHING BANDS AND DRUMLINES
“The research and insights in Marching Bands and Drumlines might just be the next great resource for marching music educators.”
James Voss Grumish
Founder, TripletDiddle.com
MARCHING BANDS AND DRUMLINES
“The research and insights in Marching Bands and Drumlines might just be the next great resource for marching music educators.”
James Voss Grumish
Founder, TripletDiddle.com
How to Take Your Rehearsals to the Next Level
“What is your system for rehearsing?” If you were asked this question by a high school senior auditioning, a new staff member being...
No One Cares What You Don’t Play
"No one cares what we don’t play.” -Paul Buyer This quote is about having the courage and conviction to take something out of your...
How to Lead Through a Bad Rehearsal
Our students are going through a lot. They are stressed, burned out, and overwhelmed trying to keep up with the pace of coursework,...
Gold Standard Mindsets from Top Marching Percussion Arrangers
The state of marching percussion today has never been healthier and more popular, with thousands of students participating and...
Drumline Gold for Managing Stress
In Chapter 16 on Self-Caring, writer, speaker, and mental health advocate Katie Reed states, “Self-care is giving the world the best...
The 10 Attributes of Quality Rehearsals
In the marching percussion activity, the secret to success on the field or in the gym is how you rehearse. To master their craft, excellent drumlines value rehearsals and never take them for granted. They show up every day with the mindset, “it’s an opportunity to improve.” In contrast, low performing drumlines go through the motions and have the mindset, “it’s just rehearsal,” slowly deflating the group’s commitment, productivity, and progress.
The Practice Blueprint: 15 Tips on How to Practice
I am excited to announce the release of my 4th book, Drumline Gold: Innovative Systems for Marching Percussion Excellence. I wanted...
Why being (one of) the best – in different areas – is the key to success
Just wanted to share this short excerpt from a great interview I heard this morning on the Success Talks Podcast with Entrepreneur...
Drumming with Dystonia
“Typically a musician develops this in their mid-30s when you’re well into your career where you’ve dedicated your life to your craft...
The Life-Changing Power of PASIC
As percussionists from around the world make their final plans for PASIC 2016 in Indianapolis this week, I wanted to share the power...
The Final Step to Excellent Concert Preparation
As my students and I prepare for our Fall Percussion Concert this Thursday, November 3rd featuring the Clemson Percussion Ensemble,...
Excerpt from Teaching Jazz Drumset
Below is an excerpt from my new article, "Teaching Jazz Drumset," published in the October issue of the Jazz Education Network...
What I Learned from Warriors Coach Steve Kerr
Last week I participated in a live stream with Golden State Warriors head coach, Steve Kerr, who’s team won the 2015 NBA Championship...
How Seeking Out Criticism Can Make You Better
In Ryan Holiday’s new book, Ego is the Enemy, he writes about the importance of criticism and humility, stating, “The art of taking...
How to Inspire High Performance
I am an avid listener of a podcast called Finding Mastery (www.findingmastery.net), hosted by high performance psychologist Michael...
What You Should be Doing in Rehearsal Every Day
For musicians, if you think about it, most of our time is spent practicing. In fact, one could argue that 80% of our time is spent...
The Fastest Way to Clean Your Drumline
The truth is cleaning a drumline is not a fast process. It takes a long time crockpotting hundreds of hours of practice and...
The Story of The Classic Vibe
When something bothers me, I write about it. That is my philosophy, and if you look for a seed of inspiration in my writing, you will...
Welcome to my new website!
Welcome and I'm very excited to launch my new website! I first want to thank and recognize Whit Wagner at Liquid Propaganda for his...
5 Things Teachers Can Learn About Excellence From Steve Jobs
I have always believed that teaching is leading, and to become a better teacher, one must become a better leader. In my mind,...