Taylor Dexter | SoultoneCymbals.com

Taylor Dexter

Taylor Dexter

Since the age of 6 months in the womb, Taylor Dexter has been touring internationally and been a part of major recording sessions! Being the son of two well known L.A. musicians, Hollye Dexter (professional singer and songwriter) and Troy Dexter (professional guitarist, keyboard player, producer, and composer), Taylor Dexter’s many accomplishments at a young age come as no surprise.

Taylor got his first drum set at the age of 10, and since then has been consistently studying, performing, touring, recording, and teaching in the L.A. area and abroad. In 2000, Taylor joined California’s most prestigous middle school band program at Lawrence Middle School. Taylor auditioned and made it into the Advanced Concert Band as a percussionist and Advanced Jazz Ensemble as drummer and rhythm section leader. Both bands toured across the U.S. winning major band competitions in Hawaii and New Orleans. Two years later, Taylor was one of two drum set players chosen out of the entire Los Angeles Unified School District to play with the Los Angeles District Honors Jazz Ensemble. The band performed at the Kodak Theatre (where the Academy Awards are held annually) in Hollywood and the performance was recorded live and broadcasted on PBS.

As a freshman in high school, Taylor was chosen to join the California State Northridge University Youth Orchestra where he was well trained in the art of orchestral percussion. The experience of playing with an orchestra inspired Taylor to expand his overall musicality. Taylor started drum set studies with well known Los Angeles based drummers and educators, Robert "Jake" Jacobs, and Dave Beyer (Melissa Ethridge, LA Music Academy Instructor). Taylor started to study guitar and music theory with father, Troy Dexter, where he learned the methods and techniques of the great jazz virtuoso guitarist, Ted Green. Taylor also joined the El Camino Real Camerata Choir as a lead tenor and performed live at the world famous Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.

Once Taylor graduated from high school, he decided to immediately attend Musicians Institute in Hollywood where he would hone his skills behind the drum set. During his first year at M.I., Taylor auditioned for R&B/Latin/Soul band, VINYL SOUL, and ended up passing the audition which lead to a month long tour in Tokyo, Japan all expenses paid for by the U.S. Navy. In Japan, Vinyl Soul was the opening act for Smash Mouth at the Cherry Blossom Festival in Tokyo. Vinyl Soul toured playing at all the major American Navy bases in Japan. Taylor also interviewed and played live on the radio show for Japan’s number one English magazine, “Metropolis.”

Upon return from Japan, Taylor continued his studies at Musicians Institute where he studied with some of the world’s top drum educators and became proficient in playing all styles of music. Additionally, Taylor learned the fundamentals of drum programming, playing along with tracks and loops, and basic Pro Tools and Ableton Live skills. Taylor graduated from Musicians Institute in the Spring of 2010 with an Associate of Arts degree from the Drum Program at Musicians Institute. Taylor continues his studies with head of University of California Irvine’s jazz drums department, Jason Harnell, as well as world renown latin and funk drum set educator, Chuck Silverman.

Taylor is currently the drummer and background vocalist for indie dance rock band, BIG MOVES, as heard frequently on KCRW 89.9 FM, KPFK 90.7 FM, and KXLU 88.9 FM. Big Moves can also be seen on the cover of past issues of magazines such as Music Connection and The Deli. Taylor has performed live with Big Moves all across the country and at all of L.A.’s major hot spots such as House of Blues, Henry Fonda Music Box, Spaceland, The Echoplex, and The Roxy. Big Moves' debut full length album, "In The Beginning" is available on iTunes and Amazon and at Amoeba Records. Taylor also just recently joined up and coming indie alternative rock band, WHITE LIGHTS, who have broken out on to the L.A. music scene playing at venues such as Spaceland and Hotel Cafe.

Taylor currently teaches private drum and guitar lessons in the L.A. area working for TakeLessons.com (one of the nation's largest music lesson providers) and for several music shops in the L.A. area including The Guitar Merchant in Canoga Park and Neighborhood Rock Music School in Burbank. Taylor also teaches out of his home studio and travels to many students' homes. When he's not teaching or playing with his bands, Taylor spends his time working as a drummer for hire doing session, rehearsal, and live performance work.

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myspace.com/dexterdrummer

myspace.com/bigmovesband

whitelightsmusic.com