About the program
Join us once a week on Thursday evenings for our Brazilian bateria (samba percussion) classes at Levine Music in Silver Spring!
A bateria is the percussion ensemble driving the groove of the whole samba band. Learn the fundamentals of samba percussion technique and repertoire from our expert instructors.
EducArte at Levine welcomes all levels, from beginners to advanced, semi-professionals, and music teachers. No auditions required. The bateria class meets for 1.5 hours a week to work on technique and repertoire and to rehearse for group performances. All students will have the opportunity to perform periodically, if they choose to.
Time
Thursdays, 7:30-9 PM
Dates
Fall 2026: September 10 – December 10 (no class November 26)
Location
Levine Music, Silver Spring campus (900 Wayne Ave 2nd floor, Silver Spring, MD 20910)
Registration
$20/class with semester registration / $25 drop-in
We encourage registration for a full semester. Registration includes opportunities to perform at local events with our samba ensemble, in addition to the weekly classes. Drop-ins are available at the door.
Questions about payments or registration? Contact Levine student services at sservices@levinemusic.org or (202) 686-8000.
Video: Bateria EducArte parades at the 2025 Wheaton Arts Parade.
About our instructors
EducArte’s percussion director and Rio de Janeiro native André Coelho leads the bateria classes. André has played in many carnival groups, such as Carmelitas, Céu na Terra, Cacique de Ramos, Orquestra Voadora, Prata Preta, and Tá Pirando.
Classes are also taught by assistant instructor and Levine faculty member Christopher Payne, a multi-faceted drummer and percussionist who fuses ethnic hand percussion, orchestral percussion, and drum set to create music across a multitude of genres.
Classes are also supported by Hugo Vásquez, a samba percussionist from Santiago, Chile, who has studied and performed with various samba schools in Rio de Janeiro. He has directed the percussion sections of various samba and samba-enredo groups, and served for nearly a decade as the director of the bateria of GRES Alegria de Barcelona (Spain).
Upcoming sessions
There are no upcoming events at this time
Sponsors and partners
EducArte’s bateria ensemble classes are offered through our partnership with Levine Music.
Thanks to a generous sponsorship from Contemporânea, Brazil’s leading percussion instrument manufacturer, we have a full set of bateria instruments for participants to learn on, including surdos, repiques, caixas, tamborins, agogôs, and chocalhos.