The Afterman Method
The three pillars of the Conservatory's approach.
Music is sound in time. Through the deep study of time, phrasing, and expression, playing becomes more than sound — it becomes a personal, human voice.
Pillar One
Under the pillar of Time, the work is rhythmic orientation. Through countless exercises, students learn to feel at home in any time signature and any groove — the patient, cumulative practice that produces the unmistakable steadiness of a player who has truly internalised time.
Pillar Two
Under the pillar of Language, the work is phrasing — the unique syntax each drum has in time. Every new technique introduced, every phrase committed to memory, teaches the language and the time together; the two pillars are inseparable in practice.
One of the saddest tendencies in the percussion world is the worship of technique as the holy grail. We choose the inverse: phrasing over technique, poetry over speed. Technique is in service of music, not the other way around.
The Conservatory is a different voice. From the earliest stages, students are introduced to Yshai's compositions, which become the primary vehicle for learning the art of playing the drum. Just as a young pianist studies the piano through compositions rather than scales, students at the Conservatory study percussion through a body of carefully composed material that evolves step by step in rhythmic and technical demand.
Pillar Three
Under the pillar of Expression, the work answers the question of how. If Time addresses when a sound arrives, and Language addresses what sound arrives, Expression addresses how it arrives — and through whom.
The artist's task is to allow music to transcend the acoustic event and become an expression of the human, of the spirit. Study at the Conservatory seeks to make each student's playing personal and intimate.
We seek spirit through deep presence in music.
The Group Format
The Conservatory's groups are built around a structured curriculum that unfolds layer by layer. Students move through a body of repertoire together over months, performing finished pieces in front of the group from the very first step.
Each session is ninety minutes with a short break, opening with a technical warm-up for hand health and moving into the previous week's homework. The first half rotates across technique, composition, ornaments, and independence; the second half is dedicated to the running composition — reviewing what was learned the week before and adding the next layer. Every finished piece is played by a student in front of the group, and feedback is direct and immediate. Between lessons, students can send private videos every two weeks for individual feedback alongside the group work.
The methodology itself is what makes the format work: every concept builds on the previous one, no step skipped, no exercise loose. This is not a weekly jam where nobody evolves. The students who choose the Conservatory have decided to commit, and practice between lessons is essential.
The most powerful acoustic box a drum has is invisible. It is the resonance of one's soul through his playing.
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