Andrew Hewitt
Drummer / Percussionist (Sydney, NSW)

Andrew Hewitt, a 35 year old drummer with Cerebral Palsy. Despite being born with CP, Andrew has managed to clock up over 15 years experience on the Australian music scene and is starting to build a high reputation amongst the International Drum Communities.

Andrew started playing drums at the age of 10, when his parents bought him a drum kit thinking it would be a good form of physical excercise. Since, he has played in many bands in North West Tasmania, Melbourne and Sydney and has clearly made his mark on the Australian music scene.

2004 was a huge year for Andrew. He has been featured in Modern Drummer magazine, amongst others, as well as being named “Spirit of the Month” by Raven Drum Foundation in the USA. Raven Drum Foundation is an organisation that provides drum therapy programs around the USA, which is run by Rick Allen, one-armed drummer of rock band, Def Leppard. This award was a huge honour for him, as Rick has been one of his biggest inspirations since he heard of Def Leppard in the late 80s.

In August he was very fortunate to perform in front of a 400+ crowd at a Club Wild event at the Sydney Opera House. He did a 40-minute set of classic rock covers with Melbourne band “BiPolar Bears” featuring special guest guitarist Ross Hannaford of Daddy Cool fame. He also held a clinic as part of the Billy Hyde Drummer Playoff finals at the Australian Institute of Music.

September he became an official endorsee for DW Drums, and also Drum City Sydney.

Apart from the occasional jam night appearance, Andy has been holding drum clinics and workshops for drummers and people with disabilities.

Recently, Andrew presented his ideas at Novita Techfest, an exhibition on Assistive Therapies in Adelaide, and at the Australian Cerebral Palsy Association's National Conference at the Adelaide Hilton. Both presentations were very well received by those who attended.

Currently, he is working on a band project called Abilitee which is an Australian Rock tribute band featuring members with various disabilities. This is at a planning stage at the moment, Andrew will be auditioning people for various roles in June. He is also sourcing out musicians to write, record and possibly tour with.

In summing up, Andrew Hewitt is very committed to his craft. He is very keen to give something back and help others have the same chances he has gained over the past 15 or so years.

Contact Andrew Hewitt