Yan Westerlund

Teacher: Percussion Piano

Yan Westerlund hails from Eau Claire, WI, where he started studying drums and piano at the age of eight years old. He picked up alto saxophone in middle school, joining the concert and jazz bands while also teaching himself to play guitar. By 7th grade, Yan began composing original music for his own bands to perform as well as covering songs ranging from those of Steppenwolf, RUN DMC, and the Mortal Combat theme song. Yan quickly took a liking to performing at school talent shows, fundraisers, graduation parties, YMCA lock-ins and Battle of the Bands competitions. He eventually joined his high school jazz band playing drums, with whom he performed on Lincoln Center Stage in NYC for the renowned Essential Ellington Jazz Festival for two consecutive years. That experience, as well as other performances, inspired Yan to continue to pursue music at the University of Minnesota Duluth, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Jazz Studies. There, he studied percussion, drum set and piano with professors Dave Schmalenberger, Ryan Frane, Gene Koshinski, Charles Brooks and Nickolai Zielinski.

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In 2009, Yan relocated to Durham, NC, with his long-time band, Canine Heart Sounds. He quickly became busy working as a studio and touring drummer for many renowned artists, including Ani DiFranco, Indigo Girls, Sylvan Esso, Tallest Man On Earth, Waxahatchee, Hurray For the Riff Raff, Mipso, Basia Bulat, Bowerbirds, Phil Cook, Lost In The Trees and many others. These tours brought Yan to acclaimed music festival stages all over the world, including Prima Vera Sound, Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, Roskilde, Iceland Airwaves, Pitchfork, Big Ears, All Points East, NOLA Jazz Fest, Montreux Jazz Fest, Green Man, Calgary Folk Fest, Pickathon and various others.

Yan also leads his own instrumental group, Quetico, as the sole composer and drummer. Quetico released their sophomore album Know You Are in 2022, which was followed by a festival performance curated by Durham record label Psychic Hotline. Quetico shared the stage with acclaimed artists like Arooj Aftab, Bartees Strange, Indigo De Souza, Lambchop and many others.

Starting back at Schmitt Music during his freshman year of college and continuing throughout his career, Yan has maintained a strong passion for teaching music. He loves sharing his musical approaches, ranging from improvisational skills to traditional technique to navigating the music industry. Yan’s main goal with every lesson is to maintain excitement, focus and creativity. He hopes to inspire each student to set individual goals and eventually create their own unique, musical voice.