Rob Knopper is a percussionist with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Since joining the orchestra in 2011, he has been featured on the Grammy-winning recording of Der ring des Nibelungen, 60 Minutes with the Met Orchestra, and in The Met: Live in HD movie theater presentations worldwide. Rob’s debut album, delécluse: douze études for snare drum (to be released in October 2014), is the first recording of the snare drum’s most influential and elaborate composition. It was recorded in audio and HD video at The New World Center in Miami Beach, Florida, where Rob previously held a position with the New World Symphony. Rob has also performed with the All-Star Orchestra, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Pacific Music Festival Orchestra, and as the timpanist of the National Repertory Orchestra. As an educator, he is on faculty at the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festiva. In addition, he has taught clinics and masterclasses at the Juilliard Summer Percussion Seminar, Aspen Music Festival, Boston University Tanglewood Institute, National Repertory Orchestra, and the Interlochen Arts Academy. During the 2013-2014 season, Rob designed and created METOrchestraMusicians.org, which has been featured in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. Rob is an avid ragtime xylophonist, songwriter, drumset player, and guitarist. He plays in the band The Paisley Fields, based in Brooklyn. Rob graduated from The Juilliard School in 2009 where he studied with Greg Zuber, Joseph Pereira, and Daniel Druckman. Visit percussionhacker.com for video, lessons, and the blog percussion hacker.