Dafnis Prieto is a gifted educator who has conducted numerous master classes, clinics, and workshops. Since 2005, he has been teaching jazz drums and ensemble classes as a Visiting Professor at New York University (NYU).

In his drum classes, he teaches students how to use traditional Cuban rhythms in an innovative way, from a new perspective of sounds, with improvisation being a very important factor. He also demonstrates how to construct a drum solo, building from small phrases to more developed ideas.

In the ensembles, Prieto teaches students how to play and develop different styles within the Cuban or Latin traditions and how to combine them with other genres, e.g. in a jazz or a Western classical context.   He demonstrates the use of improvisation as a fundamental component and teaches how to construct a composition and change it into different styles of music by using alternative rhythms.

Watch a video of Dafnis Prieto’s drum master class at Loyola University in New Orleans
Watch a video of a master class at the PASIC 2008 Conference in Austin, TX