Richard Stirling

Richard Stirling is a full-time musician who specializes in drums and guitar. From sold-out concerts to session recording in professional studios, music is his craft, and making it has filled the last 20 years of his life. He teaches while also writing songs and performing live in a variety of bands and genres, which keeps him fully immersed in the music he teaches.

Richard has taught drums and guitar at Leaside Music School for over five years, working with students from 3 to 93 years old. All genres are welcome in his studio, from jazz and rock to Latin and drum line.

He studied drums with Robin Boers at the Ontario College of Percussion and went on to study music, business and classic literature at Wilfrid Laurier University.

On stage and on record. Richard co-founded the rock band The Thick in 2015, while still in high school. Ten years on, the band has recorded two full-length albums and two EPs, built a catalogue of 30 songs with hundreds of thousands of streams, headlined a dozen tours and played festivals such as Gussapalooza. In 2026 The Thick was a finalist in the 97.7 HTZ-FM Rock Search. Richard co-writes every song, from lyrics to riffs to beats, and his drumming is the backbone of the band's sound. His other credits include Soda, TNTRM, Mindfunkt, the Tony Rosenberg Jazz Quintet and a 2025 Cameron House residency with Freeman Dre and The Kitchen Party.

In the studio and beyond. In 2023 Richard founded Krash Studios, an event management and audio recording company. He has engineered albums there, including Straight from the Womb by Mindfunkt and Hot on Top by Soda, and has organized hundreds of concerts and four Canadian national tours. He has also hosted a drum recording clinic at Recording Arts Canada College, a funk groove clinic at Humber College and workshops at Leaside Music School.

Students of every age and level are welcome. Book a free trial lesson with Richard and find out where drums or guitar can take you.