Chris Collins
percussion . xylophone . vibes . marimba . drums

I was born in New York City (The Bronx). My family moved to Texas when I was entering the 6th grade and this is when I formally started studying music. I graduated from the University of North Texas with a degree in Music Composition. After graduation, I focused on performing with various bands for a few years. I started teaching lessons during my time at UNT and turned my focus back to teaching when I found DSM in 1995. I truly enjoy working with students of all ages and backgrounds. While I hope to assist my students with reaching their goals, I feel that I learn a great deal from every student as well. When not at DSM and DLP, my wife Cindy and I enjoy spending time together, spending time with friends and family, listening to music, and watching sports. Hockey is our favorite and we both root for the Dallas Stars and the Texas Tornado, a junior league team in our hometown. For baseball, I am still a New York Yankees fan and Cindy, a native Texan, has become a fan as well. Year after year, Bob Lawrence continues to try to "bring me over from the dark side" to become a Rangers fan. However, I keep telling him that, despite all he has accomplished, he will never succeed at this task. For football, I somehow ended up a Dallas Cowboys fan and Cindy is a New York Giants fan (that seems backwards). She says it is because she likes Eli Manning but I think Bob somehow convinced her to root for the Giants.

Warm Regards,
Chris Collins