The sound of drums will ring through St George’s on Saturday as students of Eddie Ming showcase their skills at a fundraising event.

Professor Eddie Ming’s Vegan, Jazz and Percussion Gathering, scheduled to take place at Mr Ming’s Drum School on Old Military Road, St George’s, will feature a range of vegan dishes, along with live music.

The event, supported by the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, will include performances by the drum school’s ensemble, Mañana, along with jazz guitarist Gene “Stacker” Joell.

Mr Ming, a chef as well as a drum teacher, said the fundraiser will offer attendees a taste of Bermuda’s drum talent, and vegan food, while supporting the drum school.

“We do about three fundraisers a year,” Mr Ming said. “That’s what it takes to prevent me from having to put up the prices every five minutes.

“Families are the backbone of the school, and I have got my programme set up where we can cater to low-income families.”

Chloé Baron, a student at the school, said that the reasonable costs were part of the reason why she decided to sign up for drum school.

“One of the first things Eddie mentioned to me was that he wanted to keep the fees low so it’s accessible to single-parent homes and he didn’t want to increase it,” she said.

“As someone who did guitar lessons in a single-parent home growing up, it was so expensive. If I wasn’t really interested, I couldn’t keep it up. We didn’t have the option.”

Rebecca May, another student, added: “You pay your monthly fee but Eddie always says to come back tomorrow or come back more.

“He tries to get you in there as much as he possibly can so you can keep getting better.”

Ms May, who hails from Britain, said one of the highlights of the school was the sense of community.

“When we have these events and people come from St George’s and the parents and grandparents of the students are all together, it starts to feel like I’m part of the community a bit more,” she said.

Ms Baron urged the public to come out to support the school, saying: “It is going to be a really interesting event. There’s literally nothing like it on the island.

“It is a really cool culture that Eddie has developed at the Rhythm Lab and it’s really heart-warming.

“At the end of it you see all these students and what they have learnt, and just having live music is something you don’t always get in Bermuda.”

The Vegan, Jazz and Percussion Gathering is scheduled to start at 7pm on Saturday at Eddie Ming’s Drum School at 6 Old Military Road, St George’s, with doors opening at 6.30pm.

• For more information or to buy tickets, contact Mr Ming at emingflatride@btenet.bm or call 297-2874/297-8422