Dyersburg, TN - October 29, 2025 - Italian transplant Andrea Gatti started his business in 2021 after having moved to the United States from Italy with his family. Upon establishing himself in the states, Gatti secured employment as a music instructor at Christ Classical Academy (CCA). It wasn't long before Gatti was able to collaborate with CCA on a partnership that would give way to his first American business pursuit, Drum Arts.
"I used to be a professional musician in Italy and that was something that I wanted to bring to Dyersburg. I always had a passion about training, music and worship, so I wanted to bring those parts of me to Dyersburg. Also, there's no music school here," explained Gatti.
"I'm very thankful for Christ Classical. It's a blessing."
While Gatti says Drum Arts caters for ages six and up, working one-on-one with young adults has provided him with a fulfilling creative outlet.
"I feel like I am able to get really artistic with training with adults, young adults, and teens who just have a lot of passion for music," said Gatti.
"I believe I can best teach a person through one-on-one lessons," he explained. "With group lessons we have different levels, so I have to do something that offers compromise. I like investing in the person. I feel that it is like a discipleship, and I want to invest in my students so I prefer one-on-one."
Drum Arts also hosts annual summer camps providing weeklong classes where students participate in half-hour lessons every day.
Gatti says the summer camp provides kids with an opportunity to try out the drums to decide if they like it or not.
Down the road, Gatti says his vision is to open a music school where all students can train. Having served as a missionary for ten years in Italy, his vision is to bring together his music business with his love for ministry.
"Worship is my area, so I would like to join the two," he shared. "My goal is to help students express the beauty that is inside of them. They have creatively and I am giving them the tools to express that creativity."
Gatti says that what makes him take pride in being a small business owner is starting something from nothing, giving it character and structure and seeing it grow.
"I would love to eventually employ other teachers and actually become a school. But for now, just having a business established for percussion and drums is a pleasure."
Learn more about Drum Arts by visiting their website at: https://www.drumartstn.com/
About The Mill Workspace: The Mill Workspace, a DBA of Northwest Tennessee Entrepreneurship, Inc. is a nonprofit 501(c)3 entrepreneur center located in Dyersburg, TN and focused on serving entrepreneurs in the nine counties of Northwest Tennessee. They help businesses through one-on-one counseling, workshops, and multi-week programs all designed to help businesses in the region start up and grow.
Programs at The Mill are funded in part by a grant from LaunchTN.
