In 1959, when Barry was 13 years old, his mother took him to the drive-in theater to see the movie, "The Gene Krupa Story". Barry was so excited by Krupa’s drumming that he didn’t sleep for two days. And so Barry began teaching himself to play by drumming on cardboard boxes that his mother brought home from the grocery store every week. A fan of drummer Cozy Cole's hit record Topsy, Barry obsessively played along with the "45" until he eventually wore out the grooves!

    Barry joined his first band, The Ampegs, in high school and then went on to play with popular New Hampshire bands: 101 Gold Street, The Terry Langford Quartet, Shep Spinney, Shady Road, and Tin Pan Alley.

    Inspired by his own first teachers, Eddie Nicholas (at Ted Herbert’s Music) and Joe Morello (Dave Brubeck's drummer), Barry has been teaching private drum lessons since 1980--initially at French’s Music in Concord NH, and presently at Strings & Things Music in Concord NH.