6-year-old drums up YouTube fame

When 6-year-old Christopher Ebel sits down at a drum set, he can barely reach the upper cymbals. He rises off the stool and stands on the tiptoes of his right foot, a balancing act complicated by the fact that he's also keeping his left foot pumping the bass-drum pedal while both drumsticks are flailing away with machine-gun rapidity.

But none of this has kept the Andover youngster from reaching an ever-growing YouTube audience. A video of him playing along with his parents' polka band six weeks ago has drawn nearly 50,000 views with "likes" outpacing "dislikes" at a rate of 99 to 1.

Asked about drumming, Christopher said, "I love it." As for the attention that has come with it, he wouldn't mind if it leads to a music career someday, but only if his first dream -- playing for the Minnesota Twins -- doesn't pan out.

Craig Ebel confirmed that given a choice between the drums and T-ball, Christopher always opts for the ball game.

"I told him that if he makes it to the big leagues, he can play baseball first and then become a musician," Ebel said with a chuckle.

The YouTube video, which was shot by a visiting music producer from Nashville, shows Christopher joyfully playing along with his parents' polka band. His father said they never dreamed it would lead to national attention.

"This took us by surprise," Ebel said. "When the video was posted, it got a handful of hits. Then it started getting an average of 500 hits a day; then 800. Now it's up 1,000 a day."

"He's been playing the drums since he was 2," his dad said. "We've developed this pattern where we end the first set by having him come up and play a couple of songs with us. The audience seems to enjoy it."

Kevin Sage certainly did. In town visiting from Tennessee, he asked the Ebels if Christopher could do another number while he filmed it from backstage so he could get right next to the drum set.

Initially, the Ebels were reluctant. For starters, Christopher's musical chops might belie his youth, but his ability to focus is typical for his age.

"Two songs is about all he can handle," his dad said. "Plus, we had no idea what this guy planned to do with the video."

Sage posted it on YouTube after adding a gushing introduction in which he says, "Check this kid out. This is amazing." (The "Ellen" he refers to in the intro is Ellen DeGeneres, who had put out a call that her TV show was considering doing a segment on child performers.)

"We're very proud of him, but if he does want to become a musician, he has a long road ahead of him," Ebel said.

Then again, he's got music in his genes. Both sets of grandparents also were in the business: Craig's family built and ran the Bel-Rae Ballroom in Mounds View, and Lori's parents in New Ulm founded the Marv Nissel Band.

Most comments about the video are positive. "A smile on my face the whole time," one observer writes. "You made my day," adds another. But, typical of the Internet world, there are sour grapes, including a complaint that Christopher's accompaniment is "too busy."

As a professional musician, Ebel actually agrees with the critic's observation: "Yeah, he throws in some stuff that's not supposed to be there."

But as a father, he has a different perspective.