Lately, I have been able to get in some extended hours practicing on my drum set. All I can say is WOW. I love the feeling that comes from this. I do take breaks, but I’m trying to get to the point during the practice session where I can feel a warm sensation in my arms. I love this feeling — being able to literally feel the blood flowing. I get a similar feeling in my legs when I’m on the elliptical during a good workout.

I’ve been starting on the snare drum — beginning at a medium tempo and with a metronome. The Tommy Igoe warm-ups from his DVD entitled, Great Hands for a Lifetime are fantastic and I highly recommend checking them out. My focus is on staying as relaxed as possible and getting a good sound from the drums. I am also concentrating on playing just a bit softer. This has been helping with that relaxation while playing.

I like playing on drums as compared to a pad, but there are times when my pad is getting a workout as well. Basically — whatever works at the time.

There’s a nice blurb about me and Gregory Tech Drum Center in the Winter 2012 Berklee Today alumni paper (bt). Thanks!

http://www.berklee.edu/bt/233/alumnotes.html

During drum lessons, it has been my experience that many people tend to stop after playing something that was not written — a mistake. This could be on the drum set or a snare drum piece. My take on this is that unless it’s the same mistake every time, don’t stop. Keep counting, concentrating, and make every effort to play the part correctly the next time around. I am a big fan of practicing as if I’m performing. Yes, mistakes do happen. Yet, in live performances most of the audience (and even some members of the band) will not hear the little things that we musicians think are big things. I am my own worst critic and I know other musicians who are also like me. I want to make things great and perfect, but we are all human. At this point, I am most concerned with music making as compared to getting down on myself for a mistake. I want my students to keep the big picture in mind at all times. Learn the rhythms, grooves and stickings, and keep going!

I have written in the past about being able to play the drums at different dynamic levels, and I feel that that’s an important part of learning the drums. I try very hard to know my limit as to how hard to hit. I don’t hit hard to begin with, and I get uncomfortable if I feel I have to “pound” the drums. I do not like competing with another musician on the same stage, especially when it comes to volume. If someone is playing loudly and the leader has tried addressing this issue, there’s not much I can do. I can also make the request that this person turn down a bit, and that may or may not help the situation. In fact, some people get bugged if you ask them to turn down.

The one thing I will not do is to simply start playing louder. I always try to blend with the entire band. It has been my experience that if one person is too loud (and then if I get louder), then the whole band tends to get louder. When the band gets louder, then that one person will (most likely) get even louder. And on and on… What I do in this situation is to simply know that I’m at an appropriate volume and I stay there. The band will tend to stay at their current level and let that one person be too loud. It doesn’t sound great and it is not professional on that one musician’s part, but it does happen. I’d rather have that one player stand out, then to have the band be too loud for the room. Luckily, this happens less frequently when I play with professionals. Looking back, I wish I had taken this approach back in the garage years ago.

I recorded yesterday with a 10-piece band called What’s Cookin’. We laid down the tracks at Mile High Music Recording Studio just outside of Denver – in Wheat Ridge. Some tunes were straight ahead jazz and others were more funk-oriented. I had been considering taking two different bass drums (see the post entitled “Hybrid Drum Set Set-Up”). I ended up opting for one bass drum, for simplicity’s sake. I took the bigger (22×18) of the two. The engineer was happy with that choice. He indicated that he could scale back the bigger drum for the jazz tunes much easier than trying to beaf up a smaller bass drum for the funkier stuff. Whew! Good choice.

Putting the bass drum size to the side, I play differently on the bass drum when playing different styles anyway. That helps, as well. Please check out another post of mine, entitled “Felt Rather Than Heard” for a discussion about this.

This music was hard and fun at the same time. Now — off to a gig with that same band for more fun!

I first heard a flat ride cymbal many years ago while listening to a Chick Corea album entitled Return to Forever. The great Brazilian percussionist, Airto Moreira, played drum set on this recording. His feel and groove on the drum set still amaze me to this day. One thing in particular that was very unique to me at the time, was Airto’s ride cymbal. It was not like anything I had heard before. There was so much stick definition! It was airy, tight, dry and just wonderful. I had no idea that he was using a flat ride or flat top ride cymbal. There’s no bell on this kind of ride cymbal, thus giving it these different sonic properties. It was quite a few years later that I learned of Roy Haynes and his use of a flat ride on another Chick Corea classic recording, Now He Sings, Now He Sobs. This recording has been credited as the first recording of a flat ride. Wow!

I take a flat ride these days to my jazz gigs — it doesn’t fit so well with louder groups. I continue to completely dig this sound and sometimes even use more than one at a time. I saw the Pat Metheny Group with Antonio Sanchez a few years back, and was inspired not only by the playing but also with the setup that Antonio used — two flat rides. His predecessor in that group, Paul Wertico, did this as well. Some of those fast ride patterns are performed by having both hands on two different cymbals at the same time. It’s not as easy as it may sound to make those fast patterns work well like this. It’s time to practice again!

I’m doing a recording soon and I’m really looking forward to it! Some tunes are very much in the jazz tradition, while others require more of a pocket-oriented drumming approach. So, bring two drum sets? Well, if I was paying for the recording then, yes! However, I think I’m going for more of a “hybrid” drum set. I’m really enjoying my Yamaha PHX kit, but the bass drum isn’t what I’d prefer to play for the jazzier stuff. I’m thinking that the band could record all of the funk stuff and then take a break. During the break, I’ll swap out the bass drum for a smaller bass drum without a port in the front head. I’ll also change a few cymbals, and possibly the snare drum. If we start with the jazz tunes, then I’ll simply do this in reverse.

I’m calling the recording engineer to go over this first. I’m sure the “no surprises” clause applies here! It shouldn’t take too long to make these few changes, and then I’ll end up with a different sounding kit without too much of a hassle. I’m still playing around with this at my teaching studio, and it’s coming together nicely. Fun will be had!

It’s time for my toms to sing a bit more, so it’s time for new drum heads. For some reason, I somewhat dread changing drum heads. It’s almost like saying goodbye to a friend. However, I love hearing the difference after changing to new heads. They feel better, they sound better, and just make me want to play the drums even more. I don’t have a hard and fast rule about when to know it’s time, but I seem to know. Usually, after changing heads, I say something along the lines like, “why did I wait so long?”

On the other hand, I know other drummers that hardly ever change drum heads. At least part of their sound seems to be based on the years of dirt and wear that the drum heads endure. I believe that whatever works for you is the best thing. You may not know what is best for you until you change a few drum heads, and hear for yourself. Don’t part with the old heads. They can be used as spares, or they can be put back on the drums!

I always enjoy the first get together with a prospective new student. Like many teachers, I offer a complimentary first lesson. At the end of the lesson, students will have a good idea of my approach to the instrument, and I should have a good idea of their abilities. We discuss their interests, strengths and weaknesses and, together, we can set realistic goals.

It’s at the first meeting that we both get a chance to get to know each other. I really try to understand where they’re at, musically, and go from there. For me, it’s mostly about finding a comfort level and relating to them. This applies as much to the five year-olds as it does to the forty-five year-olds. We’re all people, and I always respect that.

In general, when I play jazz (bebop or “straight ahead”) I like approaching the bass drum with the “felt rather than heard” approach. I play quarter notes very lightly on every beat when playing time. This technique is called “feathering” the bass drum. If the bass drum is not played at all, then the music sounds empty. If I play too loudly on the bass drum, it sounds… well, too loud and too heavy.

I’ll play this way even if it’s not a jazz gig, but the leader calls a jazz tune. The group immediately can feel the difference when I do this, and (usually) it’s appreciated. The feel is much lighter and the time tends to float.

This technique took me quite a while to master and to achieve a certain comfort level. Be patient with yourself and listen to the true masters of this music. Swing hard and quietly (especially that bass drum)!