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...
Read moreHybrid Drum Set Set-Up
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...
Read moreBeing Flexible
I am fortunate enough to play with various musicians in many different groups. Sometimes I’m familiar with the group, but I haven’t done the gig with a particular bass player, e.g. We have both done this gig, but with other players. What can be...
Read moreDoing My Job
At the end of the gig last night, I was told by a fellow band member that by listening to me he always knew where he was in the music. It’s a nice compliment. It’s also my job – at least that’s how I look at it. With a 10-piece big band playing...
Read moreListening While You Drum
I played three very different gigs this past weekend. The first one was with a blues/R&B band. At the second gig, I was the sub for a smooth jazz group. The third gig was with a 10-piece big band playing Brecker Brothers tunes as well as some...
Read moreWhere Do You Feel the Beat?
At a gig recently, the guitarist started pretty much every song by himself and then the band would join in. He was playing an acoustic steel string guitar and had a piece of wood on the floor with a microphone on it. He would tap his right foot...
Read moreAt the Gig with Your Metronome
I played a big band gig last night that was lots of fun. It was my first time with this band and there were no rehearsals. I sight read the entire gig. There was a set list with not only the names of the tunes (and their corresponding numbers in...
Read moreRunning on Empty
Sometimes, life gets busy between late night gigs, early rehearsals, family commitments, etc. I find that going and going for days on end can be draining and I can feel as if I’m running on empty. I don’t like this feeling, but I have learned...
Read morePlaying What You Do Not Practice
I love to practice drums! Sometimes, it’s frustrating and other times invigorating, and sometimes it’s somewhere in between. Regardless, I enjoy being on the drum set. The actual feeling that comes from striking a drum is very satisfying and I...
Read moreJazz Drumming
I just had the opportunity to play a nice jazz gig in a great venue backing up a jazz pianist. It was a classic jazz piano trio – piano, bass and drums. We played standards and one original composition. There was no rehearsal for this gig! I went...
Read moreFollow-up to The “Count Off” – Counting a Tune In
I seem to have made an assumption in my prior post when talking about how to count off a tune or how to count in a tune. My apologies. I described how to click your sticks together while counting so that the band can start together. I failed to...
Read moreThe “Count Off” – Counting a Tune In
Many times, as drummers, the band leader looks to us to count off the tune so that everyone starts together and also so that the tune has a groove from the first note. I find that I like this approach as it gives me a chance to think about the...
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