The Gig Log: Sam Payne and Savoy

It was a pleasure to play with Sam Payne a few weeks ago, and I was lucky enough to get the call this week to pinch hit for his band Savoy, playing alongside guitar great Joshua Payne (also Sam's brother) and bassist Ryan Tilby. The performance was in downtown Salt Lake City, as part of the summer Temple Square Performances.

The set was mostly jazz - some standards as well as Sam's originals - with a couple of his folk tunes thrown in. It's always amazing to me that I can play the same tune hundreds of times, but it always sounds different, especially with different musicians. Not only did Sam's vocals make each tune sound as if it was written specifically for him, the solos and ensemble playing of Ryan and Joshua gave our little quartet a very unique sound.

The venue was a beautiful park in the very heart of the city. It was a sweltering evening, but by the time things kicked off, we at least had some shade on the stage, surrounded by trees on three sides. The heat notwithstanding (not to mention there was another large concert going on a few blocks away), we had an audience of several hundred, and they were very friendly and supportive.

All in all, it was a lot of fun.



Things I learned: I need to practice A LOT MORE. My endurance, especially in the ride hand and hi-hat foot, was not up to where it needs to be for a high-energy jazz combo. My solos were barely adequate, and I struggled to stay on the form of the tunes in terms of phrasing and melody in my solos. And, finally (for this gig, anyway), I just need to know more jazz, mo' bettuh. In terms of head tunes and forms, my knowledge is definitely lacking.

So, here's to more practice, and a better gig next time.

Happy drumming!

Weekly Recap: 2/27 - 3/2

It was an epic week on the blog. Catch up on anything you missed.

Gear Up: Drumheads - Snare

Ryan Tilby dishes on drummers

Beyond the Kit: Visualization

Bag of Tricks: KT Tunstall - "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree"

Friday Feature: Carter Beauford

Thanks for stopping by. Have a great weekend!

Pro musician Ryan Tilby dishes on drummers

I asked Ryan Tilby, one of my favorite musicians - not to mention one of the smartest guys I know - to answer a few questions about drummers. Here's how it went down:

Here are my opinions on drummers.  I'll bet, as a bassist, I've worked with more drummers than any drummer.  I call my drummer friends when I need the low-down on a bassist.

What characteristics and attributes make a drummer "good?"

No matter the genre, style, or stage size, every drummer has a job.  The bass player (me!), has a job.  The front man has a job.  My favorite drummers have this uncanny ability to know just what their job is, do it effortlessly, and not step on the toes of the bassist, singer, etc. who's trying to do his job.  It takes a lot of listening, and a lot of knowing how the guys around you are thinking.

Aside from playing ability and musical skills, what makes a drummer easy to work with?

Stereotypes would have you believe that drummers, if they show up at all, will be late, lazy, loud, or drunk.  You'll notice that none of those have much to do with time, technique, or tone. While those things are important, remember that the guys you're playing with (or that hired you!) don't know much about your bearing edges and hand-hammering.  They just know what it feels like to play with you, and more of those feelings come from off-stage than on it.

What's the best compliment you could give a drummer?

As a bass player, if a drummer is listening to my lines and either locking in with me (with his kick!) or syncing with something complimentary, I'm super impressed.  Flattered, even.  Drummers that listen seem almost "invisible".  In my opinion, an invisible drummer is doing his job.

What's your most frequent complaint about drummers?

I'm scared by the number of drummers that don't know anything about bass playing, and vice-versa.  The relationship between kick and bass is CRUCIAL to any song, any genre.  There seems to be an influx of younger drummers right now that place kicks wherever they want them, and never in the same place twice.  Go spend $10 on the John Mayer Trio TRY! album and have your life changed.

Name the top thing that will keep a drummer from getting called for another gig.

Too many notes played too loudly.

Anything else you want to add, warn against or point out?

No matter what you play, expand your toolbox of true-to-the-style techniques and LISTEN!

Signed,

A working bassist.

The Gig Log: Cedar City

Clinic at Canyon View HS

It's a gig of sorts, for my work. Last week I had the good fortune to travel to Cedar City with Ryan Tilby and Aaron Ashton to work with orchestra students at Cedar High and Middle Schools, and Canyon View High and Middle Schools. It was awesome. Great teachers and students, and a lot of fun besides.

Our job was to talk to string players (violin, viola, cello and bass) about folk and Celtic music, and teach them some basic improvisation. Aside from that, I had the opportunity to work on some drum kits.

I've included just a few pics of one of the clinics and a couple of drum kits.

CVHS' Yamaha Kit

Aaron Ashton

Ryan Tilby

CHS' Pearl Masters Custom Kit

Pearl Kit from the back

Gear Up: Drum Dial

I'm having a serious conundrum. To Drum Dial or not to Drum Dial?

The Drum Dial is a relatively simple tool (similar to a durometer) that measures the tension of a drumhead. You use it by placing it on the drumhead next to each tension rod, relatively close to the hoop.

In theory, when you get the tension exactly the same around the entire head, it's in tune. Of course, you have to take into account the type of drum, its depth, the type of heads, and the relationship of the heads to each other (resonant to batter).

Drum tuning purists (yep, there really are such people - including me, to a degree) argue that tools like the Drum Dial are "cheating," for lack of a better term. They say that you should be able to tune your drums yourself, by ear. And if you can't, well, then you don't deserve to sound good. And I know plenty of skilled drummers who have never learned to tune their own drums. They play great, but sound awful.


I mean, hey, if Peter Erskine* uses it, it can't be all bad, right?

My DW Kit

About six months ago I put all new batter heads on my DW drum kit. As an experiment, I used the Drum Dial on all of the heads, both sides. Also, I used the recommended tensions from the Drum Dial web site.  I was pretty happy with the results in my studio, but I needed to get out on a gig with them, so I took them to the very next show I had.

I got an interesting reaction from the bass player on the gig (Ryan Tilby). While we were sound checking, he turned to me and said, "Wow. That sounds exactly like a backline kit."**

Truth be told, the heads required quite a bit of fine tuning after using the Drum Dial. Just having the dial read the same number at each lug wasn't enough to get the head to sound "clear" (without waves or beats) and open. That part had to be done by ear. But the dial did drastically speed up the process of getting the drumheads to the fine tuning phase.

To me, I think that's the answer. The tools we have are still only tools, so the actual work of getting your drums to sound the way you want them to is still up to you. It's like fixing cars. Sure, we have power tools, hydraulic equipment and sophisticated computers, but the work is still in the hands of the mechanic.

The Drum Dial, and tools like it, are just a part of your arsenal to achieve great sounding drums.

That being said, I'd love to have a spreadsheet of every drummer in the world that showed which drum they're using, what heads, and at what tension. Then I could sound like anybody I want. Does that seem like giving up too many trade secrets?

What do you think?

As always, happy drumming!

*If you don't know who Peter Erskine is or aren't familiar with his work, click his name above. He has been a huge, positive influence on many a drummer, including me.


**A backline kit refers to a rented drum set that is tuned in a very standard, generic way. The drums will sound good, but usually not distinctive. It is left up to the drummer or tech to individualize the sounds to the specific style or venue. 

Ryan Tilby - Amazing Dobro

While I'm at it, I can't leave this one out. This was the 2009 Blue Sky Faculty Jam/Concert at Westminster, and the first time I'd ever met Ryan Tilby. This performance left me speechless.

Keep in mind that this was recorded on somebody's cell phone.

Thank you, Aaron and Ryan.

For best results - seriously - put on some great headphones or the best speakers you can find, and turn it up LOUD.

The Gig Log - Aaron Ashton Band: Blue Sky Music Camp at Westminster College

Occasionally I have the privilege of playing with the Aaron Ashton Band. Check him out here. These videos are from a gig we played in July 2011 as part of Blue Sky Music Camps.

Featured in this video are (from your left to right): Sam Runolfson - Cello, Kendra Lowe - Keyboard/violin/banjo, Aaron Ashton - Violin, me, Ryan Tilby - Bass and Austin Weyand - Guitar. Easily the most talented band I've ever played with.



Also worth noting is that this was an audience of maybe 80 people, and they were LOUD and friendly. Awesome night!

The audio isn't as good on the next one, but it's one of my favorite tunes to play with Aaron.




As always, happy drumming!