Gear Up: What's in your tool bag?

"If you only have a hammer, everything looks like a nail." - Traditional Proverb*

Any musician knows that you can never have enough stuff. Whether it's reeds, mouthpieces, picks or strings, you need tools at your disposal. For percussionists, this means sticks and mallets - and a lot of them - and a variety of other small instruments and tools.

One of my students recently asked me which was my most expensive single bag or case. I pointed to three: a cymbal bag (lots of metal means lots of dough!), DW kick drum, and my mallet bag. The last one surprised him.

"Isn't that just all your sticks and stuff?" Yes. It is. And it's maybe my most valuable bag - if not monetarily, then certainly practically.

Think of yourself like a construction worker.** Even if you only have one specific job, like framing, you are going to need a wide range of tools. Hammers, a variety of saws, measuring tapes, levels, squares, nail guns and air compressor (if you're using pneumatics), and more - not to mention special tools for problem solving, like a jigsaw or power drill, and all of the accessories. And if a tool fails, you'd better have a backup. Can't be running to the hardware store while your partner holds up a wall!

For every tool you don't have, you either can't do the specific task, or you'll do it with the wrong tool. And if you do it with the wrong tool, you're not likely to do it well - if you can do it at all - and it will be a lot harder than it needs to be.

Drummers and percussionists are actually a lot like the construction worker in our example. We need to have tools in our bag that will allow us to play a wide variety of styles and instruments at a moment's notice on any gig.

You can find literally thousands of lists of tools you should have in your gig bag, and many of them are extensive. Specific brands and models are the subject of another blog post (or several), but here's a bare minimum list of a few things I think are critical on any and every gig for a percussionist.

Light, medium and heavy drum set sticks.

At a minimum, you should have three pairs of kit sticks in good repair. Not only will you face different styles - like jazz and hard rock - you'll face different volume needs, environments, and preferences of band leaders, just to name a few. If nothing else, you can answer a confident yes, when the inevitable question is asked: "Hey, do you have something lighter/heavier you can use?" Besides, it's easier to actually play louder or softer if you have heavier or lighter sticks.

Brushes and rods.
Aside from their obvious tonal and stylistic uses, brushes and rods provide great options to get to lower volumes without having to use 0.05" high strokes. In super low volume situations, you'll need rods or brushes just to get below the tolerance of, say, the mother of the bride. You might end up even using your hands!

Timpani mallets.
More than one pair is preferable, but you'll need something in the medium range. You might end up playing timpani (but if you're the timpanist on the gig, you need a very different bag of tools - again, for another blog post), but more likely you'll play cymbal rolls and your drum kit with them. Because of that, buy something cheap that you won't mind getting beat up, lost or broken by the bass player. I use these. They're passable for rolls, and they sound great on my toms.

Keyboard mallets.
Again, at bare minimum, you need a pair of something either cord or yarn wrapped that could be used on vibraphone, marimba or xylophone in a pinch. A set of four would be even better. You'll also need a pair of phenolic or acrylic mallets that can be used on bells (glockenspiel) or xylophone. They can also be used on wood blocks and other small percussion if needed.

Shakers.
Egg shaker? Yes. That, too. I'd also recommend at least one plastic barrel shaker for medium to soft volumes, and a metal barrel for louder settings. As a side note, try practicing basic rock beats with your hi-hat hand playing eighth or sixteenth notes with a shaker instead of your normal hat pattern with a stick.

Pencils, pen, sharpie marker and highlighter.
No, I'm not kidding, and keep the pencils sharpened. In fact, get one of these and throw it in your bag, too. Most musicians have at least learned to carry a pencil, but the other tools are useful if you need to mark up your music, quickly write out a chart or sign for your check. And at some point, you're going to sign an autograph. Pull out the sharpie and make the kid happy, okay? You're the drummer!



Ear plugs.
As a very young man, I got asked by the coolest band in town to sit in on a "jam." It happened to take place at a new local studio, and we played Voodoo Chile at volume eleven for forty-five minutes. It was my first real hearing damage. I would have killed for a pair of ninety-nine cent foam ear plugs.


Miscellaneous tools.
A drum key (or two), a roll of gaff tape, a note pad (legal size), your business card(!), a metronome, and anything else you've ever needed on a gig and didn't have.

All of my recommendations come from personal experience. I've played hundreds and hundreds of gigs over the last fifteen years or so, and every item on this list has been needed on at least several occasions. Over time, you'll develop your own list of must-haves, and you'll never leave home with out it.

As the ol' Boy Scouts say, be prepared!

*If you're a nerd (like me), there's some interesting and brief background on this proverb here.

**Full disclosure: I actually worked a construction job for my father, who was a general contractor, for many years. We built homes. Lots of homes. It was my dad who taught me the value of not only having great tools and the right tools, but also taking care of them. 

Practice LESS. (Wait....what?)

Like all music majors, I performed solo recitals at the end of my junior and senior years in college. The experience of prepping for a recital is excruciating, and it feels like every waking minute is devoted to learning, cleaning and rehearsing every aspect of the performance.

Just a few weeks prior to my senior recital, I was seriously struggling with a difficult snare drum solo, and the stress was really getting to me. I was practicing no less than an hour and a half per day on just this one piece (in addition to hours on marimba, vibraphone, timpani, rudimental snare drum and drum set), and I was making very little progress. I was frustrated, and getting very desperate.

At my weekly lesson, I presented the problem to my instructor, Dr. Dennis D. Griffin. He suggested something that sort of blew my mind. It went something like this:

Dr. G: How long are you practicing this piece every day?

K: About ninety minutes, give or take.

Dr. G: And how long do you spend warming up - doing exercises and rudiments and the like?

K: About fifteen minutes.

Dr. G: Ok. Here's what I want you to do. Practice the solo less. Spend at least half of your time on technique exercises, things like the Stick Control book. Make sure you're using exercises that apply to the challenging aspects of the solo.

At this point I sort of freaked out.

K: Practice....less? But, Dr. G, I only have a few weeks until my recital! I just CANNOT give up the practice time on the solo.

Dr. G: Try it for just one week. Give it as much focus and determination as you can, and if it doesn't help you in one week, you can go back to doing it your way.

Needless to say, I felt pretty hopeless. How could I possibly make progress on the hardest solo I'd ever played in my life by practicing less? And a lot less, at that?

But the good Dr. Griffin had never led me astray before, so I took his advice and went to work. Over the next week I took apart the solo, broke it down to its elements, and found exercises (mostly out of the Stick Control book, using the slow-fast method as my approach) that applied to each element.

To cut to the chase, it worked. In that week, by practicing my solo for half of my normal time, I made more progress than I had accumulated up to that point. I made my recital deadline, and played the toughest piece of concert snare drum literature of my life - and played it pretty well!

Candidly, it would have been good enough just to make it through my recital, but here's the amazing part: the skills I worked on during that period of time have stayed with me to this day. They have become part of my vocabulary and remained at the tip of my fingers for use not only in formal concert settings, but in my improvising and drum set playing, as well.

There are probably more lessons here than I'm thinking about, but here's the one: Being a great musician is much more about having the skills to construct a variety of musical phrases, sounds and components, rather than knowing a piece or a collection of pieces. You've got to have a repertoire, for sure, but to continue to be expressive and adaptable, you must constantly be building a collection of musical tools.

Musicians often call this their, "toolbox," or, "bag of tricks."

Let's think about it another way.

Did you ever play with Lego's? Imagine if you only had one kind, size or color of Lego block. What could you build? Not much. You would have a limit on what shapes and functions you could construct out of one block.

But what if you had two, or five or a hundred? With every added type, shape, size of block, you exponentially increase what you can build, how it can function, etc.

One more comparison: Basketball. If you only have one move, your defender will easily stop you from scoring, and you'll be an ineffective - not to mention boring - player.

The same is true with your musical skills. If you don't have very many rudiments, sticking patterns, independence skills - even ideas - to draw from, you'll be limited, ineffective, boring, etc. More than that, you'll be frustrated.

Lego's, basketball and music all have this one thing in common - they're more fun when you're better at them. And you're better at them if you have more tools, tricks and skills.

So, long blog post, but short message: Practice less. You'll get more done, and you'll keep it longer.

Happy drumming!

Friday Feature: Diana Krall

Recently I was going through a box in my garage and ran across a pair of concert tickets from the summer of 2004. One of my close friends, also a serious music lover, took me to see Diana Krall for my birthday that year. Diana gave four (FOUR!!!) encores that night.* Just looking at the tickets put a smile on my face and sent me to my stereo to enjoy some tunes.

Diana Krall is at once a throwback to an earlier era and a pioneer into new places and dimensions. Her vocal quality and style of delivery are both timeless and innovative, and her piano stylings are the perfect compliment to her wide-ranging musical forays. As a bonus, she is a beautiful and photogenic person.

Personally, Diana has been my favorite jazz vocalist since the first time I listened to her. And given the musicians she generally plays with (some of whom I'll list below), listening to Diana Krall is both entertaining and educational. It's classic, timeless music.

Not only have I been in love with the voice and music of Diana Krall for years, I've enjoyed listening to the musicians she works with. A partial list includes:

• Peter Erskine
• Jeff Hamilton
• John Clayton
• Anthony Wilson
• Russell Malone
• Christian McBride
• More HERE

As with other Friday Features, I hope you'll do some exploring and get to know the music of Diana Krall for yourself. You will be very richly rewarded.

Happy listening!


*I've been to many, many live shows in my life, from major symphonies to rock, jazz, pop and country acts in the largest and smallest of venues. Even though I love the music and the atmosphere, I'm ready to go home at the end of the night. Not so with Diana Krall. Even after four encores, my hear broke when she said goodnight. I could have listened and enjoyed forever. 

(UPDATED) Friday Feature: Neil Peart of Rush

I while back, I posted about Neil Peart, expressing my respect for him as a person, even if I have been slow to fall in love with his playing and the music of Rush.

This past week I discovered an article on www.drummagazine.com talking about the new album, "Clockwork Angels." The article is absolutely worth reading in its entirety, but there are two points that immediately struck me.

1. Neil Peart considers himself an athlete. As such, he trains his entire body with intense cardio, stretching and yoga, as well as strength training and weight-lifting. He specifically targets areas where drummers commonly have injuries - such as shoulders and elbows - to prevent an injury to  himself. This, in my opinion, is one of the key reasons he continues to innovate and play at the highest level in Rush's fourth decade.
2. To quote the article directly, "Master Player = Master Student" Peart is one of the great examples of someone who is never satisfied or complacent with their playing. Repeatedly over the course of his very long, illustrious career, Peart has, "surrendered," to great (and I do mean great) teachers who have helped take him to the next level. 

To summarize, treat your body as well as you can, and always be learning. Could it really be that simple?

Neil Peart continues to earn my respect as a human being, and my love of his playing, lyrics and the music of Rush are constantly growing. 

Thank you, Mr. Peart. You're worthy of your rock star and idol status!

Here is the original post:

Friday Feature: Neil Peart of Rush

You know how tall people always get asked if they play basketball? I have twin cousins who are 6’6”, and they do not play basketball, nor do they want to. They humor people all the time who ask the question, and privately want to slap them silly. 

Well, it’s like that for drummers, too. The minute somebody finds out you play, they’re all, “So, hey, what about Neil Peart, huh? You must love Rush, right?” I’m the kid who deliberately avoided all things Rush and Peart for years. No, decades. Religiously, you might say.* 

Up until a couple of years ago, I loved fantasizing about witty remarks I could reply with, but always said something like, “Oh, yeah, well you have to love him/them, right? Great stuff. Yeah, big fan.”

So, here’s the thing: I finally read an interview with Neil. After his first wife died in 1998, he spent an entire year riding a motorcycle around North America, and wrote a book about it - his fourth. The interview, and subsequent other articles I read, revealed Peart as a highly intelligent, well-rounded person, as well as being one of the most respected and emulated musicians of the modern era. I remember being impressed with him as a person, not as a musician. 

Somehow, for me, that opened my ears - and my mind - to the music of Rush. Had I my life to do over, I would have taken that album the first time it was offered, not the 28 billionth. I can’t say that I’m a huge fan, not yet, anyway, but I have finally become an appreciateur, if you will, of Neil Peart and Rush. They take the creation of their music, and musical expression, very seriously. I respect them a great deal, and am coming to know more of their repertoire.

For those of you who have yet to get to know Neil Peart, allow me to suggest a starting point, although I’m probably the only one of his fans who would recommend it. Start with his instructional video, “A Work in Progress.” It’s pretty recent, so it’s thirty or so years into his career, and he talks about reinventing himself. Awesome. That I love.

Happy discovering!

*The way I also avoided the Beatles until about a year ago, I might add. I’m a fool’s fool, so to speak, because I’m now a dedicated student of the Beatles. Wish I had come to them sooner.

Bag of Tricks: Easiest linear funk grooves EVER

Creating fun and funky grooves doesn't have to be hard. If you're looking to get out of your groove rut, try these two easy linear grooves on for size. As always, start slow and work to get comfortable and play with a solid feel before you increase tempo.

Performance notes:

• Keep the bass drum nice and solid. Fat kick sound helps both of these patterns groove.
• Any unaccented notes in the hands should essentially be played as ghost notes.
• In the first example, count four is played as a buzzed snare drum stroke in the left hand, and an open hi-hat note in the right hand. Try to get both sounds to last until count one.

As I've stated before, it can be helpful to try playing these grooves with a variety of styles. If you can make them groove to Metallica, Keith Urban, Frank Sinatra, Bach and Enya, you can play them anywhere. 

Happy drumming!

What are you bringing to the kitchen?

One of the biggest frustrations for musicians who are starting to develop into good players is often the people around them. I'm sure I'm preaching to the choir, as it were, but here goes.

Think of a rehearsal like a bunch of cooks in the kitchen. Each member of the band or group has the assignment to bring an ingredient to make, say, chocolate chip cookies. You need eggs, milk, flour, chocolate chips and so forth.

So let's say you spend time finding just the right wheat, preparing it, sifting it, grinding it into beautiful flour. You have it ready well ahead of the rehearsal, and you bring extra, just in case there's a spontaneous double batch in the works.

When you get there, the person who was supposed to have the chips says, "Sorry, still making these chocolate chips. I'll have them ready next time. And you're totally going to love them, they'll be so awesome! Let's bake some cookies anyway, and imagine they have chocolate in them."



And the egg guy or girl is like, "Yeah, no eggs yet, but I brought the chickens! Let's try it again, and maybe they'll lay some eggs."

Pretty soon you lose your motivation to work on your flour, or you take it elsewhere, or you give up baking altogether.

The point is that we can spend more time baking a better, tastier cookie if the ingredients are all there very early on in the rehearsal process. You have to ask yourself if you're bringing the highest quality, best produced ingredients that you're capable of, or if you're compromising the end product with your lack of preparation.

Prepare your ingredients well, and you'll find yourself "baking" at a high level with serious pros.

Happy drumming!

Battle of the Bands

A few months ago, I was on the panel of judges for the Utah PTA's Battle of the Bands Finals (2013).

In a nutshell, here are a few things I observed, and would humbly suggest to every band that is ever going to play in front of an audience, ever:

• Don't let anything get in the way of good tone, time, musicality, etc. It's easy to get excited during performance, but put the music first.
• Know your role. Good music is like a house, made up of necessary, quality parts. Not all of them are seen, but all contribute to the quality and comfort of the home. If that means you need to play back a little, or not have a solo, or play more texturally, then do it.
• Listen, listen, listen. And act like you're listening. It's okay to make eye contact with other members of the band, especially during their solo.
• Put on a united visual image. Differing styles distract from the music, especially if the look and feel are different from the music. This is why a lot of music groups show up on stage in neutral greys and blacks - it allows them to play what they want and let the music speak for itself.
• Support the front man/woman. Know what's the "thing," and how to support it.
• Have fun, and show it. Don't go overboard, but look happy and confident, not nervous and scared.
• Play to your strengths and within your abilities. I'm not saying you shouldn't push the edges, but the audience "vibe" completely changes when they're worried that you might not land the next fill or riff.
• Be humble and gracious, but don't stutter. "Um," doesn't help your show.

Put simply, do whatever you need to do to make the music speak for itself, and don't do anything that will get in the way of that message. 

Happy gigging!

Practice - What does that look like?

I have a love/hate relationship with a certain question that I frequently ask my students.

"Okay, what do you need to do to make this better?" (Or accomplish this goal, or nail this performance, etc.)

The answer - say it with me, people - is, "Practice." Yup, the dreaded p-word. And are they right? You bet they are. Good, solid practice cures just about everything that ails musicians.

The problem is that when most people say, "I need to practice," they might as well be saying, "I need to build a house."

So I've started following up with this:

"Good. You need to practice. Can you tell me what that will look like?"

When I first shifted to this tactic, I got a lot of startled looks from my students. It was as if they were saying, "What do you mean? I answered the question! The answer to your question is practice! There shall be no further questions after this answer is given."

As I said, you might as well be trying to build a house. You have sort of an idea of what the finished project will do (maybe you'll live there), but you haven't defined any of the critical components or addressed the different parts of the total process.

How many floors will the house have? How many bedrooms and bathrooms? Will it have a garage? What materials will you need? Where will you build it? When will you start? Will you need any special tools? Do you need help, or any special permission to build it?

Before you can build a house you need a plan, and then you have to proceed in a specific order. You can't paint walls that haven't been built yet.

The exact same concept applies to practicing. The first two questions I ask myself before any practice session are*:

1. What will the final result of this practice session be? In other words, how will I know when I've accomplished my goals for today (or this week/month, etc)?
2. What do I need to do first - right now - to make progress?

Knowing the very next thing that you need to do - and doing it! - may be the make or break moment for any given practice session. As Mary Poppins famously opined, "Well begun is half done."

I realize that this is not a new or earth-shattering concept, but hopefully it has gotten you thinking about the next steps you need to take to get going in your next practice session.

Happy drumming!

*Yes, this is a drumming blog, but allow me to recommend a business book that helped to change my paradigm not only on practicing, but being efficient in life. It's called Getting Things Done, written by David Allen. You can check it out here. 

V-Drums from a sound engineer's perspective

A few days ago I got a last-minute call to engineer front-of-house sound for a local band at a fairly high-level corporate event. Their drummer used the Roland TD-9 kit on this particular gig.

It's worth noting that the room was about about the size of half of a basketball court, with high ceilings and real wood paneling on all of the walls, and that the sound system consisted of Mackie's DL 1608 iPad-based mixer, and their DLM series powered speakers (more on the Mackie gear in another post). I was able to mix from all over the room with my iPad, so I got the full-range perspective on the band's - and each individual player's - sound.

Here are the bullet points:

• Individual drum and cymbal sounds were fine. In the context of the mix, they actually sounded a lot cleaner than many acoustic kits I've mixed. 
• I absolutely hated not being able to adjust the volume of the individual parts of the kit. During sound check I asked the drummer to manually turn up the kick drum on the TD-9's brain. That helped, but once the show started I basically had no way to deal with imbalances. 
• Likewise, any EQ, effects or other manipulations happen across the entire kit. You can't do anything to the snare drum (or kick, toms, etc.) without it affecting the entire kit. 
• We were able to quickly adjust the pitch of one of the toms - again, on the brain - to eliminate a sympathetic vibration without drastically affecting the overall sound of the drum and kit. This happened in seconds, rather than the several minutes (or longer) it would have taken to similarly adjust an acoustic drum. 

In the long run, I'm sure that a good engineer and drummer would be able to dial in the sound they need from a particular room very effectively, but the aforementioned frustrations kept me from feeling like I had achieved the best sound possible in the situation. 

As expected, the major benefit of the V-drums in this situation was the low stage/house volume. Especially for corporate and casual events, volume levels can be a very big problem. The drummer also effectively used many electronic sounds that would have been impossible on an acoustic kit. 

As technology improves, it will become more and more common for electronic percussion instruments to be integrated into all kinds of performances. I will continue to explore their application, benefits and drawbacks as the opportunities present themselves. 

Happy drumming!

Pop Drumming 101

I know I've posted before about some of the misconceptions surrounding being a successful rock/pop drummer, but I had another experience this week that I thought I'd add to the canon of scripture for aspiring studio drum-smackers. 

While talking with this guy about studio drummers and why they may or may not be called for a certain project, we started talking about the difference between time-feel and "chops." If you'll allow my paraphrasing, the conversation went something like this.

RT: "Come on. When's the last time you listened to a pop tune and thought, hey, wait - that drum fill wasn't complicated enough?"

KS: "Fair point."

End of conversation.

Now, I know I don't have to draw too much of a conclusion here, but I will, anyway! 

I'm certainly not saying you shouldn't strive for as much technical facility as you can get, but there are three basic things (and two of them are almost the same thing) a drummer must do to get consistent studio work.

1. Play nice with the click.
2. Have a great, "feel." (In other words, play nice with the click.)
3. Sound like a drummer. 

Remember, as a musician, you're a servant to the music. You should always play just what the track/project/piece needs, and nothing more.

Happy drumming!

"Headroom" Addendum

In an earlier post, I talked about developing headroom. Headroom is the ability to do more than you need to do in a given situation. This post is part confession, part illustration of how I learned about headroom in my own playing.

While a college student, I studied with Jay Lawrence for a while. At a certain point he was putting me through some very complex, difficult exercises every week, and demanding that I play them up to a certain standard. One week, after having practiced particularly hard, but having not gotten up to par on an exercise, I got a little frustrated at the lesson. The conversation went something like this (I'm paraphrasing, but you'll get the point).

Keith: Jay, when would you use something like this in an actual performing or recording situation?

Jay: Oh. You probably wouldn't.

K: WHAT?! Then why are you making me learn it?!

J: (Laughing) Here. Let me show you something. See this groove exercise you were working on a few weeks ago? Was this one pretty hard?

K: Yeah, I hated that one. Super hard. 

J: Well, I want you to play it.

K: Wha..? Now? I haven't practiced it for like three weeks!

J: Just give it a try.

I then proceeded to play the earlier exercise. Not only was it much easier than I remembered, but it was immediately cleaner and clearer, and much more musical. Jay had made his point.

By constantly challenging me to play increasingly complex patterns and exercises, he was building my musical muscles, so to speak. What used to be hard became easier, and what seemed impossible at first became realistic.

Again, the whole point of headroom is to be able to do more than you have to, so that you can do what's required of you comfortably and with style. Then, instead of being at the edge of your abilities by default, you can choose when and how to push your own envelope while being more musical, engaging and sensitive.

Drumming - and all music - should be fun. And the better you are at it, the more fun it will be.

Happy drumming!

What is "headroom?"

For one year in high school I drove an old Dodge pickup truck. I loved having a pickup but hated having to drive it anywhere. It had a worn-out engine and a pathetic transmission. Its top speed was 60 miles per hour, no matter what. You could have dropped that thing off a cliff and it wouldn't have gone any faster!

So when I had to drive two miles on the freeway (where the speed limit was 75) on my way to school every morning, it was torturous, to say the least. The truck would shake and scream, and generally threaten to come apart at every possible point. My friends would pass me in their nicer cars, and I would try not to make eye contact. It was stressful and embarrassing. Honestly, it was all I could do to keep that thing on the road. Needless to say, driving wasn't very fun, and I didn't feel very good at it.

Early one morning I was on my way to school and wrecked the truck. It had snowed the night before, then cleared, so there was black ice on the road. The accident totaled my truck, and probably should have taken my life. It was one of the scariest moments of my life.

When I got back to driving, I (luckily) was able to borrow my mom's car, a late model sports sedan. To give you some idea of the capabilities of this car, let me make one comparison to the truck. My old truck's speedometer went to a maximum of 85, and that was wishful thinking. Mom's car? Its top mark read 140, and in all the time I drove it I never came close to challenging that mark, or had reason to doubt that the car could reach it.

That car totally changed me as a driver. I no longer had to fight the vehicle or worry that I was going to destroy it just by driving it on the freeway. My driving "style" became much more consistent and relaxed. I wasn't worried about driving anywhere - the freeway, on a hill, etc. Driving became fun.

Among all the differences between the car and truck, the fundamental one was headroom. What is headroom? In a nutshell, it's the difference between what you must do and what you can do.*

Here are a few examples of how the term headroom is used various settings.

• If I have the strength to lift 100 pounds, but only have to lift 50, I have headroom. 
• If a DJ has a sound system with 5000 watts of power, but only needs 1000 watts to play in a certain space, s/he has headroom. 
• If you need to drive 75 MPH on the freeway but the car can go 140, you have headroom.

How does this relate to music and to drumming? 

Essentially, we're all trying to develop headroom in our playing as we continue to practice and learn as much as we can. Think of it like the car. If the band you're playing in is asking your "engine" - your skill set - to go 80 miles an hour, and you can only go 80, then every time you play you're maxing yourself out. This is usually neither comfortable nor fun.

But if they're asking you to go 80 and you have the ability to do 120, then you can do what you need to do with style, and have bursts of "speed" when they're appropriate. More than that, you have the strength and "chops" to play what you hear in your head. And that, my friends, is fun. 

I'm not saying that you should never push your limits or live on the edge a little bit. But think of it another way: If we're talking about athletes, you need a basic ability to keep up with your competition, but headroom is what allows you to make the extra play or effort to win the game. 

In another post I'll give you a direct example from my own drumming career, but for now, think about headroom. How much do you have, and what are you doing to increase it? 

One last thought. At a certain point, you'll have an "engine" that is capable of getting off the streets and getting into the big leagues. 

Yeah. Let's do THAT.

*It's actually a construction term that refers to the height of a doorway or the ceiling over stairs. It literally means the distance between the average person's head and the point where they would hit said head. This is why, when the average American stands under six feet, the ceiling is generally at least eight feet high.

Friday Feature: Dave Grohl of Nirvana / Foo Fighters

I have a man-crush on Dave Grohl. I can admit that.

When the sounds of Nirvana caught my ears (ok...they caught EVERYBODY'S) in the early nineties, I had no idea who their drummer was. Truth be told, I really didn't have a read on Dave Grohl until the advent of the Foo Fighters* in the mid 1990s.

From then 'til now, I've gained an appreciation for Grohl's drumming style, his songwriting, guitar playing and producing skills. He has been involved in countless successful and creative projects, and seems to have limitless energy and drive to create. Every time I hear word of a new project, I'm immediately interested and look forward to the release. And, like many of his fans, I've rarely been disappointed.

As with earlier features, I have no intention of providing even an attempt at a total picture of Dave Grohl. If you already know him, you know more than I'll provide here, and if you don't know him (what's wrong with you?!), let this simply serve as a point of entry in your inevitable Dave Grohl fandom.

For a more complete history, go here.

Enjoy the Foo!

*True story - my personal DW Collector's Series drum kit was played by Taylor Hawkins in 2002 when the Foo Fighters performed in Salt Lake City for the Winter Games. The backline company who supplied drum kits for the Olys sold them locally after the games were over. I was in college at the time and put together every penny I had - and then some - to buy one. I still have and play the kit regularly.

Friday Feature: Neil Peart of Rush

You know how tall people always get asked if they play basketball? I have twin cousins who are 6’6”, and they do not play basketball, nor do they want to. They humor people all the time who ask the question, and privately want to slap them silly. 

Well, it’s like that for drummers, too. The minute somebody finds out you play, they’re all, “So, hey, what about Neil Peart, huh? You must love Rush, right?” I’m the kid who deliberately avoided all things Rush and Peart for years. No, decades. Religiously, you might say.* 

Up until a couple of years ago, I loved fantasizing about witty remarks I could reply with, but always said something like, “Oh, yeah, well you have to love him/them, right? Great stuff. Yeah, big fan.”

So, here’s the thing: I finally read an interview with Neil. After his first wife had died in 1998, he had spent an entire year riding a motorcycle around North America, and written a book about it - his fourth. The interview, and subsequent other articles I read, revealed Peart as a highly intelligent, well-rounded person, as well as being one of the most respected and emulated musicians of the modern era. I remember being impressed with him as a person, not as a musician. 

Somehow, for me, that opened my ears - and my mind - to the music of Rush. Had I my life to do over, I would have taken that album the first time it was offered, not the 28 billionth. I can’t say that I’m a huge fan, not yet, anyway, but I have finally become an appreciateur, if you will, of Neil Peart and Rush. They take the creation of their music, and musical expression, very seriously. I respect them a great deal, and am coming to know more of their repertoire.

For those of you who have yet to get to know Neil Peart, allow me to suggest a starting point, although I’m probably the only one of his fans who would recommend it. Start with his instructional video, “A Work in Progress.” It’s pretty recent, so it’s thirty or so years into his career, and he talks about reinventing himself. Awesome. That I love.

Happy discovering!

*The way I also avoided the Beatles until about a year ago, I might add. I’m a fool’s fool, so to speak, because I’m now a dedicated student of the Beatles. Wish I had come to them sooner.

The "hot air balloon" principle

I've said it before, but I'd rather have my students practice for five solid, focused minutes per day than to get in ten hours on only one day per week.

Why? Because your skills are sort of like a hot-air balloon. You're either getting higher, or you're getting lower.

Let's take a closer look, shall we?*

You see, there's this force called gravity. It's constantly pulling on everything, including the hot air balloon. When heated by a burner, the air inside the balloon lifts the balloon, the basket and anything in it up into the air. When the burner is firing, the balloon is lifting.

But just as soon as the burner is turned off, the air inside begins to cool, and the balloon slowly begins to fall. From a distance, it looks like the balloon is keeping steady at a certain altitude, but that's because the balloonist knows just when to turn the burner on and off to keep the craft from getting too high or low.

How does this compare to technique and skill development in music? Well, it's not a perfect comparison, but you're either getting better or you're getting worse. If you practice in a focused, systematic matter - even if it's only one thing and for a short period of time - for the next five days, you will be better than you are today. Conversely, if you don't practice for the next five days, you will not be as good as you are today.

This may not be the message you want to hear, but there is simply no "static" or standstill position for music skills. In fact, some of your daily practice is what is called, "maintenance practice." It's the time you need to invest just to get you back to where you were yesterday.

One other way to think about this is your physical health and fitness level. If you're not exercising, and you start working out every day, you will improve your overall health in a relatively short period of time. But if you aren't exercising, then you're health and fitness are actually deteriorating a little bit every single day. In fact, it takes as little as twelve days for your muscles to start losing strength and mass if they aren't being exercised.

(Well. Aren't I a little ray of sunshine?)

Here's the good news. Just like the hot air balloon, it doesn't take a huge amount of effort to consistently increase your altitude. What it takes is consistency. Practice on most days of the week in a focused, systematic way - with specific goals in mind - and you will make progress.

Happy drumming!

*For all you balloonists out there - look - I know I'm butchering this. It's a metaphor, okay? You can correct me and clarify in the comments below. Thanks much!

How do I know I'm making progress?

I used to give my high school students a hard time when they would say somebody was a "good" musician, or a certain band was, "awesome." I'd ask how they determined if a certain musician or band was "good," and I'd get blank stares.

Honestly, most of us know when a player or group is "good," but we do we have concrete reasons to think so? Closer to home, how do we know when we are getting good ourselves?

Much has been written and discussed on this topic, but I'm going to try to boil it down to a few key indicators that you can look to when assessing your own playing and musicianship. Keep in mind that these are only a few of the ways you can tell if you're "getting better."

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Keep excellent time.

This means that everything you play - every groove, fill, chop, lick or kick - is in time with the metronome. You are able to play freely at the same time that you are a dependable time-keeper and can "groove" with the rest of the band or group.

Play within the texture.
Another way to say this is that you should almost be "invisible." Great musicians are great because they contribute to - and fit within - the sound of the band. If you ever stick out, it's either because you're the soloist, or you're playing something that doesn't fit.

Check out a recent recording (ideally a video) of yourself playing with a band. Do you do anything that detracts from the music or performance?


Develop consistent technique.
Do you have a good sound? Are your hands even? Are you comfortable playing the notes and music that you need to play to make good music? This isn't the most immediately gratifying part of being a musician, but you need to spend enough time practicing that performances are easy.

Make fewer mistakes. 
Not that you shouldn't push yourself and play past your boundaries from time to time, but you should be continually mastering the instrument, pulse, fills, grooves and music to the point that you can start to tell that you're playing more and more mistake-free.

Sound like a drummer.
Yes, eventually you should have your own sound, and that sound should be unique. But even then you should sound like you know what you're doing on in the instrument, within the style, and in any given moment. Again, check out a recording of yourself, and note the things you play that you like and that you don't like. You're a musician, you're familiar with drummers and you have ears.

We're all still learning to play, and as the old saying goes, "The good ones borrow, but the great ones steal." It is okay to play what your favorite drummers play, as long as you're using it as a tool to improve, and not a crutch to hide your weaknesses.

Play what you want to play.
Here's another old cliche: "Most people play whatever they can, but some play whatever they want."


I notice that as I practice and perform more - little by little - I'm able to be more expressive on the instrument. I get closer to executing what I'm hearing in my head. In other words, I can "say" what I want with the drums and music, instead of being limited by "vocabulary."

Imagine someone who is learning English as a second language. At first, they can only say a few things, and only one way. But as they gain fluency, they can not only say much more, but in different ways. Think of how many different choices you have when saying something as simple as a greeting, and you'll get the idea.

It's no different with music. This is why - without having to invent a new "language" - every person, every musician is different.



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Obviously, there are myriad ways to determine whether you're making progress as a musician. I offer these as a starting point. As you set your own goals and benchmarks, you'll begin to see which tactics produce results and which are a waste of time.

Share your best ideas below.

As always, happy drumming!

The Gig Log: Kristen Nelson

In an earlier post, I talked about ways to get more gigs. Well, I decided to take my own medicine and try reaching out to a few drummers in my area, and I was rewarded with a gig. I was asked to fill in for an amazing player, and I was very grateful for the call.

This was the first opener.

This particular gig I was backing up a very talented singer-songwriter by the name of Kristen Nelson. We had one quick rehearsal, then a forty minute set at Muse Music as an album release show. Not gonna lie, it was a blast.

The openers were two fantastic solo singers and a local band that took me back to my high school days. They were incredibly talented, the energy was super high, and the songs were great - not to mention that they were great performers. It had been a very, very long time since I played a (roughly) forty seat venue, and it was a lot of fun.

The other singer songwriter.

Our set was last - Kristen's CD release was the headline show - and the audience was very friendly and enthusiastic. I wish there were a less geeky way to describe it, but it was a great audience, great music, talented bandmates, all in a small, intimate setting. What could be better?

Kit-wise, I took the ol' DWs, but only ended up using kick and snare, with hats and a ride with a sizzler (the metal kind, not the steakhouse kind). I also played brushes and rods, with only one tune using actual sticks. In that small venue, it was nice to be able to hit as hard as I wanted without worrying about overblowing the band or the house.

My thanks to Kristen and the rest of the band. It was a great gig, and I look forward to playing with them again should the opportunity arise.

My apologies for the fuzzy pictures. iPhone in a dark place!

Best technology for drummers

Given the rapid increases in technology in the past 100 years, I thought I'd take a stab at listing the top ten technological advances for drummers in the past century. Here are my picks.

1. Hearing protection. This is a no-brainer for me. Of all the critical tools a musician has, the ears are the most sensitive, and they're irreplaceable. And the tools available to protect your hearing while still allowing a full, satisfying musical experience are getting better all the time. You can check some of them out here.

2. Metronomes. I know, I know. You gotta have the pulse inside. Well, consider this tool a pulse-injector if you're willing to spend time with it.

3. Improved thrones. If your sit-down part is comfortable, you won't think a thing about it, but if it's not, you can't think about anything else. Long gigs absolutely require the most comfortable seating.

4. Sticks, brushes and mallets. For me, this is like the tires on cars. It doesn't matter what's under the hood if you can't control it on the street. Not only are there more choices than ever, but the quality and consistency are pretty unbelievable.

5. Pedals. Like sticks and mallets, pedals are the direct link between you and your drums. Especially in the past twenty or so years, I've gone from cursing to praising my footboards.

6. Shell truing machines (think Yamaha's YESS technology). There is nothing worse than a shell that's not round and true. Using the car metaphor, there's nothing worse than a beautiful automobile with an unreliable engine.

7. Head variety and quality. I know some players really dig calfskin, but I'm a huge fan of mylar and kevlar. In addition to sticks, shells and size variations, the heads you choose have a huge impact on how you sound and how the kit feels.

8. Cymbal variety and quality. Almost more than heads, the cymbals you choose will define your sound. I'm amazed every time I see the new releases - and new cymbal companies - that pop up each year. Unique and ever-more-expressive sounds are available to anybody with a little (okay, a lot of) cash.

9. Portable digital recording equipment. Obviously, there are lots of things that can fit into this category, but I'm thinking specifically of things like the Zoom H4N. The ability to record an idea, practice session or gig easily and with great quality is a game-changer.

10. Smart phones, tablets and laptops. Again, this category is huge, but I'm primarily thinking YouTube, educational apps and programs like metronomes, and specialized apps like SoundHound and Garage Band. Almost anywhere you go, the world is literally at your fingertips.

Honorable mention: Drum hardware in general.


What did I leave off the list or put in the wrong place? Let me know in the comments below!

'That Thing You Do' may have had it right

I graduated from high school the same year that the movie, "That Thing You Do," hit the silver screen.

*SPOILER ALERT* (Really?! Is there anyone over the age of twenty who hasn't seen this film?)

When it came out, I was working in a movie theater, so I saw it about six times. Initially, I loved the film because the drummer gets the girl, and that gave me a little glimmer of hope. But as I've progressed through my music career, one scene has come to have more and more meaning.

The scene occurs near the end of the film, when Guy (the main character and drummer in the band) meets one of his music heroes, an old jazz pianist by the name of Del Paxton. Guy has just told Del about his band, and the following conversation ensues (I've taken out some of the dialogue, but you'll get the gist.)

Del: Ain't no way to keep a band together. Bands come and go. But you got to keep on playin' - no matter with who. You guys any good?

Guy: Yeah, man. We got something snappy. Really think we do.

Del: I'm sure you do. But sooner or later, something makes you crazy. Money, women, the road - hell, man, just time.

Guy: Well, we've only been together for four months.

Del: Some bands I've been with, that's four months too long. You keep on playin'...and watch your money. You'll land on your feet. 

Having played in a half dozen or so bands over the past twenty years, I've come to appreciate this approach more and more. I've been fortunate to play with both talented and genuinely good human beings for the most part, but it's true what ol' Del says: sooner or later, something makes you crazy.

In my experience, all of the causes Del lists have caused the breakup of bands, or at least the replacement of members. Time is probably the most common culprit as it eventually exposes everyone's true character, intentions, habits, etc., but money is a close second.

A close friend of mine, an unbelievably good musician, once played in a band that broke up two weeks before a very high-paying battle of bands because they couldn't agree on what they'd do with the money if they won. Yep. They broke up over money they didn't even have.

Beyond that, though, I've found that things are usually pretty good in a band until you start making some real money. There will be fights over who's doing more work, writing more of the material, booking the gigs and who has to spend the most on gear (drummers, of course). And if you get picked up by a record label, you have to deal with who gets the royalties, how the funds are split, who the manager is going to be, and much, much more.

There's a book that can help shed some light on it that I highly recommend. It's a little outdated at this point, but will give you a very clear, very accurate vision of how convoluted things can get in the music industry.

Check out the book here. 

I'd also recommend that you read some of the books about the band U2, and learn a thing or two. In my opinion, they did it right. Why do I think that? Because they're in their FIFTH DECADE (YES - FORTY-EIGHT YEARS) of productivity and worldwide relevance. Compare this to the average one-hit wonder, and you have to think they found a magic formula of some kind, and part of that is an absolute commitment to share all the money equally for everything - gigs, sales, royalties, merchandise - everything.

Honestly, this topic (and all the related topics we should also cover) could take up a hundred years on a blog all by itself. But, for starters, let me offer just a couple of pieces of advice to get through the ups and downs of bands.

You got to keep playin'. Del Paxton nails this one, for sure. Always view yourself as an independent musician, even when you're committed to a band. Eventually the band will move on, and you'll still be a musician. Don't let the band's identity become your identity. Most importantly, you should always have some aims and goals that will last, and be prepared for the band to be gone. What would you do if they broke up today? Who and what would you be? What would keep you working on your music? I'm not saying you shouldn't be dedicated to the band, but be dedicated to yourself, too.

Watch your money. This will seem less important when you're not making any, but the instant the first dollar lands, you'll have a major problem if you don't have a major plan. How will the money be split, and do you all agree about it? Who will do the extra work involved in setting up and running the sound system? Will they get paid for it? How will you fund your band in terms of equipment, gas money, your individual instrument upkeep, etc? Does the drummer get more for cartage?

Try to think about every possible problem or contention, and agree on how it will be handled. When problems arise, talk about it openly and honestly as soon as possible, and don't stop talking until you all agree. And, as I've mentioned on another post, have a plan for saving some of your dough.

Give it everything you can, but not more than that. Keep your music - and especially bands - in their proper place in your life. There's definitely a time and place to focus on just one thing, but be careful about putting a job, relationship, school or other opportunities at risk. Especially with a band that's starting to go somewhere, it can be very tempting to put all of your eggs in that one basket. I always try to ask myself, "What if this thing blows up today? What will I do?"

Because - trust me on this one - anything in life can change in a heartbeat, and bands are especially prone to blowing up in an instant.

More on bands to come. And if you've had some experience, share it with us in the comments below.

Happy drumming!

Transitioning from acoustic drums to Roland's TD-9KX2-S

First gig on the new kit.

I've been playing drums for 23 years as of this fall. I've played all of those years on acoustic instruments.* So earlier this year when one of the bands I play for wanted me to go electric, I was skeptical, to say the least.

In this particular case, the goal was twofold. First, we wanted to reduce stage noise (we also transitioned to in-ear monitoring), and second, we wanted to have more sound options at the touch of a button. This particular band is very show-oriented - an entertainment band that primarily plays corporate and community events, with the occasional wedding.

About two months ago I gave in, bit the bullet and dropped two grand on a closeout model of the Roland TD-9KX2-S. Since then, I have played about 6-7 gigs on the kit, and it's been quite the adjustment. To achieve the goals of the band and also to get a full perspective, I'm using the kit as-is, straight out of the box. No substitutions (like cymbals or snare drums), no additions, and no modifications.

Still getting used to how it looks on stage.

To be fair, I wanted to get a few gigs into the new arrangement before I started blogging about it, so I've waited until now. At this point I feel like I'm starting to understand some of the strengths and weaknesses, so I'm going to be sharing my observations periodically and asking for feedback from other musicians.

Just to get started, here are two quick observations:

• It's not the real thing. It's just not. After discussions with other players who use both acoustic and electric instruments, I've come to the conclusion that when I play V-Drums, I'm no longer a "drummer." I'm an, "electronic musician." I still play the role of drummer, but I have to realize that I'm not playing drums. I'm essentially playing a computer with a drum-like interface. 
• Because it's not the real thing, the player is limited by the programming and the capabilities of the hardware. With real acoustic drums, you're limited by physics. One great example of this is the playing of shells, stick clicks, ping shots and cymbal harmonics. The programming simply will not support the natural acoustic responses of wood, metal and mylar.

My load out "stack."

If you have opinions, observations or suggestions for those of us venturing into the electronic side of drumming, feel free to share below. 

More to come...

*Okay, okay. I did own an earlier Roland V-kit for about a year, but it was used exclusively in a teaching studio where volume was a major issue. I think I did a one-song recording project on it for a friend, but that was it. All other gigs were on acoustic drums. I was so non-plussed with the kit that I sold it as soon as I moved out of that studio.