Sight-Reading from the Drummer’s View by Steve Fidyk I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to hold the drum chair for more than 20 years with the Army Blues Big Band. As an ensemble, we read new music daily, record, and accompany guest artists at festivals and universities. One essential skill that is somewhat […]
How To Live Well On The Road (An Interview With Trumpeter Terell Stafford) by Christopher Davis In 2005, I graduated from college, not really understanding how I could have a music career outside of teaching in the classroom. I knew that it was possible to earn a living as a performer but I really didn’t […]
Drum & Rhythm Section Performance Tips: Understanding and Executing the Tune by Marvin Sparks Tunes (Examples) Straight Ahead: Medium Tempo: “Take The A-Train” – Duke Ellington (Sonny Greer) Up-Tempo: “Milestones” – Miles Davis (Philly Joe Jones); “Impressions” – John Coltrane (Elvin Jones) Latin/Samba: “Blue Bossa” – Dexter Gordon (Al Foster) Funk: “Chameleon” – Herbie Hancock (Harvey Mason) […]
Let’s Talk About Sound… By Monica Shriver The first thing that people hear when you play (or sing) is your sound. Let that sink in for a minute. Think about all the time spent working on technique (licks, scales, chords, patterns, etc.), range, and performance material, but all of that is only able to be […]
Latin Percussion Applications in the Jazz Band By Victor Rendón Afro-Cuban, Brazilian, and other “world” instruments have always been played in the context of popular music and jazz groups including jazz bands in colleges. Often, this area of drumming is neglected in an educational setting leaving the student to attempt to come up with something […]
Teaching Jazz Drumset by Paul Buyer Ed Shaughnessy, legendary drummer for Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show Band and Percussive Arts Society Hall of Famer, famously said, “In rock, the drumset is built from the bottom up. In jazz, it’s built from the top down.” To Shaughnessy, the bottom up was the danceable beat provided by the bass drum and snare […]