THE B

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MARCH 2009Double FEATUREFUBUKI DAIKO: JAPANESE DRUMMING

PLUS! BILLY SHEEHAN

THE BLACK PAGEMarch 2009

THE BLACK PAGE is distributed via PDF to email inboxes worldwide.

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Send us your feedback at:theblackpagemagazine@gmail.com Sean Mitchell PublisherJill Schettler Editor in ChiefJayson Brinkworth WriterRyan Carver Writer

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Feature Interview #1Hiroshi Koshiyama

Feature Interview #2

Billy Sheehan

Sound Techs, Setups

& Monitor Mixes. Oh My!

by Jayson Brinkworth

The Never Ending Exercise Part II: by Ryan Carver

The Final Word

Solo drums, beautiful drums, warm drum tones and full-on exhilarating drums. In this double CD, master-mu-sician David Jones has allowed the drums to shine in all their acoustic glory. Not since Gene Krupa in the 1940s or Sandy Nelson in the 1960s have drums been this far out front.

David Jones has long been famous for his utilisation of every conceivable percussive instrument – yes, even in-cluding the kitchen sink! – to make in-teresting soundscapes and rhythmic flourishes that leave an indelible mark on the heart and soul of his listeners.

Click here to visit davidjonesdrums.com.au

For international sales outsideAustralia please click here.

May 23 - 24, 2009Savoy Theatre

Glace Bay, Nova ScotiaCanada

Click here to visit www.cbdrumfest.ca

Feature ArtistsHoracio Hernandez - Cuba/USAJohnny Rabb - Nashville USAVirgil Donati - Australia/USAEmmanuelle Caplette - Montreal, QuebecTommy Clufetos - Los Angeles, USABill Ludwig III - USANew Brunswick Percussion Ensemble: Joe McIntyre, John Morrison, Peter Doyle and Franco C.Danny Britt - New York, USADamian Corniola - Melbourne, AustraliaRoxy Petrucci - New York, USAMike Clark - New York, USARonnie Leadbeater - Sydney, Nova ScotiaSonny Hogan - St Johns, Nfl/LabMercedes Lander - London, OntarioTom Bona - Toronto, OntarioPete Lockett - London, EnglandDom Famularo - New York, USA

Otarion Show CaseDillon Krszwda - Marion Bridge, Nova ScotiaCarlin MacVicar - Sydney, Nova ScotiaAnthony Pascon - St John, New Brunswick Keefer Lockwood - St Johns, Nfl/LabFrank & Jordan Bruleigh - Sydney River NSAndrew Collins - St Johns, Nfl/LabChuck Bucket - Halifax, Nova ScotiaAl Hovey - New BrunswickTom Allen - Sydney, Nova Scotia

Special Guest StarsThe Rhythm Queens - Sydney, Nova Scotia Cathy MacDougall, Joannie Andrews, Val Fulford and Hannah Buhariwalla.

Bodhran Bodhran - Sydney, Nova ScotiaJosey Lovett and friends

Fubuki Daiko: Japanese Drumming

Respect, humility, patience, ac-ceptance, fearlessness, joy, cre-ativity, tradition, group spirit, and the giving up of the ego: all inte-grated elements of taiko (Japa-nese) drumming. Originating in Japan, taiko drumming has taken North America by storm, offering a popular and creative alterna-tive for today’s drummer. Taiko drumming—which translates in English to “big (fat) drum”—is more than just a performance art form, but rather a form of adher-ence, and for Hiroshi Koshiyama and his partner Naomi Guilbert, co-founders of Manitoba’s flour-ishing Fubuki Daiko, it is a way of life. This month, The Black Page welcomes you to our East meets West issue. Isn’t this an incredible world we live in?

By Jill Schettler

Japanese drumming has been described as more than just a performance art form but as a way of life. Do you agree with this statement?

For us, it has become a full-time profession. My partner and I rehearse three times a week, teach twice a week and travel about a third of the year, teaching or performing in cities and towns across North America. My approach to taiko-- the way I interact with the drum, with my fellow drummers and with the audience-- also informs my approach to life in a more general sense: much in the same way many martial arts practitioners feel their martial arts practice is inseparable

from the rest of their lives. Respect, humil-ity, patience, acceptance, fearlessness, joy, the giving up of the ego, creativity, tradition, group spirit/energy are all things I learn from taiko (particularly in a Dojo setting), which impacts my life in a broader sense.

On your website, Fubuki Daiko is de-scribed as a “hint of jazz and funk fused with modern and ancient elements to create a truly eclectic experience that is part martial arts athleticism part dance and all rhythm.” What a unique combina-tion. Tell me a little about how this eclec-tic fusion of the “new” and the “old” came about.

Hiroshi Koshiyama (background left) and Bruce Robertson (background right)

Photo: Jerry Grajewski

We trained with our teacher, Grandmaster Seiichi Tanaka for about four years in San Francisco. He brought taiko to North America 40 years ago. He trained in the martial arts and wanted to incorporate a lot of martial arts philosophy into the drumming. In this way he was very ‘old school’ traditional. But the fact that he left Japan for the U.S. after the war made him very much a maverick spirit. When he started his group in San Francisco, he in-corporated his own style and spirit into the traditional taiko art form. We wanted to con-tinue performing his style of drumming but infuse our own musical influences. We draw from our personal “database” of rhythms we grew up with as North Americans. Naomi and I enjoy listening to jazz and funk, Bruce grew up listening to rock and enjoys all kinds of world music rhythms. When we create our own pieces you can hear hints (not always intentional) from these influences. We also strive to add a lot of choreography so that

people are not only dazzled by the music but by the movement.

In my research, I have uncovered anoth-er type of the Japanese art form, Taiko drumming. How closely related are Taiko and Fubuki Daiko, and what is involved in each practise?

They are one and the same. Taiko drumming is what we do. Taiko literally means “large drum.” We call ourselves Fubuki Daiko. If you break down the four characters (kanji-- Japa-nese alphabet based on Chinese characters) used for “Fubuki Daiko,” they literally mean

“Anyone who has a heartbeat can practice taiko.”

“Fubuki Daiko”blizzard drum

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Fubuki Daiko online

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www.fubuki.ca

“blowing snow big drum,” or “blizzard drum.” Many taiko groups take their names from geographical references. And since we are based in Winnipeg, MB, a reference to the weather here was an obvious choice when it came down to picking a name for the group. The reason we call ourselves Fubuki Daiko (as opposed to Taiko) is due to Japanese

pronunciation. It is similar to the difference between saying a apple and an apple. The rules are not hard and fast, however. Some Japanese refer to us as Fubuki Taiko. The characters for “Taiko” literally mean big (fat) drum.

Are there more forms of Japanese drum-ming? Which ones most accurately por-tray the traditional style?

Japanese drums used to be an important part of Japanese culture. The most tradi-tional style of Japanese drumming is called

“Hogaku,” which was used in the classical theatre. The drums used to include an in-strument called a “tsuzumi,” which is the only Japanese drum struck with the hand and possibly the only drum hit from the bottom. It is often accompanied by a small drum tied with a rope called the “shime,” which we also use for our performances.

Explain a little bit of the history behind Japanese drumming?

Taiko has been around for several centuries. It probably made its way to Japan via China and Korea. It was primarily used in festivals, imperial court orchestras, in theatres, on bat-tle fields, and in rice fields. It was often used to communicate with other villages (the size of the city often depended on how far one could hear the largest drum from the cen-ter of the city). As Japan modernized during the late 19th century, taiko drumming wasn’t deemed to be as important and was soon

relegated to being used only in temples and during festivals. After the Second World War, Japan needed to regain its identity. A former jazz drummer named Daihachi Oguchi found some taiko in his hometown of Nagano and tried incorporating his jazz drumming style with many people drumming together as a group. This type of drumming is called “kumi daiko,” and it soon became the popular style of drumming. In the mid sixties, taiko ex-perienced a renaissance-- particularly with the formation of groups such as Ondekoza, Sukeroku Taiko, and Kodo. Now most cities and towns across Japan have community taiko groups. With the popularity of taiko in North America increasing, many cities sup-port taiko groups in the United States (over 150) and in Canada (around 20).

How closely linked to the traditional prac-tice is Fubuki Daiko?

We try to incorporate the traditional spirit of taiko drumming into our pieces. We also per-form a traditional Japanese lion dance that is handed down from generation to genera-tion and which is about 200 years old.

Hiroshi, you were formally trained by Grandmaster Seiichi Tanaka, the found-er of the San Francisco Taiko Dojo and the father of North American taiko drum-ming. What was the training process like?

Our teacher was very tough and “old school.” We would often get yelled at-- occasionally hit-- and we were expected to always be phys-ically and mentally present. In our four years of drumming, our teacher said maybe 3 or 4 things specifically pertaining to improving our skills. Other than that, we were expected to constantly observe our “sensei” (teacher) and senior members (“sempai”) when they practiced and performed. We did not spe-cifically rehearse for performances. We’d often find out what we were to be performing in the dressing room just prior to the show,

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“It can be like running a marathon with your

arms rather than your legs.”

or in the van ride on the way over. Our teacher had a very “throw them into the swimming pool” approach to teaching. We would always have to be on our toes and make sure that our teacher (and our seniors, or “sempai”) were not carrying anything. We would have to car-ry their bags and their drums, make sure that they were served food before us, sat down be-fore us, entered a room before us. We’d have to pour their wa-ter and tea.

How did you get involved with Japanese drumming? What inspired you to take part?

I grew up in San Francisco and saw a lot of taiko drumming dur-ing the Cherry Blossom Festival. I was fascinated by the music and movement. When I went to Japan in 1989 to teach English, I joined a taiko group. I joined the San Francisco Taiko Dojo when I returned to San Fran-cisco and have been drumming ever since.

You are the only Canadian formally trained in the art of the Japanese Lion Dance (a student of Nosuke Akiyama). Could you give our readers a description of the Lion danc-ing, and how it might relate to the work you are doing now?

The style of lion dancing we do is very traditional. It’s different

from the Chinese Lion dance, though the or-igin of the Japanese lion dance is Chinese. In Japan the lion head is made of a solid piece of wood whereas the Chinese head is made of paper mache. The Japanese lion dance is mostly performed by one person whereas the Chinese lion dance is usually performed by two people or maybe more. Mr. Akiyama would always tell me that in order to perform the lion dance you should observe your pet. We have a cat and I used to have a dog, so I always try to put in cat-like moves in the dance. In the middle of the dance, the lion goes out into the audience and bites people. If you get bitten by the lion, you get good luck for the rest of the year. We continue to perform the lion dance and it has become a crowd favorite. The current version we perform is from the Wakayama school and was taught to us by Kenny Endo, a taiko drummer based in Ha-waii. He is the only foreigner (he’s American-born) to have received a “natori” or traditional Japanese stage name.

Together you and your partner, Naomi Guilbert, formed Fubuki Daiko in Winnipeg, MB. How did the community re-spond to your quest and what was involved in developing your solo practice?

I think our group was fully embraced from the very beginning. Ever since our first performance at the West End Cultural Cen-tre, we have been perform-ing at the Forks, the Fringe

Festival, Folk Festival, Children’s Festival and at schools all across Manitoba. I think that because the drum is the basic heartbeat of people it has a universal appeal. We have support from the Manitoba Arts Council to help us tour throughout Manitoba as well as to teach at rural schools. We have fans that follow us and keep tabs on where we are performing next. We have quite a few stu-dents that take classes, and we’ve trained many more. It’s been an overall positive ex-perience being in Winnipeg. Because the cost of living here is low compared to San Francisco or Toronto, we are able to do this as a full-time profession and not have a “real job.”

What can one expect at a Fubuki Daiko performance? People can expect a highly riveting, ener-getic display of music and movement. It is exciting to watch, but you can also feel the music go through you. The closer you are to the stage, the more you feel.

What kind of repertoire do you perform with Fubuki Daiko? What instruments are used?

Most of our repertoire are original composi-tions written by myself, Naomi, and Bruce Robertson. The music varies from highly en-ergetic, frenetic pieces to soft melodic quiet interludes. We use a variety of taiko drums (large and small), bamboo flutes, some west-ern instruments like the rototom, cymbals and granite blocks, and other world music instruments such as the agogo bell.

What type of costume does Fubuki Daiko drummer wear during a performance?

We wear two types of costumes. One is very traditional. It is similar to an outfit worn by Japanese carpenters. It is a way for us to commemorate the efforts of the carpenters who originally made the taiko. Features of the costume include an apron (donburi) that has various pockets to put your tools (drum sticks) in, pants (momohiki) that are tied on rather than buttoned or zipped, shoes (tabi) that look like Teeanage Ninja Mutant Turtle shoes, wristbands which used to protect the carpenter from getting cuts when lifting a stack of bricks, and a headband (hachi maki) which is traditionally worn when doing a difficult task like carpentry, making sushi, drumming, or studying for final exams. The other type of costume we wear looks more formal and is based on traditional ki-mono and samurai outfits. Ours were de-

signed and made by Anthony Noa and Jillian Doty, the former artistic director and ward-robe mistress at the Northern Plains Ballet in Bismarck, North Dakota, when we collabo-rated with the company in 2003. Does most Japanese drumming involve a group effort or can it also be a solo ex-perience?

In Japan, the focus is on the group. There’s a saying that the “nail that sticks out is ham-mered down.” In Japan, a lot of the compo-sitions are group-based, with little emphasis on the drum solo. Our teacher was a mav-erick and enjoyed having people do solos. It’s what set his group apart from the other Japanese groups. He would still have peo-ple drumming uniformly, but on occasion he would include a solo. We have grown to en-joy doing solos and encourage our students to work on them. Not a lot of groups do ad lib solos, even in North America. They are often intimidated by the attention to themselves. It is rare to be a solo taiko artist in Japan (or North America). The most famous would be

Eitetsu Hayashi-- one of the founding mem-bers of Ondekoza.

I have heard Japanese drumming can be quite the physical workout. What can one expect at a taiko training session?

It can be like running a marathon with your arms rather than your legs. People can get very sweaty after a rehearsal or class. We also do a lot of warm up exercises be-fore practice (i.e. push ups and sit ups and stretches) Can anyone practice Japanese drum-ming? We say that anyone who has a heartbeat can practice taiko. It takes a few months to learn but a lifetime to master. Our teacher would still refer to us as “crawling babies.” We of-fer workshops about twice a year and try to start a new class of beginners once every two years. Taking a workshop is a prerequi-site for taking classes.

Billy SheehanThere comes a time in ev-

ery drummers’ life that the endless hours of basement

practice end and the marriage of one’s very first rhythm sec-tion begins. If you are lucky, that union will be with someone like Billy Sheehan.

Billy is one of those players you just can’t help but want to toss up there on a pedestal and worship. After all, he has played with the likes of music’s biggest names: Roth, Vai, Chambers--not to mention his role in one of rock’s biggest acts to come out of the 90’s a la Mr. Big.

But when you have a quick chat with Billy you soon realize he is not the hallowed music god you’ve created in you head. No, sir, Billy is as humble and straight laced as they come. Just a guy who plays the bass and loves music.

But it’s his dedication to his craft that makes his persona larger than life. After years of playing, touring, recording, and many a stadium stage, it is in fact Billy who will tell you that he is the last one to say that he has it all aced.

By Sean Mitchell

Billy, tell me about the BX3 tour—three legendary bassists, one extraordinary night. What is it and how did it come about?

Stu (Hamm) had the idea. He called Jeff Berlin and myself. We got together and started a tour—almost no rehearsal! It was a blast.

Any chance there will be a second go-round for the BX3, and what could we look forward to?

Not sure. I hope so! I’d do it again anytime.

Can you tell me your best road story?

I type with two fingers, so it would take

hours. Sorry! Buy me a beer and I’ll lay one on you-- but only if you promise not to tell.

What made you decide to become a bass player?

I just thought the low tones were cool, and the coolest people I knew were bass players.

I have asked this question of many a drummer in our feature articles: in your opinion, what makes a really good drummer?

It’s a long list—many, many things. What makes a good snowflake? What makes a good painting? Almost impossible to answer. If the connection and intuition are there, most everything else falls in place.

Do you remember the point—or were you even aware—that you had become a world class play-er? What did that feel like?

It hasn’t happened yet. I’ll let you know!

What do you think a musician’s in-strument of choice says about their personality?

Not a thing, really. There are so many

variables.

Bozzio, Chambers, Vai, Pastorius, Shee-han: How does one get to that level? What did the practice days look like when you were an undiscovered talent?

I just played. All the time, live! Playing live taught me most everything. I’m very unschooled. You’ve got to want it bad. Want what? Great music coming off your fingers. Fame, cash and success are not the goals; music is.

As an artist who has uti-lized programmed tracks in the studio, how does a bass player come up with drum parts? Do you have some skills behind the kit as well, Billy?

I’m a drum groupie from the very beginning. I love drums

and drumming. I urge all bass players (and everyone else) to learn as much about drums as possible.

When you are putting a solo effort together what do you look for in the players you bring into the studio?

Good friends who were awesome, players that I love. Special undefined qualities.

Who have been your favorite drummers to listen to?

Billy Cobham, Dennis Chambers, Lenny White, Ian Paice, Mitch Mitchell, Woody Woodmansy—many, many more.

Niacin seems an eclectic assortment of players. How did you guys get togeth-er?

I found the B3 player and asked him who his favorite drummer was. His answer was the same as mine: Dennis Chambers.

Give me a few words on some of your band mates, past and present:

Dennis ChambersThe best musician I know—on any instrument.

Terry BozzioSpectacularly unique player.

Virgil DonatiA phenomenon of nature.

Gregg BissonetteOne of the finest human beings I know, and one of the most supremely capable players on Earth.

Pat Torpey

Awesome rock-solid player and dear friend. One of the best.

Mike PortnoyIncredible ability to take anything to a higher level. Fantastic player and wonderful person.

Ray LuzierRay kicks ass completely. An overwhelming passion for excellence. I utterly love playing with him.

David Lee RothDave is my hero. I love his voice. The most imitated (but never duplicated) personality in rock. It was life-changing to work with him.

Steve VaiOne of my favorite people on the planet. A twisted version of reality that cannot be imitated, a genius player and a kind, generous soul.

What does the music industry hold for you in the near future?

This is a great time for music, musicians, and playing. I’m going to play, write, sing, record, tour, and enjoy it all as much as possible. My new CD Holy Cow is coming soon! In my honest opinion, my best yet. Thank you!

Click here to visit:www.billysheehan.com

Sunday March 8th 2009Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Scott Senior

Ben Reimer

Mitch Dorge

Chris Sutherland

Dom Famularo

Click here to visit www.winnipegdrumtalk.ca

How many sound techs does it take to change a light bulb? Five, one to change it and four to rewire the circuit

for maximum output! How ironic, a drummer telling a joke about someone else on a gig. Another great quote from a sound tech is “everyone has two jobs: theirs and sound.”

Seriously though, I have decided to write about sound techs this month and give you my thoughts on becoming a teammate with the tech behind the console. I have had op-portunities to work with great sound techs and not so great sound techs, and have learned a lot from these experiences. The great ones are super passionate about their craft, and do—or have—played an instru-ment at one time or another. The not so great ones, to quote my friend Ken, have “owned a home stereo and think they can

mix a live band.”I have been spoiled in the past year as

we have had the same sound crew for every show—one tech doing front house and one doing our monitors. The front house tech controls what the crowd hears, the monitor tech controls what we hear. I view both of these people as integral parts of our show and have nothing but respect for what they do.

So here it is, you show up at a gig, setup your gear and meet the sound tech for the first time. He goes about placing mics on the drums, maybe on stands, maybe clip-ping them onto the rims. Do we strike up a

conversation with this stranger? What do we ask? Do we just let him/her go about their business and keep quiet?

Well, here is what I do. I like to strike up a conversation right away and find out a bit about the person who is in charge of “ampli-fying” our stage performance. The reason I view this as amplifying instead of mixing is because a good band of players should be able to have a decent stage mix, and the mics just get that loud enough for everyone to hear.

I ask questions like, what kind of gigs do they usually mix, or what instrument do they play? I try to get insight into their thoughts on drums in their mix. If they usually mix metal (and we are a country band) I sense a lot of bottom end and the vocals being bur-

ied. If they have done a good cross section of work, I feel comfortable with them having us sound like we should out front.

If they have never played an instrument, I wonder what their sense of dynamics and interaction of instruments are based on. If they have played, I like to find out what and the kind of music that they dig. If they play drums, we can totally geek out and go on and on as we drummers do.

This exchange of conversation can get us all on the same page and make working to-gether more of a pleasure than a struggle. If they mix in the room we are playing all of the time, I will ask questions like, what type of stage volume works best for them? I will also ask about trouble spots such as cym-bals and snares and how they carry in the venue. There is nothing worse than having a sound tech that tries to tell you how to play your instrument. I can understand a dynamic concern he/she might have, but I have had techs tell me what sizes of drums and cym-bals I should use! With these individuals at the controls, I know the gig will not be what it should be, but I will still try and make the best of the situation.

I love having a positive individual who cares about how the band sounds, and how the material we are playing should sound. They will also have a vast knowledge of micing techniques, instrument placement and overall musicality of the situation.

When I refer to the setup, I am not speaking only of the drums but of the whole stage, including monitors, main speakers, amplifier placement and mic placement. The place-ment of mics and monitors are quite crucial as the sound can get caught in a loop and

If you have ever used a drumhead as a serving tray,

you might be a drumgeek!

create feedback. I have worked with sound techs who have quickly become known as “Feedback Fred,” as they have had bad stage setups coupled with a limited knowledge of frequencies. Once again I am spoiled be-cause I am able to use my in-ear monitors 98% of the time, making the feedback on my side of things nil. When the stage is filled with live monitor wedges instead of using in-ear monitors the mic placement and monitor placement becomes quite crucial.

For the amplifiers in a “dynamically chal-lenged” venue, some sound techs like to move them back stage if possible. If not, they can have them face the back wall or go to an extreme and place plexiglass around the amp. If a tech complains about the stage volume, and does nothing to try and help the situation, I get quite frustrated as this will affect our performance. I know the stage volume has to be controlled, but not to the point of making people play differently than they usually do. This is definitely the case with drummers as we have no volume switch (unless we are playing an electronic kit).

You can refer to my past article on dy-namics for more of a rant on this subject. I

will always bring thin cymbals and smaller drums to cater to the room—without having to change my playing too much. In a situ-ation where there are a lot of live mics on stage with horn players and vocalists, I will adjust my setup accordingly. I will keep cym-bals lower than usual, and I will also muffle the drums a bit and use smaller sticks or brushes.

If the sound tech gets what he/she wants off of the stage and the players are comfort-able, it should be a great show for every-one.

The idea of a monitor mix is very subjective and personal. What one person wants to hear on stage can be totally different for the other players. Again I am spoiled as we use the same digital monitor console for every show providing the utmost of consistency. When I do gigs which require me to build a monitor mix, there are a few things I keep in mind. Ideally, I would like to have the same mix as the crowd has, as this would be a great representation of the band’s sound.

THE BLACK PAGE WANTS YOUThe Black Page is looking for a few good teachers. We are starting a global database of teachers worldwide to publish every month in The Black Page.

Education is the future of drumming, and the more ac-cess we have to great teachers, the better off our indus-try will be. To submit your name, email address/website to our database, email Sean at:

theblackpagemagazine@gmail.com

Please provide some reference material for us to look at. The listing is free for full & part-time drum educators.

This is easier said than done, so when I need to change my game plan here is what I like to hear. I don’t like having a lot of drums in my monitor and really dislike the “drum-mer PA” that some techs think is necessary. My drums are right in front of me, I can hear them, thank you. I might get a hint of kick, snare, toms and overheads if possible. I also take a minimalist approach to my mix and go in with very low expectations on what I am able to have. I can function without a moni-tor and definitely have had to… my ears just have to adjust quickly to the atmosphere.

When I do have a monitor, I like to have a bit of bass guitar, just enough to sit on top of the kick drum. The distance the guitar amps are away from me will determine how much I will want in my mix. I like to have a nice stereo picture of the guitars on stage, espe-cially if they are acoustics. As for vocals, I like to have them right out front, usually the loudest thing in my mix. Piano and keys will sit around the guitar volume with additional instruments just below.

As I mentioned this is very personal; I just don’t like a really loud mix. Too much vol-ume can be very distracting and exhausting. I need every ounce of energy for playing the whole show. Also on the subject of mixes, I will use whatever strengths the band has to my advantage. What I mean is, if the bass player is very solid I will bump him up in the mix. If the keyboard player tends to rush the

time, I will take less of that outside interfer-ence. When I play I am at work, and I need to do my job to the best of my ability. No excuses or exceptions.

If you get a chance to have your own mon-itor mix on a gig, make sure you take the time to hear what you need. This might take some time to even realize what you need to play your best, but working together with the sound tech will be the start of the process.

I also can’t stand when musicians become monitor prima donnas and tweak everything to the last bit. If you are on a gig where there are quick change-overs and several bands, your monitor mix is the last priority. I will make a list of five things I need in my moni-tor and will let the sound tech know even be-fore we setup. I will write this down for him and save some time with fiddling in a panic. This allows others (the lead singer) to spend more time on their mix, and develops a pro-fessional relationship with the show’s tech.

We have to realize that when we play, it is not about us, it is about the music and the team we are working with. The sound tech is an important part of this team and should be respected as such.

On your next gig take the time to get to know the sound tech and chat. You will quickly realize that the sooner you get them on your side and breakdown the musician/tech barrier, the better the gig will be for ev-eryone.

JAYSON BRINKWORTH IS AN ACCOMPLISHED DRUMMER, PERCUSSIONIST, VOCALIST,EDUCATOR & WRITER.

CLICK ON HIS IMAGE TO LINK TO HIS WEBSITE.

by Ryan Carver

Ryan Carver is a member of the Academy of Drums faculty, the Vic Firth education team and PASIC. Click either link below to visit him on the web or to email Ryan your questions and groove requests.

www.carverdrums.com www.myspace.com/ryancarver

The Neverending Excercise Part II

Here are a couple variations I came up with this month. Make sure you execute all strokes and accents cleanly. Be aware of your mo-tions. Notice how you can use control strokes and pull outs to gain speed and control. Practice each sticking first, then incorporate the accents. I started with the accent pattern from last month and in-cluded variations. Have fun!

“I always think of the guy who carries a lunch pail to a fac-tory, where he works eight hours at some-thing he might not want to do.

My lunch pail is full of drumsticks, and my job is going on the bandstand and work-ing at something I love to do. God has given me the talent to write music and play drums.

Maybe the last thing I’ll do is hit a rimshot or a cymbal, and I’ll go out that way. But at least I’ll go out swinging.”

Louie Bellson1924 - 2009