Today's drum lesson features a brief but fun little ditty that I came up with the other day while driving to a gig and waiting at a red light (does this qualify as distracted driving???)
Anyways, the pattern resembles this and combines one single paradiddlediddle followed by a single paradiddle combination:
You'll notice that the pattern switches hands every second bar, going back and forth between the right and left hand leads.
Ideally you'll want to work this two-bar pattern up to a very fast sixteenth note pace or even 32nd notes. This is because if you do, and if the accents are properly articulated, you'll start to hear a slow 12/8 shuffle pattern emerge from the accents.
You'll start to hear something like this:
You could also experiment with substituting double paradiddles in the beginning of each bar (leading with both the right and left hands of course).
I've also been having fun experimenting with this pattern, orchestrating it around the drum set.
This is a fun little phrasing exercise that gets your hands going, combines rudiments and also illustrates the concept of hearing larger accent patterns/phrases amongst denser rhythmic combinations.
Some interesting masterclass footage today from Ulysses Owens Jr., a drummer who's recent work with Christian McBride's piano trio I've enjoyed quite a bit:
And thanks to the kind people over at the Zildjian cymbal company, here's Owens demonstrating a very nice collection of his Kerope cymbals:
Today's post features several short but very practical and informative mini-lessons from Arizona drummer Dom Moio. I took a few lessons from Dom back in 2004 while visiting my brother who was, at the time, studying his Master's at ASU.
Dom's demonstrates these Latin grooves in a very clear and concise way and I hope he offers more in the future:
Special thanks to Chad Anderson who passed along this very important interview with the great Art Taylor from 1994 (as part of the New York Public Library's Louis Armstrong Jazz Oral History Project).
As per usual, when the Master's speak...we listen.
*Edit*
And to remind us all of what a supreme & badass monster swinger that Art Taylor was, here's some great concert footage from 1958 with Zoot Sims, Walter Davis and Doug Watkins:
Welcome back and I hope you all had a wonderful Labour Day long weekend.
Today's post features some excellent drumming and commentary from Tyshawn Sorey, a very unique drummer/composer/multi-instrumentalist/scholar who is quickly being recognized as a modern Master. Thanks to the kind people over at the Memphis Drum Shop for putting together and sharing these.
These two clips of Tony Williams from a 1987 drum workshop in Austria have been making the rounds this summer. What an incredible opportunity to see a Master up close like this.
In the first footage we see Mr. Williams "warming up":
Notice the extensive use of single strokes, doubles and various paradiddles, switching effortlessly and executed at a very high dynamic level and stick height. A "warm up" indeed!
And here's the following drum solo performed for his class:
I saw Tony perform a very similar type of clinic like this in San Antonio at an IAJE conference in 1993. This video, I think, is a great demonstration of Tony Williams' style during the 80s and 90s. Interestingly enough, drummer/vibraphonist Jason Marsalis also attended that same clinic and, while we were playing some gigs together last year, it was interesting for the two of us to compare notes on what we remembered and took away from the experience.
Somebody also sent me an audio recording of this clinic and once I have the opportunity to listen to that I'll provide the highlights later.
*Edit* Thanks to Camil Belisle, here's the audio recording I mentioned!
Well it's been awhile since one of my Monday Morning Paradiddle columns so I've tried to make this one a lengthy one at that. I'm hitting the road shortly and not sure how much time I'll have for blogging, linking or posting and such while I'm out and about over the course of these next summer months. Maybe I'll pop by once-in-awhile to say hello, we'll see. In the meantime, here's some random beats to check out that I think you'll enjoy:
- From the Smithsonian here's a piece on the origins of our instrument entitled "The Birth of the Drum Set":
...and here's some great duet footage of DeJohnette with baritone saxophonist John Surman:
I heard this duet combination at the Montreal Jazz Festival in 2001 and it was nothing short of inspiring. These two musicians obviously have a long history of playing together.
-Thanks to Jazz at Lincoln Center's Jazz Academy, Sherrie Maricle offers some very practical motivic drum soloing techniques:
- Chicago's George Fludas is a drummer that's not mentioned nearly enough, but I think he's awesome:
- Gerry Hemingway is a another very creative drum set artist who's music I've been meaning to get into for a long time now. Here's one reason why:
- John Abraham, currently the drummer with Cirque du Soleil's Las Vegas production of "O", recently forwarded me this very interesting composition that combines a number of different techniques:
Well done John and thanks for sharing!
- Joe Lovano has a new record coming out soon that features one of my favorites, the great Lewis Nash on drums. Here's a recent performance of Nash laying it down with Lovano's "Classic Quartet":
- Brian Blade is touring with the trio of Chick Corea and Christian McBride these days. Here's an excerpt of his dynamic solo from the tune"Fingerprints":
- What am I listening to these days?
Mike Melito "New York Connection" - Mike Melito (drums)
Matt Wilson "Beginning of a Memory" - Matt Wilson (drums)
John Coltrane "Crescent" - Elvin Jones (drums)
Ben Henriques "Captain Awesome" - Dave Laing (drums)
Nick Fraser "Starer" - Nick Fraser (drums)
Eric Alexander & Vincent Herring "The Battle" - Carl Allen (drums)
- And today's Last Word goes to Toni Morrison (via Tanya Kalmanovitch):
"I tell my students, ' When you get these jobs that you have been so brilliantly trained for, just remember that your real job is that if you are free, you need to free somebody else. If you have some power, then your job is to empower somebody else. This is not just a grab bag candy game.'" - Toni Morrison
*I think this is some really sage advice to anyone who might be in a position to help others. Don't be greedy. Don't hoard all the knowledge and spirits that others have undoubtedly shared with you. This is also very reminiscent of Dave Holland's of beautiful piece "Pass it on" (dedicated to Edward Blackwell) for the very same reason...
Alrighty, that's all for now. Be well and see you on the flip side!
A pretty amazing collection of current Jazz drummers, all collaborating together in one giant collective percussion discussion. Featuring Joe Saylor, Willie Jones III and Sylvia Cuenca, all led by the elder statesman Albert Tootie Heath on drums:
I've personally had two significant drum set ensemble experiences such as this, first playing with Joe LaBarbera at the Banff Centre in 1997 and then with Billy Hart in Lake Placid, New York in 1998. In both instances both LaBarbera and Hart insisted that we all set-up and play together during our daily morning, drum masterclasses (anywhere from 6-8 drum sets all at once, with our drums set-up collectively in a giant circle!) It's very rare that we as drummers have the opportunity to play together with other drummers and we should really encourage more of this sort of thing.
I don't think the label "drum battle" really applies to this sort of configuration (not like the friendly rivalry of Rich vs. Krupa for example) but this is more of an attempt to explore the idea of a group of drummers playing multiple drum sets, together as a true ensemble. Once we shed the competitive aspects of playing the drums in a context such as this, ensembles like this really become a positive experience and a chance to share and celebrate our collective love for rhythm, the drums and the "brotherhood" of drumming to which we all belong.
Here's another incarnation of the same group but with different personnel (this time with Billy Hart, Idris Muhammad, Louis Hayes and, again, Albert Tootie Heath):
I discovered these fantastic clips of Kenny Clarke last week and since there's not a lot of footage of Klook out there, these ones (especially the last one with Martial Solal, featuring some impeccable brushwork) are all mandatory watching/listening.
Notice the lack of a mounted tom on three of these clips and, also, as Brad Shigeta pointed out to me when I showed these to him: "Traditional Grip!" Indeed ; )
Definitely not the greatest audio/video quality but definitely some quality wisdom from the great Lewis Nash thanks to an intrepid audience member with his/her iPhone:
As per always, when the Masters speak....we listen.
A couple of interesting, up and close videos of Jabali Billy Hart in action with his quartet from a recent performance at Bimhuis:
It's always a lesson for me to watch and listen to Billy play. His clear sense of exaggerated dynamics, textural orchestrations and musical accompaniment behind other soloists is always a joy and a clear reminder of what it means to be a Jazz drummer.
Thanks to Toronto's Reg Schwager who passed along this one of Italian Jazz drummer Roberto Gatto, via the Facebook, a very fine drummer I wasn't previously familiar with:
And I enjoyed this one as well, featuring Gatto on a set of drums previously owned/played by Elvin Jones:
- Todd Bishop is, as always, also offering great things over at his blog Cruiseship Drummer. Here's a great piece that Todd recently shared, some thoughts on Billy Higgins offered by Jeff Tain Watts:
- Master drummer Jack DeJohnette has a trio album on ECM with Ravi Coltrane and Matthew Garrison that drops this week. Here's a piece on DeJohnette from NPR:
- Kendrick Scott shows off his new Yamaha drums, some nice Zildjian cymbals and one really hip, funky looking wide-brimmed hat:
- Speaking of new drums, here's a hip clip of Adam Arruda and Colin Stranahan double-drum-demonstrating their nice Canopus drums:
- Thanks to Toronto's Reg Schwager who passed along this one of legendary guitarist Sonny Greenwich in an old CBC clip featuring Jerry Fuller on drums:
- George Marsh discusses his concept and philosophy of "Inner Drumming" via Jake Feinberg:
- And an oldie, but still a goldie...Steve Gadd on brushes:
- What am I listening to these days?
John Coltrane "The Complete 1961 Village Vanguard Recordings" - Elvin Jones (drums)
Mela is a drummer I've greatly admired, in particular his work with Joe Lovano, Kenny Barron, Melissa Aldana, his own projects and, most recently, with saxophonist Gary Bartz.
Here's a few interview clips with Francisco via Jazz Times:
I posted a link to the URL containing this concert in its entirety a few weeks back….but here's a nice excerpt via the youtube.com featuring the ever soulful and swinging Mr. Billy Higgins at work:
Some "vintage" Canadian Jazz today via Toronto's Barry Elmes:
This band was quite influential to me during my first introduction to Jazz music around the early 90s. Drummer Barry Elmes and his group Time Warp (co-led with bassist Al Henderson) was one of the first examples of Canadian Jazz that I was first exposed to during my initial foray into the world of Jazz music. The Regina Public Library, my first source for recordings in the pre-internet era, was a good place to find not only Jazz records, but Canadian ones too.
During the 1990s Elmes was very active not only leading his own projects but also hitting the road and taking his unique music to different parts of Canada, many of which didn't see much Jazz music. I've always been a fan of Elmes' drumming, in particular his melodic approach to the drums inspired by such drummers as Max Roach and Dannie Richmond. He's also a prolific composer and his work has been quite influential towards my own efforts as well.
And here's a few links of some live, concert footage of Time Warp from the Sounds of Jazz Concert Series, courtesy of the Canadian Jazz Archive over at JAZZ.FM91
Thanks to Christian DeJongh who shared his lessons with Berklee drum professor John Ramsay via the YouTube.com:
I was first exposed myself to Ramsay's teachings via his fine books "Art Blakey's Jazz Messages" and "The Drummer's Complete Vocabulary (as taught by Alan Dawson)".
In particular, Ramsay's book on Art Blakey was a valuable resource for me when it first came out in the mid-90s. Ramsay's experience as Blakey's road manager and sometimes playing alongside him as his "double" drummer translates well in this text and provides a first-hand look at Blakey's style.
John was also very helpful to me personally during my doctoral research, providing some valuable insight into the melodic aspects of Alan Dawson's teachings. Aspects of these are also covered in his book, dealing with Dawson's extensive method and teachings. Highly recommended.
This is a blog about jazz, jazz drumming and all things unrelated. Thanks for stopping by!
A Bit About Me...
Jonathan McCaslin was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba and raised in Regina, Saskatchewan. Jonathan began playing the drums at the age of nine. He progressed through the Regina Lions Junior Band and the music program at his high school, Campbell Collegiate, soon developing a passion for playing the drums and jazz. Ultimately, Jon's interest in music led him to enroll in the Jazz Studies program at McGill University, graduating with distinction in 1999.
While at McGill Jon had the opportunity to study with some of the finest jazz educators in the country including Gordon Foote, Kevin Dean, Jan Jarcyzk, Chris McCann, Andre White, Michel Lambert and Dave Laing. He also attended the prestigious summer jazz workshop presented by the Banff Centre for the Arts in 1997, where he performed with Canadian jazz greats Hugh Fraser, Don Thompson and Kenny Wheeler.
Jon has also been fortunate to have performed with many of Canada's jazz elite including Charlie Biddle, Brian Hurley, Louise Rose, Alaister Kay, Mart Kinny, Gary Guthman, Mike Rud, Hadley Caliman, Greg Clayton, Chase Sanborn, Andre White, Tilden Webb, John LaBelle, Kevin Dean, Dave Turner, Ralph Bowen, Don Thompson, Dionne Taylor, Jim Vivian, Kelly Jefferson, Ian McDougall, Brad Turner, Jim Brenan, The McGill Jazz Orchestra, Jeff Johnston, Lorraine Desmerais, Steve Amirault, Hugh Fraser, Chucho Valdes, Kieran Overs, The Altsys Jazz Orchestra, Pat LaBarbera, The Regina Symphony Orchestra and The Montreal Jazz Big Band.
In the spring of 2002 McCaslin completed his Master's in Jazz Studies at McGill University where he studied jazz drumming, improvisation and composition.
In January 2003 Jon released his debut CD, “McCallum’s Island”. Featuring his quintet, the CD contains an exciting collection of McCaslin’s original compositions, featuring himself and his band. The release of this CD was followed by a twenty-day tour of Western Canada, performing to enthusiastic, capacity audiences. During March of 2003 Jonathan was the recipient of a fellowship from the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and attended the “Betty Carter Jazz Ahead” residency in Washington, D.C. Along with twenty other distinguished young jazz artists, McCaslin was featured with such jazz icons as Terence Blanchard, Carmen Lundy, Winard Harper, Curtis Fuller and John Clayton.
McCaslin’s quintet performed at the 2003 edition of the Montreal International Jazz Festival and was nominated for the General Motors Grand Prix du Festival (awarded to the most outstanding Canadian group). From 2004 until 2006, Jon toured North America, Asia and Europe with the high-energy, critically acclaimed music production troupe “Barrage”. Featuring a cast of seven world-class fiddlers and a four-piece band, this dynamic show featured high-energy music and fiddle traditions from around the world set to upbeat choreography and movement.
In 2015, Dr. McCaslin received his Doctorate through the University of Toronto and completed his dissertation on the conceptualization of contemporary melodic jazz drumming. He is currently based in Calgary, Alberta where he maintains a busy performing and teaching schedule across Canada.
