Brushes in 3/4

Hi folks, a pattern (and two variations) in 3/4 on brushes today.
In the main pattern the right hand is constantly circling quarter notes in a clockwise direction.
The left hand is playing a ride pattern by sweeping 8th notes, starting at the top of the drum on beat two going back down to the next beat one. Remember, the left hand will sweep all downbeats to the right and all upbeats to the left.
Here's how the first one looks:




In the first variation the left hand remains the same, while the right hand circles in dotted quarter notes.



Finally, in the last variation. The right hand now circles dotted half notes.



I hope you enjoy these 3/4 patterns. As my skill (and resources) improve I plan to add more notation and video to help clarify these. Until then, play for the music and be good to yourselves!

Ted Quinlan Trio

The post today is video from the recording of Ted Quinlan's "Streetscape" with myself and Kieran Overs. The tune is "Go West' and we're actually recording the take that's on the CD as we're being filmed. I have no idea I looked so geeky while recording, but I should have guessed!

Someone we should all be thankful for

For thanksgiving, I thought I would post this great footage of Tony Williams, whom I am eternally thankful for. This is a clip from late in his career because he didn't play Drum Workshop until pretty close to when he passed. I see this and am sure that, had he lived, he would still be kicking the crap out of the drums and showing all us young punks how it's done.


Thank you Mr. Williams.

Couple of brush patterns

Hi Folks,
Just posting a couple of the brush patterns that will be in my upcoming book.
The first one divides up the ride pattern between the two hands. On beat 1 and 2 the hands alternate sliding towards us (starting with the right) and on beats 3 and 4 the hands alternate moving away from us. The right hand taps the skip beats of 2 and 4. In the second one I got the idea from Art Taylor on a Red Garland recording. The right hand is playing legato quarter notes sliding to the right and tapping either the skip beat of 2 and 4 or all four beats to create a shuffle. The left hand is sliding 16th notes, heading to right on all the downbeat 16th and going left for all the es and ahs. This creates a nice tension between the swung 8ths in the right hand and the 16ths in the left. The left hand stays on the drum surface the whole time.


Hope you enjoy these. They'll be lots more in future posts.





Here's a video with me playing brushes (along with other weapons of my choice) with Charles MacPherson, Bernie Senensky, and Mike Downes a few years ago.

First Video Post!

Hey everyone. I thought for my video post I would share my dog Jackson and I doing a bluesy duet. I know I got totally upstaged. What did W.C. Fields say again about working with dogs and children? :)

My students this year.

I just wanted to quickly say I'm very pleased with my students this year. They are a hard working bunch and generally show a lot of drive, self-direction, and talent. Bravo!

See, I told you the next one would be positive.

DON'T CALL IT A KICK DRUM!

Hi folks,

I would like to discuss a personal pet peeve. I hate the term "kick drum". In fact, I rarely respond when it's called that. It's a bass drum folks, and I'll tell you why I feel that way.

Kick drum is a term I associate with live sound engineers. These are well meaning folks but their concept of the drum set I often find quite disturbing. Part of the concept is that drums sound one way. That there's one way for a BASS DRUM to sound. When I hear Tony Williams', John Bonhams', or Dave Grohls' bass drums, they all sound great to me even though they sound totally different. The other problem is the sound people view the drum set as a collection of disparate instruments. The drum set has many components but it is indeed one instrument. When does a soundperson say to the bass or guitar player, "Let's hear your E string, now play your A string". They get the musician to play and balance the WHOLE instrument as they play it. That's the way the drums should be listened to. In fact, I've been on a few recording dates where the engineer listens this way, and the drums have sounded like they were a collection of different instruments. Sometimes they don't even sound like they've been played by the same person!

Lastly, Kick drum sounds derogatory to me. Jack DeJohnette doesn't kick his bass drum. He plays it, just as Glenn Gould played the piano or Charlie Parker played the saxophone.

Sorry to get a bit rant-y folks. Just wanted to get that off my chest.

I promise the next post will be very positive.

Ted