Hey all,
I'm not afraid to admit I'm finding the lack of work, no money, and social isolation in general very challenging. In an effort to share stories of hope, practice ideas, and just general drum related hangage, I'm hosting an online meeting at 3PM EST all this week. Please come by if you feel like it. The link is https://zoom.us/j/2265007321
Would love to virtually see you! :)
Also, here's a great doc about Stan Levey and the Lighthouse scene in the 50s. ( Thanks to Adam Nussbaum for sending this out. )
Awesome!
I also have a new set of exercises that I'm going to film tomorrow, so stay tuned! :)
Wednesday, March 25, 2020
Monday, March 23, 2020
The Case of the Busker Bandits
Heard a DJ on a Toronto-based classic Rock station talking about a recent incident on the subway there. Apparently, there was a pair of buskers in the subway and it turned out they were playing to tracks, and there was a subsequent uproar. I find this ironic to say the least. Firstly, isn't the whole situation with busking a "pay what you want to" one? So, if the "act" amused you somehow, what do you care if they were playing or miming? I don't think the Toronto Transit Commission offers a "Truly Live or your Money Back" plan! Also, I imagine the same people that were complaining about the canned buskers performance wouldn't think twice about paying upwards of $100 to see some of the latest Pop phenoms playing to pre-recorded backing vocals, instrumental backing, or complete miming!
Which brings to mind another point. The DJ, who I believe has worked in radio for a long time, claimed that they wouldn't be able to tell a live performance from a mimed one! This is a major effect from the erosion of Music education in the last 20 years or so! This is yet another example of how people don't even understand what live music sounds like anymore!
Here's some ways to tell if the performance is the real deal of memorex/Milli Vanilli.
1. If it sounds EXACTLY like the recording, it probably is the recording!
Human beings are magical creatures, but they do not possess machine-like consistency. All vocals will have little shifts in inflection and tone colour. For something someone sings to be heard, they need to be very near the microphone. Same goes for instruments. Some notes will pop out more than others. Tempos and keys can be different. I still remember seeing Genesis and they played " I Can't Dance" a tone down ( probably to help Phil Collins' voice) but with it being in A rather than B, it sounded much tougher and bluesier, probably due to the open strings on the guitar and bass.
2. It's really difficult to move around a lot onstage and maintain instrumental/vocal precision.
Do you really think that band doing something that looks like a gymnastics routine is able to make the gig sound exactly like the recording, including never sounding out of breath, despite doing double duty on vocals and aerobics?
I've mentioned this before, but I think we need to view live performance as a time to take the recording to possibly a new place, or at least a fresh one. Isn't it cool that the performance we're witnessing, even if it's material the artist has played many times, is unique? So, let's all go dig some live music and appreciate it for what it is! :)
Which brings to mind another point. The DJ, who I believe has worked in radio for a long time, claimed that they wouldn't be able to tell a live performance from a mimed one! This is a major effect from the erosion of Music education in the last 20 years or so! This is yet another example of how people don't even understand what live music sounds like anymore!
Here's some ways to tell if the performance is the real deal of memorex/Milli Vanilli.
1. If it sounds EXACTLY like the recording, it probably is the recording!
Human beings are magical creatures, but they do not possess machine-like consistency. All vocals will have little shifts in inflection and tone colour. For something someone sings to be heard, they need to be very near the microphone. Same goes for instruments. Some notes will pop out more than others. Tempos and keys can be different. I still remember seeing Genesis and they played " I Can't Dance" a tone down ( probably to help Phil Collins' voice) but with it being in A rather than B, it sounded much tougher and bluesier, probably due to the open strings on the guitar and bass.
2. It's really difficult to move around a lot onstage and maintain instrumental/vocal precision.
Do you really think that band doing something that looks like a gymnastics routine is able to make the gig sound exactly like the recording, including never sounding out of breath, despite doing double duty on vocals and aerobics?
I've mentioned this before, but I think we need to view live performance as a time to take the recording to possibly a new place, or at least a fresh one. Isn't it cool that the performance we're witnessing, even if it's material the artist has played many times, is unique? So, let's all go dig some live music and appreciate it for what it is! :)
Thursday, March 19, 2020
More Social Isolation Brushes and short solo
Hey everyone. I think I'm probably trying to justify all my time in quarantine by posting so often but here's another new brush thing. I'm going to call it either Tilt-a-Whirl or Cement Mixer. As I demonstrate, it works at a lot of tempos. In fact, it might become my new fast tempo go to pattern. I also play it in 3 and reverse the direction of the circles.
Now here's a short solo mainly using low volume sounds. I call it "Ghost Town" after my view of downtown Guelph the other day.
Hang in there. This will be over eventually.
Now here's a short solo mainly using low volume sounds. I call it "Ghost Town" after my view of downtown Guelph the other day.
Hang in there. This will be over eventually.
Tuesday, March 17, 2020
Social Isolation Figure 8s
Like many musicians right now, I have had many engagements cancelled. To try and make the best of a difficult situation, I've been working on some new brush patterns involving figure 8s. The videos below are:
1) The original figure 8 in both hands balled pattern I learned from Regina drummer Barry Weafer when I was in grade 9.
2) Ride rhythm pattern in R.H. w/ left hand doing the figure 8 pattern in a quarter note triplet pulse.
3) "" " " in a JAZZ quarter note triplet pulse.
4) Same as 2) but with Afro Cuban 12/8 in R.H.
5) Same as 3) but with "" " "
Have fun. Stay safe and sane! :)
UPDATE:
Here's 3 more using the figure 8 in the R.H. First one with figure 8 and ride rhythm R.H., quarter note circles L.H., Second one, just figure 8 in R.H. and left hand dotted quarter note circles, third one, R.H. as in first example and left hand as in second example.
1) The original figure 8 in both hands balled pattern I learned from Regina drummer Barry Weafer when I was in grade 9.
2) Ride rhythm pattern in R.H. w/ left hand doing the figure 8 pattern in a quarter note triplet pulse.
3) "" " " in a JAZZ quarter note triplet pulse.
4) Same as 2) but with Afro Cuban 12/8 in R.H.
5) Same as 3) but with "" " "
Have fun. Stay safe and sane! :)
UPDATE:
Here's 3 more using the figure 8 in the R.H. First one with figure 8 and ride rhythm R.H., quarter note circles L.H., Second one, just figure 8 in R.H. and left hand dotted quarter note circles, third one, R.H. as in first example and left hand as in second example.
Saturday, March 14, 2020
Paul Bley Rants
Thanks to my friend and piano master Steve Amirault for hipping me to this series of rants from Paul Bley. Amazing how much of the future he saw…….
1) Practice makes perfect. Imperfect is better.
2) Music paper is senile. Recordings do a better job.
3) Rehersals are counterproductive. Repetition is a downward spiral.
4) Choice of instrumention now determined by the ability of the individual. Since the distribution of a CD lasts only 60 days you will have to make many recordings to be in the pipeline.
5) Each new advance in recording media requires the musician to sustain creativity for an ever increasing length of time, therefore composition is impossible because the next CD length will be 144 minutes per side.
6) The audio only CD has already gone the way of the wax cylinder because Video is here.
7) Record companies will download their music directly to the home via the Internet...
8) Press kits can be ordered 24 hours @ day, internationally for the price of a local phone call.
9) Jam sessions with a master will be on line in real time w/ an Internet headphone mix.
10) Improvisation is brain food for the listener.
11) Live performance can be booked directly by fans in each city.
12) Acoustic instruments are museum pieces of the 20th century.
13) Electronic musical instruments will all have the same appearance - that of a briefcase.
14) The central activity of all artists is the creation of copyrights.
15) A 30 year old artist is 10 years old with another 40 years left to improve.
16) Since you will never like your first 10 copyrights, make them quickly.
17) The record company is your adversary: against their own best interests, they demand loyalty.
18) A biography is a collection of self-serving anecdotes.
19) The piano solo, has always always been a stage wait, in a jazz band. Nothing new in
Improvisation, was ever created by a pianist.
20) Imitation is a form a flattery, but please.... take only the best & .......omit the rest.
21)You can always tell what a musician will sound like by looking at their record collection.
Surgery is required. Ones favorite recordings must be disposed of.
22) Reverse the proceedures in classical music & you have the ideal jazz education.
23)Not only can one make new music music in real time, one can also write books, make paintings, invent theories & create life.
Here's Paul Bley playing the great Carla Bley composition, "Ida Lupino"
1) Practice makes perfect. Imperfect is better.
2) Music paper is senile. Recordings do a better job.
3) Rehersals are counterproductive. Repetition is a downward spiral.
4) Choice of instrumention now determined by the ability of the individual. Since the distribution of a CD lasts only 60 days you will have to make many recordings to be in the pipeline.
5) Each new advance in recording media requires the musician to sustain creativity for an ever increasing length of time, therefore composition is impossible because the next CD length will be 144 minutes per side.
6) The audio only CD has already gone the way of the wax cylinder because Video is here.
7) Record companies will download their music directly to the home via the Internet...
8) Press kits can be ordered 24 hours @ day, internationally for the price of a local phone call.
9) Jam sessions with a master will be on line in real time w/ an Internet headphone mix.
10) Improvisation is brain food for the listener.
11) Live performance can be booked directly by fans in each city.
12) Acoustic instruments are museum pieces of the 20th century.
13) Electronic musical instruments will all have the same appearance - that of a briefcase.
14) The central activity of all artists is the creation of copyrights.
15) A 30 year old artist is 10 years old with another 40 years left to improve.
16) Since you will never like your first 10 copyrights, make them quickly.
17) The record company is your adversary: against their own best interests, they demand loyalty.
18) A biography is a collection of self-serving anecdotes.
19) The piano solo, has always always been a stage wait, in a jazz band. Nothing new in
Improvisation, was ever created by a pianist.
20) Imitation is a form a flattery, but please.... take only the best & .......omit the rest.
21)You can always tell what a musician will sound like by looking at their record collection.
Surgery is required. Ones favorite recordings must be disposed of.
22) Reverse the proceedures in classical music & you have the ideal jazz education.
23)Not only can one make new music music in real time, one can also write books, make paintings, invent theories & create life.
Here's Paul Bley playing the great Carla Bley composition, "Ida Lupino"
Saturday, March 7, 2020
That time I subbed for Steve Gadd…….
It must have been something like 15 years ago. It was a beautiful summer's day in Guelph. Around 7:30AM, the phone ran. I thought to myself that it must be my then mother-in-law as NO ONE ELSE would call us at such an early hour! As it turned out, it was Gap Mangione. I had worked on and off for him, usually in big band settings, on and off since the early 90s. he said " I'm recording in Rochester today, how soon can you get here?" I estimated that, if the border was relatively smooth, I could be there by noon. He then mentioned that Steve Gadd was supposed to record with him, but couldn't because he had developed kidney stones. ( Gadd, by then had moved back to his hometown of Rochester, and was around when he wasn't touring the world with the likes of Eric Clapton etc.) So, I wolfed done breakfast, grabbed some gear and got to NY state as quickly as I could. Ironically, when I got to the studio I ran into local Toronto bassist Neil Swainson, who was there for the session as well! ( Gap like his Canadians) Anyway, the session went fine, and if I remember correctly, I was on some of it, and Mr. Gadd played on some of it at a later date.
I met Steve Gadd several years later when he performed at Humber! he played with an ascetic Jazz combo, and electric jazz combo, and a big band! What a treat to hear how he navigated all these different styles. When i talked to him, i mentioned that I came and played when he couldn't make it and he thanked me graciously. It things like these that remind me of how small the music world actually is, and how it's important for us to play our best, but also be the best humans we can be.
Ta-ta for now…...
Monday, March 2, 2020
New Ted Quinlan video
Greetings!
Here's yet another performance video from ted Quinlan's Juno nominated recording, Absolutely Dreaming. This tune is called "X marks the Spot" Enjoy.
Here's yet another performance video from ted Quinlan's Juno nominated recording, Absolutely Dreaming. This tune is called "X marks the Spot" Enjoy.
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