Warming up before a day of drum lessons

Pearl Picollo Snare is Awesome!

I recently bought a steel Pearl Pic. with brushed black paint. The dimensions are 13″ X 3.5″ and the thing is amazing. I’m a big fan of Pearl products anyhow (I have owned many Pearl products in the past) so I’m not too surprised. However, when you only pay $120 or so you don’t expect such a sweet sound.

The drum provides plenty of high-end punch and it is willing to be tuned down a bit (but not too much or it loses its character). I totally recommend this drum to all levels of drummers. I have been playing for over 27 years and it suits my needs, no doubt. If you’re a beginner you might consider this too, it’ll only set you back $110-120 so if you decide that drumming is not for you you aren’t too put-out. No harm-no foul.

Pearl rocks, try this drum and see for yourself.

Petar Poucki Drum Clinic

The Minnesota Chapter of Drummers for Jesus hosted a drum clinic by Petar Poucki yesterday, 18 August 07.  The event was a complete success with fellowship, refreshments, door prizes and an awesome session that was chock full of technical information and inspiration. 

Petar is a long-time member of the drumming community and it showed in his playing.  He approached the kit with a combined contemporary and classic style that was a bit unorthadox, being that he is a ‘leftie’ who plays on a ’rightie’ kit.  His influences range from Bonham to Weckl and it was quite evident in his playing.  He incorporated all sorts of Bonhamesque licks with more technical tom-tom runs that were reminiscent of Weck’s playing.  This, in addition to other obvious influences (Peart, Collins, Porcaro) made for a tasty and refreshing vibe!!    

A great time was had by all and we can’t wait for our next opportunity to hang-out with Petar and pick his brain for more inspiration.       

Twin Cities Drummers for Jesus Clinic August 18th

1 Year Anniversary Event Featuring Petar Poucki

Drummers for Jesus – Minnesota would like to invite all drummers, percussionists or people who enjoy drums and percussion to our 1 Year Anniversary Celebration Event featuring guest performer/clinician Petar Poucki.  Petar has played/toured professionally for many years.  All are invited for food, fun, fellowship and door prizes.

Date: Saturday, August 18th, 2006
Time: 10:00am – 12:00 (noon)
Location: Friendship Church
               12800 Marystown Rd.
               Shakopee, MN

Please send a message if you have any questions.  Hope to see you there!

In The Day

I am so honored to be the new drummer for the band In The Day.  This is a Christian band that plays rock and contemporary music about God, relationships and life in general.  Actually, both Tom Hipps and I have joined forces with the group, which is comprised of Jeremy Metz, Michael Korus, Tom Baumgartner, Tia Toso and Matt “Ace” Ventura.  I might be biased but I have to say that this band will be doing amazing things.  Actually, In The Day has been rockin for a while now and they have been well received in many venues around the midwest.  And even though it’ll be tough to improve on a song writing and performance formula that is obviously working just fine Tom and I hope to add our own element.

Please keep a look out for this band.  Also, we are developing a dedicated blog for calendar updates and information related to the band.  I will post more information as things develop. In the meantime check out our ShoutLife site at www.shoutlife.com/inthedayband. 

Tom Hipps Band at Sonshine Music Festival

Well, this past Friday I had the privilege of playing with some amazing musicians at the Sonshine Music Festival. For those who don’t know what Sonshine is, it’s the biggest Christian music festival in the country, or at least I think it is (hard to imagine anything being much bigger). Anyhow, the musicians, Tom Hipps (vocals, rhythm guitar), Todd Bergman (lead guitar) Jack Mansk (bass) and myself had a blast at this place and I hope it was a blessing to those in attendance.

Although The Tom Hipps Band has been in a constant state of renewal as new members and temporary musicians step up for various performances I have to say that we played as if we’ve been a band for years; this is not only due to Tom’s amazing vocal abilities but also to the professionalism and musiciality of Todd and Jack. These guys are ‘all pro’ and I hope to work with them in the future.

I first saw Todd Bergman playing on a television broadcast for his church, Living Word Church, as I hung out in my wife’s hospital room after giving birth to our third child, Olivia. Although I had my mind on other things I couldn’t help to think, “Wow, Tom and I have to get this dude to jam with us.” Long story short, after a series of phone calls and false starts we had an amazing performance at Sonshine. An amazing part of it all is Todd introduced us to his friend Jack, who is a fine guitarist in his own right, but through his pioneering spirit (or maybe sheer pity for our sad ‘bassless’ situation) agreed to play bass; and a fine job he did!!

Thanks guys for a great day and an amazing performance. I hate to think that this was a ‘one nighter’ but even if it was, at least we caught it on tape.

Is Minneapolis/St. Paul in the United States?

All US cities have a unique culture, that’s what makes this country so cool. But let me tell you, when you move to the Twin Cities you feel like you’ve moved to a different country. From the frigid cold to the mysterious way folks are aware of your presence without looking at you, this place takes some getting use to. This is a good thing though because once you get past the culture shock and awkwardness of being the new kid on the block you realize this place has something special.

This is what people tell you when you are about to move up here… “It gets stinkin’ cold here in the winter but besides that everything is good to go, you bet.” Ah-ha, quite subjective.
We’ve all heard the term “Minnesota Nice,” right? To an outsider this equates to everyone running around up here with smiles on their faces and acts of kindness on the roadways. Nope. I find that folks up here don’t smile unless they know you. Heck, it’s hard to get anyone to look at you, let alone smile. Oh, and drivers up here can easily teach the best Chicago motorist a thing or two about tailgating. Again, this is a good thing (well kind of).

The reality is there’s a story behind every behavior. Yeah I know, that sounds a bit ‘Saturday morning’ but it’s true. Why don’t they smile here? Well, I quickly learned that you have other things on your mind when you’re walking from the parking lot to the building or light rail in minus 15 degree temps, smiling isn’t one of them. Oh and the tailgating, well I haven’t figured that one out yet but I think it has to do with the subconscious effort to stay close to others for body heat. Probably not but…

The neat thing about this place is that once you figure things out a bit you realize people are approachable. When I first got to town I called a well known jazz pianist here, Mary Louise Knutson, just to chat and let her know that I enjoyed listening to her music online (I had to leave a message). Guess what, she called back to fill me in on the music scene here. Should have been the first sign!

This place is growing on me. Yeah, what with its 18 or so Fortune 500 firms and its well educated populace its somewhat “recession proof.” And there is no shortage of “hot dish” and “bars.” But the great thing about the Twin Cities is the artistic culture. This place has more theaters per capita than any other place in the country…O.K. New York City probably has more but we are a close second. Nonetheless, musicians are benefactors of this because there are tons of places to perform and many musicians to meet. Once you get past the surface you are “good to go.”

The “Invisible” Art of Drumming

One of the most enduring lessons I took from my college cinema class (way back when) was the principle of “invisible” art. Filmmakers thrive on it because they want the viewer to get so involved in the film that they don’t realize they are watching one. Directors like Spielberg and Scorsese are masters at this (Saving Private Ryan and Goodfellas, respectively)…they pull you into the film and before you know it you are having a “real-time” experience. “Invisible” art makes this possible by hiding the technical goings-on behind the scenes. It assumes a total dedication to the experience of the viewer and by its very nature is an act of selflessness.

What does this have to do with drummers or drumming, you might ask? I’m here to say that we drummers have more in common with the great filmmakers of the world than you might think (or we should)! Drumming in a band context, and even in a solo context, is best served when we remove ourselves from the technicalities of what we’re doing and focus more on the achievement of a musical or emotional statement. This, in a sense, is “invisible” art in that we are soliciting a heart felt response from our listeners and viewers, as opposed to a more ‘left’ brained-analytical response. Not to say that we aren’t to play on a technical level as this is how we learn our technical vocabulary, not to mention it can be quite entertaining (almost exclusively to drummers and other musicians) to attend conferences, clinics and master classes that feature the technicians of our craft…we all love the Donatis and Weckls of the world. However, don’t let them fool you, these guys are masters of the “invisible” art, as well.

The point being that we can learn from “invisible” drumming artists, such as Ringo and Ricky Lawson. These drummers have attained professional achievements that are beyond the comprehension of many musicians and they did it by playing for the song. We all know the emotional affect a Bonham groove has on even the most unsuspecting listener. And Ringo’s groove and fills are still being copied today, I definitely dip into my “Ringo bag” every now and then. Another outstanding “invisible” drumming artist is the great Steve Gadd. Check out Paul Simon’s 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover, it’ll make a believer out of all you skeptics out there.

Not to be misunderstood, I love technical drumming and the discipline required to reach the most physically and mentally challenging drumming one can achieve; but the beauty of drumming is the choices it presents. We have the choice to self-indulge or to serve the music. Both choices are fine but must be appropriate for the music and audience. The problem is often times we forget to make the distinction. So, my suggestion is that we look to our counterparts in the film industry and borrow one of their artistic principles. Hey, if it works for them, by golly it can work or us!

Hello, welcome to my blog…

Thanks for reading my blog.  I am a bit late with establishing this blog, relatively speaking, but excited nonetheless.  First and foremost, this will be an avenue of discussion about all things related to drums and drumming, what I consider to be my most enduring contribution to the world:)  Other related topics will surface too…

A little about myself, I have been playing and teaching drums for over 25 years (hard to believe it’s been that long).   I started playing at 8 years of age and it’s been a drumming party ever since.  In my formative years I studied and performed in every school band I had access to in my hometown of Philadelphia, which included All-State and All-City bands.  During my years in the All-City Philadelphia Jazz Band I had the awesome experience of knowing and performing with world-class bassist Christian McBride.  I also had the privilege of playing along-side John Roberts, an amazing drummer who has played with Janet Jackson and a slew of great artists.   He is now known as Lil’ John Roberts…Google the guy, he is amazing (I think he endorses Sabian now).

I went on to study at the Armed Forces School of Music in 91′ as a Naval musician.  Being a Naval musician was one of the best things I could have done for my musical development, so many awesoe musicians there.  Any drummers out there looking for a gig should consider military bands (they are not what you might think).   I was also in The Marine Band, totally diferent experience but fun nonetheless.  Anyway, long story short, I’ve played with many great musicians including Grover Washington, Jr.  and Andre Avelino, a great friend and amazing guitarist.  I have a BA and MA in other disciplines but I am a life long student of drums and music. 

Currently, while I am playing with The Tom Hipps Band and doing freelance gigs I am getting my private teaching practice underway here in Minnepolis/St. Paul.  For any of you in the Twin Cities area who might be looking to learn or advance their skills in the art of drumming please feel free to contact me via this blog, call me at 651-230-6214 or email me at jns14@comcast.net.  I teach out of my private studio, however I’m also willing to go to your home or studio.  I’m looking forward to getting to know students of all ages and skill levels here in Minnesota. 

If you have time take a listen to these tracks.  They were recorded at The Bitter End in Greenwich Village New York with the Max Graham Band in 2000.  Max Graham and Kenny Simmons (of The Commodores) and the rest of the band were a lot of fun to perform with.  The first tune, Voice in the Wind, has some solos at the end and the second, When Will I Learn, gets into some Latin stuff.  I hope you enjoy.  I will be posting more samples…

http://www.box.net/shared/1sxghmcp4n

Take it easy and thanks for stopping by.  Jason