David Caruana talks about stuff - drumming, software and stuff
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It’s back - three shows! Full details here.
Features an impressive line-up:
My tickets are booked for Birmingham - see you there.
My attempt to purchase tickets for a local John Blackwell clinic failed today. They’re all sold out. Oh well, I was looking foward to it - he’s performed with Prince and The New Power Generation.
If anyone has a spare ticket for the April 5th Drumwright clinic (in Woodley) for any reason, I would be happy to help out 
Leave a comment below.
Nice. Very nice.
Wow, what an evening. Having not really appreciated Jazz before, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the music on offer. I could almost become a convert.
First part of the evening, Peter Erskine was interviewed by Neil Percy (principal percussionist with the LSO and head of the Timpani and Percussion Department at the Royal Academy of Music - the venue for the evening). An interesting conversation, which included some nuggets such as the time one his tutors asked him on their first meeting to play every note of an excercise incorrectly. Reluctantly he did so, and was then asked to look out of the window to describe the scene - of course, even though he couldn’t play any worse, the world outside continued as usual. Something for all of us learning the art to consider.
Then, Peter played with his trio, The Lounge Art Ensemble (Saxophonist - Bob Sheppard, Bassist - Dave Carpenter) who effortlessly knocked out some selections from their new album “Music for Moderns”. The striking aspect for me was the dynamic range shown on the drums - I’m used to people going at it - volume 11. His jazz oriented kit (Yamaha drums, Zildjian cymbals) demonstrated very clearly the different sounds that can be produced when played appropriately. The six string bass was also slightly alarming.
After a short break, Peter was joined by 20 or so musicians who were students in the Jazz and Percussion departments at the Royal Academy. They played a number of pieces (written by Peter, arranged by others) and to be honest, this was just astounding. The combination of talent and variety of music was stunning. Play list: Plan 9 - Scotland, Africa - Northern Cross - Song for Jaco (Song for a Friend) - Bulgaria - Not a Word - Sweet Soul - To be or not to be.
I’m not about to rush out and buy a pile of Jazz albums, but the evening has certainly given me some insight into this new world and different style of drumming.
The following pictures were found on my camera, 4 months after taking them at Drummer Live 05. They’re of Gregg Bissonette…
If you’d like a copy of the originals, send an e-mail or leave a comment.
I’ve just booked tickets to see Peter Erskine (who’s well known in the Jazz world) - it’s a genre I know nothing about, but it’s gonna be interesting to see how this part of the drumming world differs from everyday rock & pop.
The venue is particularly impressive. It can be seen here (click on original building -> then ground floor -> then Duke’s Hall on the right).
From the Royal Academy website…
Monday 13th February
7:30pm
Duke’s Hall (Royal Academy of Music)
An Evening with Peter Erskine
Programme to include:
Peter Erskine Fanfare; Plan 9; Sweet Soul; Not A Word; Scotland, Africa; Northern Cross; Song For A Friend (Song For Jaco); When You Are Old (brass quintet); To Be Or Not To Be; Bulgaria
The world-renowned drummer Peter Erskine has collaborated with many seminal figures in jazz and contemporary music, including Joe Zawinul in Weather Report, Mike Manieri and Michael Brecker in Steps Ahead and, more recently, Mark-Anthony Turnage. Peter is a prolific composer in his own right and this concert will feature his music for various ensembles. In the first half of the concert, Peter will be interviewed by Neil Percy, Principal Percussionist with the LSO and Head of Timpani and Percussion at the Academy.
This last Friday, Karen and I went to see Ian Paice at a local venue. I’ve seen Ian once before, performing an excellent duet with Chad Smith (RHCP). Again, Ian played with control & feel and pace when required.
The evening consisted of:
The gig was light-hearted; consisting of a wide range of songs including some classics such as Fool for your Loving and Smoke on the Water! as well as a completely unrehearsed rendition of BB King’s Hound Dog - which they nailed.
All profits from the event were donated to DrumWright’s adopted charity, Tong-Len, which supports primary education for highly deprived children in Northern India.
I wasn’t aware of this show until I received some welcome “junk” mail advertising it. So, I’m off to this one too.
It’s next weekend 24/25th Sept at Wembley Conference Centre (London Uk).
Details are at http://www.drummerlive.co.uk.
“Ears don’t repair - look after them”
A message repeated over and over during the DrumFest day by each drummer, who then subsequently put protection into their ears. But what about the audience - how many of them had protection? Not many from my quick scan.
So, what about an Ear Protection company sponsoring these Drum Shows and giving everyone a free pair of Ear plugs - please. Surely, this is very positive marketing for the first to do so!
Luckily, I took my ear plugs to DrumFest (only because I’d been to one drum show before and my ears knew about it) - without them, I’m sure I would have had ringing ears - a sign of battering and possible damage - DrumFest was the equivalent of three or more consecutive live rock shows at Wembley!
Somehow, I managed to grab a seat in the 2nd row even though I was quite late into the hall - so here’s how it looked from my view.
If you’d like a copy of the original pictures (full size and quality), send me an e-mail.
Checkout this short video of the machine known as Thomas Lang.
Andy Edwards…
Russel Gilbrook…
Adrian Erlandsson…
Kenny Aronoff…
Gregg Bissonette…
Jimmy Chamberlain…
Thomas Lang…
I’ve just received my tickets for Drumfest (Birmingham, UK) - this will be my first attendance, and with all the accolades it’s received, I’m looking forward to it very much.
Go visit DrumFest 2005 for details.
I’m particularly interested in hearing & seeing Thomas Lang and Gregg Bissonette.