Hey, the longest transcription we’ve done in awhile, here, a three pager. It’s Jack Dejohnette playing on a very interesting record I had not really heard before: Peacemeal, by Lee Konitz, recorded in 1969. It’s […]
What it is: beats and BPM
Following up the tempo equivalency post from the other day: There’s a lot of confusion among drummers on the internet over what “BPM” means. I don’t want to have to re-explain it every time I […]
Syncopation exercise: singles, doubles – 2-3 8th intervals
Another original syncopation exercise. The last one had single notes, spaced one or two 8th notes apart. This one has one or two notes in a row, one or two 8ths apart. Both are really […]
About vibe
Vibe: a scientifically accurate illustration I’ve been thinking about something the saxophonist Donald Harrison said in a clinic some months ago: “Music is about vibe. Music is all about vibe.” It was a useful comment […]
Groove o’ the day: Milton Banana – Samba do Perdão
A moderate samba groove using the tom toms, from one of my favorite Brazilian drummers, Milton Banana. He plays this briefly at the beginning, middle, and end of Samba do Perdão, from his album O Trio. […]
Equivalency of tempos
Object To Be Destroyed by Man Ray A rhythm issue I’ve been thinking about is the equivalence of tempos and their halves and doubles. I was wondering how small a range of tempos would cover […]
Syncopation exercise – singles, 2-3 8th intervals
Let’s start a little series here: some full page syncopation exercises, each designed for a special purpose. Good for fluency and ease of practice with certain practice methods, good for a particular challenge with others. […]
Very occasional quote of the day: let go lightly
“When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.” — Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching “I used to call myself a free jazz drummer, now I just want to play […]
Common time
The pedant is a disturbingly-slender, reedy-voiced, scrutinous man. There’s a lot of confusion about rhythm, making the subject an easy target for low-grade, often barely-informed pedantry. See any internet music forum, or rehearsal of college […]
Four drum solos
After Ginger Baker finally died the other day, I was thinking about his playing, and the playing of some of the other big drummers to come out of the late 60s. I listened to a […]