Most of my students hear a version of the following:
"The drummer is the foundation of the ensemble. The other band members play with a lot more confidence and comfort when the drummer is rock-solid. Like a house's foundation, nobody pays a lot of attention to the drummer unless there are problems in the drummer's playing."
January is usually a month of reflection for this drummer. Sometimes it is a month of frustration. As the January 2017 progresses, "The Foundation" seems to become a more prevalent concept to apply to life.
So... What Foundation is your life built upon?
Think about it and answer the question for yourself.
Future blog entries will reveal the different aspects of the drummer's foundation. It's been an exciting endeavor thus far.
Have fun with this one.
Leave your answer in the comments. Let us conversate!!!
Share with your friends.
Let's see where this takes us!
"That's My Rumor, and I'm Sticking To It!"
Reply
Music Theory intrigues me, and I could shop for drum gear all day long. Theory and gear are like a hobby. They’re fun to explore and to learn about. I love the history of both. However, candidly speaking, they’re not my favorite topics of conversation because a lot of musicians seem to lose sight of music’s most important quality: its ability to affect every listener.
Theory has its place and purpose. Theory is to music what the language arts are to the spoken and written word: it enables musicians to quickly and effectively communicate with other musicians. Musicians (the minority in most audiences) may listen for chord structure and inventive scale usage. They know the language that is used to describe the different parts of a composition. Musicians who set out to compose a “music theory” masterpiece fail to understand music’s inherent value to people. Music affects the heart, mind, body, and soul in a very personal way. Most listeners do not care about music theory. They care if the music affects their hearts and minds, and that is where their interests stop. The language of music theory must always remain subordinate to music’s true ability to communicate to each audience member. In much the same way, a musician’s passion for gear must remain subordinate to his or her passion to improve the mastery of the chosen instrument.
Tama drums are great drums. I love my eight-year-old set and have no issues with the drums or the hardware. Zildjian makes equally wonderful cymbals. Unfortunately, drums and cymbals do not make my hands play more gooder. My perpetual quest to improve my skills with the sticks and pedals definitely makes the Tama and Zildjian gear sound a lot better. Who cares about the degree of the bearing edges of the shells? Who cares about the lathing and hammering process used on the cymbals? Answer: the artists who create these beautiful instruments! Can you get the instrument under your sticks to sing? That is the most important question each musician must answer. Believe me, every person in the audience answers that question when they listen to a live band. It is the one question that drives me to improve my command and mastery over the drum sticks and the pedals.
I love music theory and my small collection of gear. However, the theory and gear I possess are of little value if I cannot use my sticks and pedals to influence other musicians to play more comfortably so the ensemble can seriously affect the heart, mind, body, and soul of every person who listens to the music. Theory and gear are tools of the craft. They should never be placed above the craft itself!
Reply
She is the one person that taught me the true value of a versatile bass player. Do not misunderstand me here: we had one very brief conversation after one of the Travis Larson Band’s live performances. I offered complimentary words regarding her bass playing during our 60 second chat. We parted company and have not crossed paths since then. However, her musicianship AND presentation left an indelible impression on me. She is the standard I use when evaluating bass players.
The lady has got mad chops! But it is more than chops. She is a very expressive bass player as well. Watch the Travis Larson Band and listen to the ways that Jenn carries the entire rhythmic idea while Travis takes the leads. Dale is rock solid on the drum set, but Jennifer is the one that keeps each song’s rhythm movin’ and groovin’!!! There is more than the chops and expressiveness…
Once again, watch the Travis Larson Band and check out Jennifer's presentation of each song. She plays with a relaxed confidence; her entire body presents her musical ideas in every song. You can see the groove, the swagger, the strut, the saunter, the funk, and any other emotion Travis’ band wants to project from the stage with its music.
In my opinion, Jennifer Young is the reason the Travis Larson Band has been active for so many years. She is versatile enough to project the emotional essence of each song with a relaxed confidence that leaves Dale a lot of room to be creative with the drum tracks while Travis is freed up to just play some really great guitar.
Reply
I sadly state that the greatest barrier to learning my students encounter is their belief that they cannot learn something. My students and I worked on sight reading during last night’s percussion section class. Admittedly, sight reading music is not the easiest part of a musician’s career. However, like anything else, more practice and more repetitions make sight reading easier. I worked with each student to determine their skill levels and experience. Most of them informed me that “I can’t sight read,” or “I don’t understand those notes, rests, and measures.” One young man even told me that he has ADHD and dyslexia! Perhaps he does and perhaps he does not. I do not delve into such things: show me you have the desire to learn and I’ll do all I can to help you learn!!!
I watched him, like the other five students, rightly use the information we covered to further his understanding of the language of written music. I was truly amazed to see each student correctly read and play some basic quarter note and quarter rest rhythms. It was a great joy to watch each student’s face light up with a sense of accomplishment as he or she discovered how simple music notation really is.
The most challenging part of the class had nothing to do with music. It had everything to do with helping each student realize that she or he CAN learn anything when she or he says, “I want to learn this!” Learning is one of two expectations I place on every student. I believe it is a reasonable expectation too.
Though I possess titles such as “Teacher,” or “Instructor,” I view myself much more as a senior ranking student of music; one who continually studies and practices so I can improve both my knowledge of and appreciation for music, and, more importantly, my ability to expressively communicate with other musicians and the audience via the language of music.
Reply
Eric Anderson / Blog
What is Your Foundation
Most of my students hear a version of the following:
"The drummer is the foundation of the ensemble. The other band members play with a lot more confidence and comfort when the drummer is rock-solid. Like a house's foundation, nobody pays a lot of attention to the drummer unless there are problems in the drummer's playing."
January is usually a month of reflection for this drummer. Sometimes it is a month of frustration. As the January 2017 progresses, "The Foundation" seems to become a more prevalent concept to apply to life.
So... What Foundation is your life built upon?
Think about it and answer the question for yourself.
Future blog entries will reveal the different aspects of the drummer's foundation. It's been an exciting endeavor thus far.
Have fun with this one.
Leave your answer in the comments. Let us conversate!!!
Share with your friends.
Let's see where this takes us!
"That's My Rumor, and I'm Sticking To It!"
Reply
Music Theory & Gear
Music Theory intrigues me, and I could shop for drum gear all day long. Theory and gear are like a hobby. They’re fun to explore and to learn about. I love the history of both. However, candidly speaking, they’re not my favorite topics of conversation because a lot of musicians seem to lose sight of music’s most important quality: its ability to affect every listener.
Theory has its place and purpose. Theory is to music what the language arts are to the spoken and written word: it enables musicians to quickly and effectively communicate with other musicians. Musicians (the minority in most audiences) may listen for chord structure and inventive scale usage. They know the language that is used to describe the different parts of a composition. Musicians who set out to compose a “music theory” masterpiece fail to understand music’s inherent value to people. Music affects the heart, mind, body, and soul in a very personal way. Most listeners do not care about music theory. They care if the music affects their hearts and minds, and that is where their interests stop. The language of music theory must always remain subordinate to music’s true ability to communicate to each audience member. In much the same way, a musician’s passion for gear must remain subordinate to his or her passion to improve the mastery of the chosen instrument.
Tama drums are great drums. I love my eight-year-old set and have no issues with the drums or the hardware. Zildjian makes equally wonderful cymbals. Unfortunately, drums and cymbals do not make my hands play more gooder. My perpetual quest to improve my skills with the sticks and pedals definitely makes the Tama and Zildjian gear sound a lot better. Who cares about the degree of the bearing edges of the shells? Who cares about the lathing and hammering process used on the cymbals? Answer: the artists who create these beautiful instruments! Can you get the instrument under your sticks to sing? That is the most important question each musician must answer. Believe me, every person in the audience answers that question when they listen to a live band. It is the one question that drives me to improve my command and mastery over the drum sticks and the pedals.
I love music theory and my small collection of gear. However, the theory and gear I possess are of little value if I cannot use my sticks and pedals to influence other musicians to play more comfortably so the ensemble can seriously affect the heart, mind, body, and soul of every person who listens to the music. Theory and gear are tools of the craft. They should never be placed above the craft itself!
Reply
Who Is Jennifer Young?
She is the one person that taught me the true value of a versatile bass player. Do not misunderstand me here: we had one very brief conversation after one of the Travis Larson Band’s live performances. I offered complimentary words regarding her bass playing during our 60 second chat. We parted company and have not crossed paths since then. However, her musicianship AND presentation left an indelible impression on me. She is the standard I use when evaluating bass players.
The lady has got mad chops! But it is more than chops. She is a very expressive bass player as well. Watch the Travis Larson Band and listen to the ways that Jenn carries the entire rhythmic idea while Travis takes the leads. Dale is rock solid on the drum set, but Jennifer is the one that keeps each song’s rhythm movin’ and groovin’!!! There is more than the chops and expressiveness…
Once again, watch the Travis Larson Band and check out Jennifer's presentation of each song. She plays with a relaxed confidence; her entire body presents her musical ideas in every song. You can see the groove, the swagger, the strut, the saunter, the funk, and any other emotion Travis’ band wants to project from the stage with its music.
In my opinion, Jennifer Young is the reason the Travis Larson Band has been active for so many years. She is versatile enough to project the emotional essence of each song with a relaxed confidence that leaves Dale a lot of room to be creative with the drum tracks while Travis is freed up to just play some really great guitar.
Reply
The Greatest Barrier to Learning Music
I sadly state that the greatest barrier to learning my students encounter is their belief that they cannot learn something. My students and I worked on sight reading during last night’s percussion section class. Admittedly, sight reading music is not the easiest part of a musician’s career. However, like anything else, more practice and more repetitions make sight reading easier. I worked with each student to determine their skill levels and experience. Most of them informed me that “I can’t sight read,” or “I don’t understand those notes, rests, and measures.” One young man even told me that he has ADHD and dyslexia! Perhaps he does and perhaps he does not. I do not delve into such things: show me you have the desire to learn and I’ll do all I can to help you learn!!!
I watched him, like the other five students, rightly use the information we covered to further his understanding of the language of written music. I was truly amazed to see each student correctly read and play some basic quarter note and quarter rest rhythms. It was a great joy to watch each student’s face light up with a sense of accomplishment as he or she discovered how simple music notation really is.
The most challenging part of the class had nothing to do with music. It had everything to do with helping each student realize that she or he CAN learn anything when she or he says, “I want to learn this!” Learning is one of two expectations I place on every student. I believe it is a reasonable expectation too.
Though I possess titles such as “Teacher,” or “Instructor,” I view myself much more as a senior ranking student of music; one who continually studies and practices so I can improve both my knowledge of and appreciation for music, and, more importantly, my ability to expressively communicate with other musicians and the audience via the language of music.
Reply