There's probably nothing more per-sonally satisfying than being at the head ofa team whose product continues to evolve.MD's improved graphic appearance beganin April, when numerous design changeswere incorporated. Our press run, nearingthe 15,000 mark, enabled us to enlist theexpertise of a better equipped printinghouse with more to offer in terms ofgraphic options. We've continued the trendwith an increase to 48 pages, more vividuse of photographic material, and a fullcolor cover. We're hopeful you will enjoywhat we've done.

July represents our first theme issue; a'Hooray for Hollywood', if you will. MDhas a team of dedicated Californians whodo a marvelous job for us all year long.This is their shining hour.

Of course, L.A. isn't exactlyPaduchville, Iowa, either. We had a poolof talent to draw from. Ed Shaughnessy, asa member of the NBC Orchestra on theCarson Tonight Show, is perhaps heard bymore people than any other drummer inthe world. Ed's drive, finesse and impec-cable taste is aired into millions of livingrooms, nightly.

John Guerin and Russ Kunkel. TwoL.A. drummers always in great demand.Both have some interesting thoughts fordrummers, on either coast.

Surprisingly enough, two more of L.A.'sbusiest players are from the same family.Our profile on Joe and Jeff Porcarohighlights the busy world of this uniquefather and son team, whose major studiowork is a sure sign of their outstandingprofessionalism. The Porcaros exhibit aninteresting contrast in views; indicative ofthe two generations they represent.

And our second Shop Hoppin' tributegoes to Hollywood's Professional DrumShop, one of the most intriguing spots fordrummers in the country.

Surely it was impossible to includeeveryone we'd have liked to in this issue.We know we've left out a great deal of finepeople. But, we'll be back on the coastagain soon, to focus in on the manymagnificent players not included here.Nonetheless, our thanks to those artistswho were a part of this close-up, and to thefine west coast team who put it together.California dreamin' — great fun.

IN THIS ISSUEFEATURES:

COLUMNS:

ED SHAUGHNESSY:JOHN GUERIN:SHOP HOPPIN':JOE AND JEFF PORCARO:RUSS KUNKEL:

Swinger On StaffStretchin' Out

Pro Drum ShopLike Father, Like Son

On Call

Editor's OverviewReaders PlatformIt's QuestionableRock Perspectives: Ride Rhythm IndependenceDrums: Onstage-Rich/ThigpenDrivers Seat: Understanding PhrasingComplete Percussionist: The Beginning TimpanistShow and Studio: Backing SingersDrum Soloist: Steve GaddShop Talk: Choosing Drums, Heads and CymbalsStrictly Technique: Single Stroke RollDrum Market: ClassifiedsIndustry HappeningsJust Drums

STAFF:

EDITOR: Ronald SpagnardiASSOCIATE EDITOR: Paul Uldrich

FEATURES EDITOR: Karen LarcombeMANAGING EDITOR: Michael Cramer

ART DIRECTOR: Bryan MitchellPRODUCTION MANAGER: Roger Elliston

ADVERTISING DIRECTOR: Jonathan WolfADMINISTRATION: Isabel Lori

CIRCULATION: Leo L. SpagnardiNancy SchullerCarol PadnerJean Mazza

MD ADVISORY BOARD:

Henry Adler Don LamondCarmine Appice Mel LewisHoracee Arnold Peter MagadiniLouie Bellson Mitch MarkovichRoy Burns Butch MilesJim Chapin Charley PerryJoe Corsello Charlie PersipLes DeMerle Arthur PressRandy Hess Paul PriceSonny Igoe Lenny White

6 10 12 16 20

123

24 26 28 30 32 34 35 37 38 40 42

The January '78 issue of MD containedan article by Mr. Fred Wickstrom (ACurriculum for the College Bound Per-cussionist) in which he stated, "I havefound no college or university with a majorin drumset performance."

It's true, there aren't many Collegeswhere a major in drumset performance isoffered, but there is one in WesternCanada. Persons interested in a two yearmusic program where the emphasis is ondrumset should address inquiries to thePercussion Department, Grant MacEwanCommunity College, 10045 156th Street,Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T5P 2P7.

KEVIN DRAKEEDMONTON, ALBERTA, CANADA

Congratulations on a terrific and infor-mative magazine. As the only female in anall male high school band percussion sec-tion, I, of course, would love to see moreon female drummers. How about it?

ALIYAH BARUCHINSHORT HILLS, NEW JERSEY

I'd l ike to make the followingsuggestions: Please include prices in yourreviews of new books and equipment.Also, how about some productevaluations? We're in a percussion revolu-tion and no one can possibly have the timeor money to try out everything. Thanks fora much needed magazine.

DANNY EVERMANPENSACOLA, FLA.

Your magazine is well appreciated andI've enjoyed reading everything within.However, I'd like to know why such agreat publ icat ion could let a greatdrummer such as Danny Seraphine ofChicago go unnoticed? Danny has to beone of the best jazz-rock drummersaround. I've been an avid admirer of hisfor the last ten years. He's worth readingabout, so please, how about it? I'd like tosee an interview and learn something of theman.

FRANK CORTELLINOATLANTA, GEORGIA

Would you people please do an articleon the controversy between weight lifting,dynamic tension, and drumming. I've beenexperimenting with it and I have a greatdeal of unanswered questions. PerhapsBilly Cobham or Lenny White might be ofsome help.

R. TURKOWSKIPHILADELPHIA, PA.

I was interested to read the comments ofa reader from Jackson Heights, New Yorkin the January issue of MD (Readers Plat-form). I fully agree that it is very difficultto extract a full, deep sound from smalldrums. However, there is more involvedhere. The problem is getting the tonebetween the 12" tom and the 13" to beproportionately equal to the tone betweenthe 13" and the 16". It can be difficult tokeep the steps between the toms equal. Ifound it most interesting (after some basicmath) that the volume of the 13" is 31%greater than the 12". Yet the 16" is 170%greater in volume than the 13". One caneasily see the necessity of considering thedifference in volume between drums inyour set to achieve a more "together"sound, and to keep head tension even.

STEVE KRIZANTABER, ALBERTA, CANADA

How about a listing of available teacherson various percussion instruments groupedby area? Do you have any idea how hard itis to find a good conga teacher in NewJersey? I'd also like to see an occasionalfeature on those unknown, but deserved,steel drummers and tabla wizards; the kindyou find playing some outrageous musicon the corner of 8th Avenue and 52ndStreet in New York — for spare change.

TOM BOETTGERMORRISTOWN, NEW JERSEY

It seems like your magazine is graduallybuilding some sort of a fraternity amongstall drummers — and that's good.Congratulations.

DICK BALLARDLANSING, MICH.

I am certain I'm not alone in my desireto see an in-depth interview with thedynamic Steve Gadd, certainly one of themost driving and rhythmically innovativedrummers on the music scene today.

RICHARD MOOREV I R G I N I A , MINN.

ED: An exclusive Steve Gadd interviewwill be MD's cover-feature for the up-coming October '78 issue.

by JIM PIEKARCZYK

Q. Where can I write to obtain pictures or posters of my favoritedrummers?

M.C.EAST HANOVER, NJ

A. Write the Avedis Zildjian Company, PO Box 198, Accord,MA 02018 and ask for a free copy of the Cymbal Set-Ups ofFamous Drummers booklet. This contains color photos of famousdrummers in action, along with individual cymbal set-ups, as well.Also, drop a line to the drum manufacturer that your favorite ar-tist endorses.

Q. I'm interested in an article under Jazz Drummers Workshopby Peter Magadini in the January '78 issue of MD. He mentionstwo books both published under the title Musicians Guide ToPolyrhythms. Where can I send for these books?

B.L.ST. LOUIS, MO.

A. Write to Briko Publishing Company, 31 Kappele Avenue,Toronto, Ontario, Canada. M4N 2Z2.

Q. I recently added two stainless steel concert tom-toms to mywooden set. I'm having a problem blending them tonally with mywooden drums. Please help me solve this problem.

T.M.LONG BEACH, CA.

A. First, your problem must be dealt with from an acousticalstandpoint. A good wooden set will produce a warm, resonanttone, whereas stainless steel has greater tonal projection and morebrilliance. Since you are using wood and stainless steel together itwill be necessary to muffle the stainless steel drums more so thanthe wooden. This will cut out some of the high overtones and leadto a more favorable blend.

Q. Where can I obtain information on purchasing a John GreyAutocrat foot pedal, manufactured in England?

G.D.CINNAMINSON, NJ

A. Information on the John Grey pedal may be obtained fromDrums Ltd.. 218 South Wabash Avenue. Chicago, III. 60604.

Q. Do you know where I can obtain books or any other informa-t ion on drum construction and history?

M.V.HILLSBOROUGH, CA.

A. Locale any good book store or drum shop and order: Drumsin the Americas by Dr. Joseph H. Howard (Oak Publications).This hook covers the history and development of drums from thePre-Columbian era to modern times. The best way to see howdrums are made today is to take a tour of one of the majormanufacturing plants. You might want to include this in yourvacation plans some time in the future.

Q. In the October issue of MD (Vol. l-No. 4) an insight into theSwiss Rudiments was featured, which I found most interesting.For several years now I have been trying to locate a book on this

subject entitled, Basel Drumming. I've written to many people andstill no answer. Can you help end my search?

S.L.BEVERLY, NJ

A. Your search has ended. The Basel Drumming text can beordered from Drums Unlimited, 4928 St. Elmo Avenue, Bethesda,MD 20014.

Q. I've been unable to get a good tone out of my toms with thebottom heads off. I usual ly play them with both heads on, but Iwant to be able to achieve a good tone and fast response eitherway. Could you please suggest something?

R.T.GLEN ARBOR, MI

A. I personally feel that you can keep both heads on the tom-toms at all times and achieve a fast response along with a goodtone. However, I would like to suggest you try different methods ofmuffling with both heads. Experiment with two internal mufflers— one on top and one on the bottom. Also, experimentation withvarying degrees of tension on both heads should result in theprecise sound you are trying to achieve. By eliminating the bottomhead, you are cutting out the vibration that normally takes place,resulting in a slower response.

Q. I was wondering if you could help me locate a source for awooden percussion instrument played with mallets, called the OSIDrum?

D.D.TRAVERSE CITY, M I .

A. The OSI Drum is manufactured by Oscar Schmidt Inter-national. Further information may be obtained by writing to themat Garden Slate Road, Union, NJ 07083.

EDSHAUGHNESSY

by Rob CookEd Shaughnessy has been playing drums since he was 14 years old in his native New

Jersey. By 19, he was working with George Shearing at New York's Three Deuces. He's per-formed with the New York Philharmonic, the NBC and Pittsburgh Symphony, and the bigbands of Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Tommy Dorsey, and Oliver Nelson. Today. Ed is oneof the most in-demand drum set clinicians in the music world. He is most widely known forhis resident gig with the Doc Severinsen NBC Orchestra on the Johnny Carson TonightShow where he's in his fourteenth year as a regularly featured instrumentalist. Shaughnessyalso works with Doc's band, his own band Energy Force, and does numerous recordings andclinics. This interview was conducted while Ed was in Michigan for a drum clinic.

MD: What would an average day in thelife of Ed Shaughnessy be like?ES: Well, I usually start out the day withsome recording dates in the morning, from10 o'clock to around 1 . After lunch andpractice, it's usual ly about t ime for bandrehearsal on the set of the Tonight Show.That runs from 3 to 4 o'clock or howevermuch time is needed. The show is tapedfrom 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. with no breaks. I ' l lusually have supper around 7:30. On nightswhen my band Energy Force is playing, thegig usually lasts from 9 to 1:00 a.m. Theband gigs mainly around Los Angeles, butwe'll be doing some tour ing . Unfor-tunately, we don't have an album out yet.The main problem has been finding astudio. There are very few studios in-terested in recording a band l ike mine.MD: You travel quite a bit. With somuch going on, do you ever run into anyschedule conflicts?ES: No, not at all, and that's mainlybecause of Doc's good nature. He's veryunderstanding and easy to work with. I doa lot of in-store clinics, concerts, schoolclinics, and periodic out of town gigs withDoc's band. I can get occasional time offwhenever I need it.MD: You deal with every imaginablemusical situation; live concerts, recording,

TV. Does your set-up or style vary witheach situation?ES: Not the set-up or style, as much asthe tuning . My recording outfit is heavilymuffled. Al l the toms are one-headed. Onthe Carson show, the sound is semi-muffled, more open than for recording.For l ive work, a ful l , open sound is needed.That's pretty much the way all players doit in those situations.MD: What about your actual set-up?ES: I've been using Pearl drums for fiveyears, with no special modifications. I'vegot the 20" and 24" bass drums, 14" floortom on the left, 16" and 18" floor toms onthe right, and the Jupiter snare drum. Thetwo mounted toms in the middle of the setare both 9 X 13. I have a cluster of threeconcert toms, 6", 8" and 10" on a singlefloor stand up on the left. I understandPearl is going to catalog this exact set-upas the Shaughnessy 1 1 .MD: Is it true that you use wood-fiberglass on the Tonight Show, and solidfiberglass for live work?ES: It used to be. But now I'm usingstrictly solid fiberglass. It's a bigger sound.More powerful and fuller in a contem-porary way. It's big and flat, not big andringy.MD: What about heads? How often do

you change them?ES: I use Remo CS on all the drums ex-cept the snare where I use an Ambassadorweight coated. I just put some of the newPin-Stripe heads on my small concert tomsand I really l ike them. They're a littleflatter than the CS heads and very l i t t le , ifany, taping is required. As far as changingheads, it depends on how much they'replayed. On my busy drum sets I have tochange them fairly often. When I go toVegas, we'll do two sets a night. I have tochange the snare head at least once a week,sometimes every five days. I recommendchanging them as soon as you get thatshiny spot. Most of the zip is gone at thatpoint.MD: How do you tune your set?ES: My bass drums are tuned a minorthird apart. The toms are also tuned inminor thirds, starting from the largestfloor tom and working up. Some peopleuse fourths, others a major third. I don'tfeel the pitch is that critical, as long aswhen you go down the toms on a multi-tom set, it sounds like you're going down.MD: I'm sure you're frequently askedwhy you use 20" and 24" bass drums.ES: Sure. And it's a very good question.You see, I've never treated the pair of bassdrums as one sound. Many people feel that

SWINGER ON STAFF

by having two bass drums you can gettwice as much of one sound. But I get twovery different sounds. It's much hipper forrock to have the power on the right footoff-beat, and complement it on the otherfoot. It gets me in the feel of the sound.Ml): How about your cymbal set-up?KS: I t depends on the s i t u a t i o n . Atypical set-up is a pair of 15" hi-hats, acouple of 18" medium-thin crashes, and a22" ride. I ' l l also use 14" hi-hats. I l ike acouple of 20" mini-cup rhythm cymbals forrecording. They're very distinct and don'tbuild up so you lose the ride sound. I use aRock 21" for live work. It's a dynamitecymbal, very powerful.MD: Let's ta lk about miking for a mo-ment. Do you place the mikes, or do youwork with the engineer on placement?KS: M i c r o p h o n e placement is leftstrictly to the engineer. He knows his roomand the sound he's going for. Sometimes,in the studio, I get the feeling they're mik-ing my nose. There can be anywhere fromtwo to ten mikes on the outfit .MD: How about the Carson show?KS: Three mikes. The 24" bass is miked.There's also a mike between the snare andthe hi-hat , and an overhead. The overheadis an AKG Condenser. The other two areShure mikes .

" . . . THERE IS REALLYNO ACCEPTABLESUBSTITUTE FOR A GOODTEACHER. YOU MIGHTGET YOURSELF THERESOONER OR LATER ONYOUR OWN, BUTWHATEVER YOU LEARNTHAT'S GOOD, YOUCOULD'VE LEARNED ALOT FASTER WITH ATEACHER."

MD: Have you ever done anything withelectronics?ES: Yes. I use Maestro contact mikes,fastened right on to the heads. I run themthrough the effects, l ike a phase shifter,and filters, controlling them with footpedals on the floor near the hi-hat.MD: What type of stick do you use?ES: The Pro-Mark 707. It's not anythingradically new. Just a glorified 3A withsome extra length, some heft on the taper,and made from white oak. The problemfor most drummers who play the kind ofmusic I do, is that the stick breaks rightbelow the bead. Every stick maker you canname makes a good, stocky stick with afast taper to the bead. We took the 3A andmade it a bit longer. We added 1 /16 th" tothe taper and it really beefs it up. Mysticks only go when they're just plain worndown so far that they're unusable. I've gotsticks that I can hear when they pass myears, they're so feathered.

" . . . I'VE NEVERTREATED THE PAIR OFBASS DRUMS AS ONESOUND . . . I GET TWOVERY DIFFERENT SOUNDSDOWN THERE."

MD: Your stick model has a big ball tip,doesn't it?ES: Right . That tip makes for the fattestsound on cymbals. I use the wood tip.MD: You don't have the stick breakageproblem many drummers have. Howabout heads'?ES: Drummers who go through sticksand heads are playing wrong. If they playinto the drum with a downward drive, in-stead of pull ing the sound out of the drum,they're not only going to break equipment,but choke off the sound, as well. Samething with cymbal technique. Cymbals canshred sticks if they're not played correctly.MD: How did you get involved with In-dian rhythms, and tabla?ES: I've been a great fan of Indianrhythms since I was about 16. In 1966,while I was in New York, I was fortunateenough to meet Allarahka. It turned out,he was a fan of mine. I studied tabla withhim for several years. (Ed. Note . . .Al larahka is the virtuoso tabla player withRavi Shankar.) Indian rhythms are a realtrip for your head. It isn't something adrummer would need in the work-a-dayworld, but it is immensely helpful. It wasthe reason I was able to sight read the DonEllis book, and do a fairly good job. Andthat's a hard book, with all those meters.MD: How would you define a good solo?ES: I'd rather define a good rhythmplayer first. In my book, that has to comebefore the solo. First, he's got to be a sym-pathetic player, and have a good enoughear to pick up cues from the othermusicians. He has to know what's happen-ing with the tune. Second, he's got to havegood rhythm and that means more thankeeping a beat. It means carrying theband. Lastly, we're back to diversity ofstyle. At the very least the drummer shouldhave a working knowledge of latin, jazz,and rock. Now to the solo. It should be in-teresting. Loud, fast playing doesn't makean interesting solo. A solo must have pac-ing, a structure bu i l t with some originality.One of the most important things with asolo, is knowing when to stop. An excel-lent solo can go sour if it's dragged on toolong.MD: Do you do much teaching now?ES: No. I haven't had any regular stu-dents for the last five years. I taught forabout fifteen years in New York. I regardmy clinics as teaching. I do them to leavesomething, to communicate.MD: Is it true, you still continue to prac-tice a great deal?ES: Absolutely. A minimum of twohours a day, mostly on muffled drums. Inormally practice an hour at home, and anhour or so at the studio.MD: What kind of a practice session doyou recommend?ES: It should start out with warm-ups.Single stroke rolls, rudiments, that sort of

"I'VE ALWAYS STRESSEDTO MY STUDENTS THATTHEIR GOAL SHOULD BETO MAKE MUSIC WITHOTHER PEOPLE. THEYCAN'T JUST WORK ONSOLOS BECAUSE NOBODYIS GOING TO HIRE ASOLOIST WHO CAN'TCARRY A BAND."

thing. I also recommend practicing on thedrums. You should practice drums to learnhow to play drums. Nobody is going tohire a great pad player. Of course, thereare times when it's just not possible eitherbecause of money, or the neighbors, orwhatever. Then, I'd suggest a practice padset. If a whole set wasn't possible, than acouple of pads plus some telephone booksor pillows. Just so there's something to hitwhere you would normally have a drum ora cymbal. Next, some time should be spentreading books l ike Joe Cusatis' RhythmicPatterns for the Drum Set. Roy Burns hasa nice record-book combination called,Big. Bad and Beautiful. It's very uniqueand very helpful . There should be morelike it. Then, finish up by listening andplaying with the headphones eitherhalfway up off the ears, or on just one ear.

"DRUMMERS WHO GO THROUGH STICKS AND HEADS AREPLAYING WRONG. IF THEY PLAY INTO THE DRUM WITHA DOWNWARD DRIVE, INSTEAD OF PULLING THE SOUNDOUT OF THE DRUM, THEY'RE NOT ONLY GOING TOBREAK EQUIPMENT, BUT CHOKE OFF THE SOUND, ASWELL."

This gets the sound close enough so youdon't drown it out with the drums, but yousti l l hear your instrument as it reallysounds. This sort of practice, and of coursepractice with live musicians wheneverpossible, makes for better ensembleplayers. I've always stressed to mystudents that the i r goal should be to makemusic with other people. They can't justwork on solos because nobody is going tohire a soloist who can't carry a band.MD: Many drummers complain theycannot take lessons because there simplyaren't any qualif ied teachers in their area.What would you suggest for them?ES: Before I answer that, I'll say thatthere is really no acceptable substitute fora good teacher. You might get yourself

there sooner or later on your own, butwhatever you learn that's good, youcould've learned a lot faster with a teacher.When there s imply is no teacher, I guessmy advice would be to get records. Out ofan average day's two hour practice session,at least 45 minutes should be spent playingalong with records. And I'm talking abouta broad segment of music . Even theheaviest Led Zeppelin freaks should l istento things other than Led Zeppelin. Theyshould have at least one or two recentalbums by Maynard Ferguson, and albumsby Count Basie, Woody Herman, DukeEll ington, Buddy Rich. By listening to bigbands, heavy rock, Ohio Players type stuff,and the jazz-rock fusion, they wi l l becometotal players, and more l ike ly to work.

JOHNGUERIN

Stretchin ' Outby Susan Alexander

"I want to create a feeling to a mass of people instrumentally,one that permeates their inner self, that gives them a feeling. Wedon't have lyrics to rely on and that makes me feel the best," statesdrummer John Guerin.

Guerin is one of the busiest session musicians in Los Angeles,playing record, television and movie recording dates. As theformer drummer with the LA Express (a musical cooperative com-prised of LA session players) Guerin became recognized among awider listening audience.

The LA Express gained prominence working with Joni Mitchellon her Court and Spark album. The group toured and recorded ex-tensively before disbanding late last year.

"I'm forming a new co-op band that may be called the LA Ex-press or it may have a different name. We are regrouping and hopeto have a record out this summer. Victor Feldman and PeterMauner will be a part of it. I may replace the tenor sax as a lead in-strument with a synthesizer player."

Guerin's basic drum training began "when I was five or six. Istarted playing on magazines. My uncle played drums. He was anamateur who played with records. I'm self taught. I learned to playwith Count Basie records. My experience when learning to playwas so diversified, I got a chance to play in big bands, small groupsand for dances when I was growing up."

I asked Guerin about his favorite musicians. "I just remembertwo or three that stick in my mind. I realized the first time I heardCharlie Parker, that was the kind of music I would l ike to play.Then Thelonius Monk was my favorite and so on. The feeling thatthose two people gave me . . . "

Guerin states that among drummers, "I have a lot of favorites,and one influence that really emotionally hit me has been BuddyRich, even though I don't play like him, I l ike Philly Jo, and ArtBlakey, and I really like Tony Williams. There hasn't been anyonelike him since. As far as innovators, it's Buddy and Tony."

Every drummer has a different routine for practicing. Accordingto Guerin, "I haven't practiced in ten or fifteen years. I'm justabout to start again. When I was 19, I practiced six hours a day forabout three months. I feel a need to do three months of practice;the next three months it does me good. With the LA Express orwith the new band I'm forming, one week is enough, and if there'ssome technical thing I'm trying to get, I just go to the hotel roomand work it out."

Many people feel a drummer loses the mental edge quicker thanthe physical edge during layoffs. Guerin agrees, "I'm convincedthat your mental edge is most important. When you get a groupand get a magic about a groove, it happens when you are not con-centrating on counting. It's better to relax and let it happen. I'vegotten much better consistency just by breathing properly."

How essential is reading music? "I have to read music. Icouldn't work in studios if I didn't read. It's really the easiest partof playing. When I joined the George Shearing group with JoePass, I wasn't a disciplined reader. The discipline in that bandmade both Joe and I good readers. The constant studio work keepsmy chops up. When figures come up, you recognize the patterns.

"A lot of people don't write technically for drums because theydon't know how, so they call on someone to make it happen. I did awhole ballet with Claus Ogerman called Gate of Dreams, and therewas his book; there was nothing there except flashes —jus t stopsand starts. You've got to be ready for anything in the studio. Themusic is always written out on TV and movie tracks."

The set up Guerin prefers for his drums is a "22" bass drum withthe front head off, and four tom toms mounted on the bass drum.Two 10" drums, an 8 X 12, and 9 X 13. The two toms on the floorare 15" and 16". I use three cymbals — one ride and two crash, andhi-hats."

What quality does John look for in a cymbal? "Take a 20" ride, Il ike it to have definition with a lot of edge, but at the same time

"I FIND THAT IN CERTAIN KINDS OFMUSIC, YOU'RE LOCKED INTO PLAYINGIT A CERTAIN WAY. I GET VERY BOREDWITH THE PREDICTABILITY OF MUSICAT TIMES. AS LONG AS IT'S MY BAND I'MPUTTING MY TALENT ON THE LINEWITH, I DON'T WANT TO BEPREDICTABLE."

have a darkness to the overall sound. The main thing is that I candig into the cymbal without having it spread too much."

Guerin has also been working with Pollard Industries and is veryenthusiastic about the new synthesizer drums. "I think they're anincredible supplement to the drum set and gives the drummer a lotmore. The drums can be tuned so they can sustain a sound. You'renot just locked into hitt ing an acoustic drum. It's been a big addi-tion as far as making musical statements for me. I've used them ina lot of s i tuations in the studio and with a band.

There are many new and varied materials used to make drumstoday. Which does Guerin prefer? "It's funny, but there's one thingI've noticed with the advent of electric, as opposed to acousticbands; the drummer is no longer the overpowering force.Fiberglass and other hard surfaces throw the sound out and makeit easier on me. I prefer fiberglass. With a be-bop kind of trip l ikeJoe Farrell , I prefer a 20" bass with two heads on it, everythingtuned very high — and wood drums."

Drummers sometimes find difficulty with sound reproduction atconcerts. To combat this problem, Guerin states, "I hire a soundman that I trust. There's no way on stage that I can tell what's get-ting out to the audience. They may hear what I think is a dynamiteset, but they can't hear the same frequencies due to the differentacoustics. You gotta get a sound man with great ears."

With many studio dates keeping him active, Guerin still findstime to work on his own projects. "I've been writing a lot latelywith Joni Mitchell , Michael Franks and O.C. Smith. I'm workingon a musical with Jay Gruska, who is a very musical pianist, writerand singer. At the same time, I'm developing a band that's going tostretch out a l i tt le more than the LA Express did — be a little moreadventurous."

"I'M CONVINCED THAT YOUR MENTALEDGE IS MOST IMPORTANT. WHEN YOUGET A GROUP AND GET A MAGIC ABOUTA GROOVE, IT HAPPENS WHEN YOU'RENOT CONCENTRATING ON COUNTING.IT'S BETTER TO RELAX AND LET ITHAPPEN."

Having played such a wide variety of music, has Guerin's play-ing changed over the years? "It's changed because of compositions.It's constantly, subtly changing all the time, and it's only due to theway music is changing. It's changed with the advent of themarriage between rock and roll, and jazz. Rock has freed up a lotof my playing, and more and more I like interludes in given com-positions to al low me to not play if I don't feel l ike it. I play tocreate effects and moods. I find in certain kinds of music, you'relocked into playing it a certain way. I get very bored with thepredictability of music at times. As long as it's my band I'm put-ting my talent on the line with, I don't want to be predictable.There's a balance there. With instrumental music, we should createa lot of moods, create climaxes and let them down. In order to becommercial, there has to be a show that has a certain amount ofcalculation in programming tunes, but if you do something all thetime, you get bored with it."

"All drummers need inspiration to playbetter. We believe our clinics help toeducate young drummers, to get them toth ink and talk about drums."

Those are the feelings of Bob Yeager,president of the Professional Drum Shop(PDS) in Hollywood, California. The shopopened in 1959, and has been a leader inpercussion c l i n i c presentation in thegreater Los Angeles area ever since.

Recently, Yeager and his staff prepareda rock/jazz fiesta; perhaps the most am-bitious clinic presentation of its type to bedone in Hollywood.

"We had John Guerin and his jazz/rockcombo, Jeff Porcaro and his rock/jazzgroup and Louie Bellson with his 19 piece"Big Band Explosion." Pollard Industriespremiered the new electronic Syndrum,and Remo demonstrated Roto-toms.Ludwig Drum Company, Avedis Zildjiancymbals and Pearl Drums were alsorepresented. We tried to stage a musicalafternoon so drummers could see and hearthe musical application of the drum setwithin various styles of music."

According to Yeager, the shop's involve-ment with clinics dates back to I960, whenthey successfully presented a Ludwig spec-tacular. "Since then, we've had greatcl inicians, such as Ed Thigpen, Les DeMerle and Max Roach. Joe Morello andAlan Dawson each did two clinics. BobTilles did a mallet cl inic and the Paistebrothers did a cymbal demonstration. Ofcourse, there has to be a commercialreason for clinics. We hope that drummerswho do get inspired from seeing these finemusicians perform will come to the shopand talk drums, and maybe buy newmerchandise."

Located across from the MusiciansUnion on Vine Street, the ProfessionalDrum Shop rests in the heart of themusica l and theatr ical district ofHollywood. A specially constructed, color-ful twin bass drum set is mounted abovethe shop entrance. Stars painted along thestore front are each marked with the nameof a well-known drummer. The store'sslogan, "The Pro Shop Where the ProsShop" was invented after the store hadbeen in business several years.

"In the back of my mind, I th ink Ialways wanted to own a drum store. Iknew what I l iked to play in terms ofequipment, but I didn't know how to buyfrom a manufac turer and sell to acustomer."

Arriving in Hollywood with the TexBeneke Band in 1953, Yeager decided itwas time to get off the road and enjoyCalifornia l iv ing . Before deciding to openhis own shop, Yeager worked in musicstores to gain sales experience. He alsowent to Chicago to see Will iam F. Ludwig,Jr.

"Bill Ludwig introduced me to the lateFrank Gault, then owner of Frank's DrumShop in Chicago. They opened doors andhelped me immensely."

Yeager also met Chuck Molinari, alocal drummer , experienced in thepurchasing and sale of musical in-struments. According to Yeager, Molinari,"taught me the business."

In those early years, Art Blakey, LouieBellson, Buddy Rich, Joe Morello, ShellyManne, Elvin Jones, Gene Krupa, RayBauduc and Max Roach contributed toYeager's success by promoting the shop onthe road.

Even at the beginning, PDS was firmlycommitted to meeting the special needs ofits customers.

"In 1960, a drummer from Baltimorecame in and asked if we could mount threetom-toms on a bass drum. There weren'tany commercial mountings at the time, soI made h im a holder that would work.Louie Bellson called from a job he wasworking in Jersey one time, and asked ifwe could rig a stand that would hold twocymbals. We invented it for him. Requestsand calls come in everyday for gadgets andholders that were unknown even a fewyears ago. We try to accomodate the PDS president Boh Yeager welcomes

audience to a recent shop sponsored Rock-Jazz Fiesta.

The dynamic Louie Bellson performing with his hand was one of the outstanding highlightsof the clinic.

A wide assortment of drum heads — always available at PDS. Mountains of Gretsch and Ludwig drumsserve as a backdrop for a barrel of drumsticks.

Rogers Drums, LP congas and Ms. Perc cymbal bags stacked in acorner of the shop.

The PDS bargain counter houses items of every type and descrip-tion. The garbage can cover was a gift from Armand Zildjian.

Pearl, Sonor and North Drums fill display shelves. Huge selection of major lines makes thisL.A. shop a virtual drummers' paradise.

professional drummer. Whatever hewants, we'll do it for him," Yeager stated.

Yeager stressed the importance of cym-bals to the working drummer and someyears ago, constructed a special room inthe shop where cymbals can be tested andmatched. The vast array of gongs andcymbals displayed would fascinate anypercussionist. Yeager has twice visited thePaiste cymbal factory in Switzerland andtoured the Avedis Zi ld j ian plant inMassachusetts.

Eye-catching items displayed in the shopinclude a large garbage can cover with themessage "Cheaper yes—Zildjian no!"etched in red across the front. It was sentto Yeager from Armand Zildjian.

Another oddity is the square cymbalwith the words "Don't be square—tryPaiste."

"I asked Robert Paiste about making asquare cymbal, and suggested that slogan

to him when he visited here in 1969. Earlyin 1977, he delivered one to the shop. Wecould have sold three the first day. I thinkthere may be a market for the square cym-bal. At least it won't roll away."

Percussionists from all over the worldpass through Los Angeles and most ofthem find their way to the ProfessionalDrum Shop. When the Bolshoi Balletplayed in town recently, the Russiandrummers accompanying the troupestopped in for a visit.

"About 95% of our business comes fromprofessional drummers, the other 5% fromstudents who want to be professionals.Everyone gets treated alike here whetherthey're a top name drummer or a guy whoonly plays a job a month. We believe inservice, integrity and quality. Our productsare first rate and we have a price structurewe adhere to. It's worked out success-fully."

Like Father,

by Gary Farmer

Surprisingly enough, much of the drumming heard in today'scommercial media is aptly executed by a distinguished pair of per-formers, both of the same family, but of two different generations.The father, 48 year old Joe Porcaro, is responsible for a lot of thepercussion recorded for such TV series' as, The Bionic Woman,Baretta, The Six Million Dollar Man and Wonder Woman, toname a few. He is also involved in starting a west coast school ofpercussion.

His son, 24 year old Jeff Porcaro, is also an active studio

MD: Where are you originally from?JOE: I was horn in New Britain, Connecticut, which is about fif-teen miles from Hartford.MD: How did you first get interested in drumming?JOE: My father was a drummer in an I ta l ian symphonic band,those bands that used to march in the street. My father played thesnare drum. I used to go along with him, and learned to read musicfrom a friend who played the clarinet. I hadn't studied at all at thatpoint because I was playing and marching with my father, learningby ear. I was just playing snare drum, and when I moved to Hart-ford I joined the CYO (Catholic Youth Organization). We wantedto get a jazz group going, but I hadn't yet played on a drum set.The first time I played on a set was when a friend of my father'sleft his set at the house. I set them up one day when my father wentto work and started wailing away, but I broke the head. I hid it un-der the bed, (laughter). I was about 9 years old. Finally, we got theband started and one of the priests played piano. Emil Richards, awel l -known percussionist here in L.A. was there and played thexylophone.MD: What kind of drum equipment were you using back then?JOE: My first set consisted of a bass drum from the bugle corps,a field drum mounted on the bass drum acting as a tom-tom, andanother field drum for a snare. We also used the cymbals from thedrum corps. That was my first set of drums. In fact, Louis Bellsonplayed on that set. Our church was next to the State Theatre inHartford where all the bands came through. There was aplayground next to the theatre where all the neighborhood kidswould hang out, and when the name bands came in, they would seeus playing softball. All the bands had softball teams back in thosedays and they'd play us on Saturday or Sunday afternoons. Thesinger in the CYO band went back stage in the theatre one time,and got Louie to go to the rehearsal hall . He was very young, andhad just joined the Tommy Dorsey band. That was a wild ex-perience for me, watching Louie play on that funky old drum set.MD: Speaking of Tommy Dorsey, I see your name here on hisalbum cover.JOE: The Dorsey band was the very first band I went on the roadwith. I was only with him a couple of months. From there I joinedBobby Hackett's quartet . I was also the house drummer in a jazzclub in Hartford, so I got a chance to play with a lot of great peo-ple. This club would bring in people like Zoot Simms, FreddieHubbard, and Donald Byrd.

MD: What about formal instruction?JOE: I was self-taught unti l I turned sixteen. Then I realized myreal ambition was to make it as a drummer, so I took a few lessons.I studied with a guy named Bob Shields, who was the drummer atthe State Theatre. We worked strictly on reading, and playing thesnare drum. Later, I met Al Lepak, and it was a whole new ballgame with him. He had a system of working on rudiments that wasvery complete. He's the head of the percussion department at theUniversity of Hartford, and turned out a lot of great players. He'sresponsible for me being here, along with Emil Richards, BobZimmitt i , Rich Lapore, and a lot of others. Al made musicians outof us. I was with the Hartford Symphony, and played almost everyopera that had ever been written. But, my major ambition wasdrum set. Eventually, that CYO thing developed into a sixteen-piece big band. We'd play all of the big band charts. When I wassixteen and seventeen, I'd rehearse with a lot of the big bandsaround town, and jam every Sunday afternoon. There were a cou-ple of black clubs where we'd go to jam and sit in during the week.That's where I first met Horace Silver.

continued on page 18

Like Son

drummer with an astounding list of credits, considering hisyouthful age. Jeff has worked with pop-rock artists Boz Scaggs,Steely Dan, Seals and Crofts, Sonny and Cher, and Barbra Strei-sand. He is also currently co-leading a band with keyboard playerDavid Paich. The group is called Toto, and it's projected to be oneof the hottest recording groups ever.

Both interviews were conducted separately in the cozy garage-reformed studio of the Porcaro home in Sherman Oaks, Califor-nia, just north of Hollywood.

Twenty-four year old Jeff Porcaro was born in Hartford,Connecticut and first got interested in drumming due to the in-fluence of his father. He began playing seriously at age seventhough he is sure "I was playing even earlier than that. Only myfather would actually know when I got started." Formal lessonsini t ia l ly came from papa Joe, followed by further studies with BobZimmitt i and Rich Lapore. Jeff clearly remembers his early drum-ming years.

"I was using my father's drums, and when I was thirteen I gotinto a rock band. I remember walking home from school one dayand a friend came running down the street and told me I got a newdrum set. Some kid had won a Slingerland champagne sparkle setin a poker game and he sold it to my father with cases and cymbalsfor something l ike $250. It consisted of an 8" X 12" and 16" X 16"tom, 22" bass, a snare, and a couple of cymbals, 20" and 18". I wasonly aware of my father's work back then. I listened to otherdrummers, but I wasn't really aware of them. Eventually I left highschool. I didn't actually graduate, but I did get a diploma. I gotthis gig with Sonny and Cher and I left a week or two before f inals.I never took the f inals, but they gave me a diploma anyway. I hadto tell them how much I'd be making, and why I wanted to leave

and what it meant as far as my future was concerned. They werequite pleased. They let me go without any quarrel."

Though he left school early in return for a drumming career, hedoesn't necessarily suggest that high school age drummers insearch of musical fame and fortune follow the same path. "Ingeneral, I wouldn't recommend that an individual drop out ofschool at say his jun ior year for an opportunity l ike mine. I don'tth ink my parents would have allowed me to leave if I was anyyounger. If it was totally up to me I probably would have, becauseI was a shlock in school.(From my personal experience, going onthe road at eighteen did a lot more for me than becoming a schoolmusical genius. They're schooled, and they're slick, but there's nosoulful feeling from those guys. The school bit doesn't meananything to me. It's good to look at, and you say, 'Oh yeah,beautiful, I l ike that, beautiful touch, you've got stick control' . . .but those guys would fall apart if they had to play with ChuckRaney, or someone like that. If they played anything, they wouldfall apart."

Jeffs early dates with the team of Sonny and Cher led to someroad work and recording dates with Seals and Crofts, on three oftheir albums. In 1977, he joined Steely Dan and stayed on aboutfour months. All of that was followed by his work with BozScaggs. In between, there were numerous recording sessions withJackson Browne, Barbra Streisand, Helen Reddy, Leo Sayer andDiana Ross, among others. After several years of backing otherpeople, Jeff's primary interest now has turned toward the successof his new group.

"David Paich and I started our own group and plan to make ourown album. David is the keyboard player who wrote Lowdown,Lido Shuffle, and What Can I Say for Boz Scaggs' Silk Degreesalbum. The group also includes my brother Steve, Dave Hungate,bass, Steve Lukather, guitar, Bobby Kimbal l , keyboards and leadvocal. At this point we're call ing ourselves Toto. What we're goingafter is triple-platinum albums. It looks l ike it might happen. Wehave a lot of offers right now, and we're in negotiation with severalrecord companies. It'll be a real commercial thing. We have amanager who does Chicago, Rufus, and a couple of other groups.

When it comes to equipment, Jeff has a set for practically everymusical situation. A real stickler for the precise sound for eachsituation he runs up against, his assortment of gear is astounding.

continued on page 19

JOE PORCARO

MD: Of all your early musical experiences, where do you thinkyou gained the most?JOE: I really think I learned a lot as house drummer in that jazzclub, working a whole summer with pianist Jaki Byard. He taughtme an awful lot. He moved on to play with Maynard Ferguson,and did some teaching at Berklee.MD: What brought you out to Los Angeles?JOE: I wanted to go further musically. I knew Emil Richardswas living and working out here. He had come back to Connecticutand rapped to me about L.A. Of course, when you're a musicianand you keep working at it, you try to become the best you can andyou want to be where it's happening musically. The way Emiltalked, it just seemed l ike L.A. was the place to be especially withthe demand for studio work. We came here in 1968. The guy up-stairs must have really been taking care of me, because when I gothere I had no trouble getting work. The first year I was in L.A. Imade more money than I'd made in five years back in Connecticut.But it stemmed back to the experience I'd had back there; playingjazz, symphonic, operas, summer music theaters, everything. Iwouldn't have had the chance to develop that much in the big citywith all the competition.MD: Do your current experiences require you to read a lot ofmusic?JOE: Sure. Having played all sorts of repertoire as a member ofthe Hartford Symphony for seventeen years I feel confidentreading. When I came here I was ready for just about anything.But let's face it, you never learn everything. I still come acrossthings that are mind boggling. I remember Emil showing me somefigures that Frank Zappa layed on them for a record session.Figures I had never seen before. And I thought I had seen it all. Welearn every day.MD: Do you still manage to find time for practice?JOE: Oh sure. It's hard to do it every day because of the studiodemands, but certainly when I have a day off. I have some handwarm-up exercises that I do, and I try to listen a lot. I try to get tothe clubs where my kids are playing, as well as others. I think it'svery important to keep up with what's happening.MD: Any preferences in drum equipment?JOE: No, I just use whatever equipment comes through thehouse here. I use Ludwig drums in the studios. Of the new equip-ment I've seen, fiberglass is great for live playing. It really projects.I even like the sound it produces in the studios. But, I prefer wooddrums. It's a warmer sound. I don't really make too much out ofdrums. I hear of companies making 4-ply shells and 6-ply shells.Truthful ly , it doesn't make that much difference to me. Oh, I sup-pose the trend toward multiple drum set-ups is OK for the contem-porary rock stuff, but for jazz playing, I don't think it makes anydifference.MD: You use the matched grip?JOE: Yeah. I started out with the traditional grip, but changedover because I play mallets a lot. Since I hold the sticks matchedfor mallets, I decided to go all one way. I try to influence mystudents that way, but I don't force them. I can teach either way.MD: Have you gotten into the electronic thing at all?JOE: No, not at all. Jeff has, but I haven't. I'm not really that in-terested, plus it's much too complicated for me. But I'll tell you,the more I see it, the more I'm beginning to understand it. Whoknows, someday I may give it a try.MD: How do you view the drummer's role in any musical set-ting, solo or ensemble?JOE: I'm not really wild about solos, but if a drum solo ismusical, it can be beautiful. People say a particular solo was, "tootechnical", but I l ike to see the virtuosity of the player. At the sametime, I l ike to hear solos that are musical. One of the best solos Iever heard was by Phil ly Jo Jones, who is one of my favoritedrummers. He did a tune on his own album called Salt Peanuts,which I thought was a gem. Max Roach did a gorgeous solo on the

same tune recorded live in Canada with Charlie Parker. I've alsoheard some beautiful solos by Buddy and Louie too. In regards toensemble playing, I like to feel I'm the backbone of the rhythmsection but I don't want to be a drummer who just keeps time foreverybody. It all depends on what the rest of the rhythm section isl ike . When everybody is playing time the same way, I like to getloose and stretch out a little bit.MD: Are there any new young drummers you particularly enjoylistening to?JOE: Harvey Mason, for what's going on today. And SteveGadd is really way up there for me. I love what he does. JohnGuerin. And, my son Jeff. I really like to hear him live. He's veryexciting to watch. He gets into a little show thing sometimes, buthe's got a lot happening for him musically.MD: Have you been doing any clinics?JOE: I've done a few clinics, but I really don't like to do them. Itry to get into basic things for the kids. So many guys are doingclinics nowadays. I try to show them the things they don't get fromthe others. Mostly basic stuff. We have an educational project that

might be happening here in correlation with the Guitar Institute ofTechnology run by Howard Roberts and Pat Hicks. They've ap-proached Emil Richards to come up with a staff for a west coastpercussion school with the same type of format they have withstudents going to college. Emil and I are trying to make it happen,and if it does, it will be one of the best schools anywhere. We're go-ing to go all out. It will be a complete percussion school where adrummer wil l be able to get the best education possible. It's essen-tial that young students study with a teacher who will show him thebasics. It's important to be in an environment where you have toplay everything.MD: What else are you involved in musically at the present?JOE: Mostly TV serials. Six Million Dollar Man, BionicWoman. Wonder Woman, Baretta. There's a Movie of the Weekwith the Fonz coming out that I'm playing on. I also did HawaiiFive-O, and Medical Center last year. I'm very happy with thework in the studios out here. I think I've reached the plateau. Asfar as I'm concerned, I'm doing everything I've ever wanted to doin music.

JEFF PORCARO

"I have three Ludwig drum sets. Two of them consist of 22" bassdrums, 9 X 13, 10 X 14, 16 X 16, and 18 X 18 toms. One set isblack and the other is blue. The third set is an older one. It's madeof wood, with a 24" bass, 8 X 12, 9 X 13, and an 18" tom. I alsocarry another 26" bass drum. I have two Gretsch sets. One has8 X 12, 9 X 13, and 16 X 16 toms, and the other an 18" bass drum,7 X 10, 8 X 12 and 14 X 14 toms. I have a Camco set that theymade for me with a 24" bass, 8 X 12, 9 X 13, 16 X 16, and18 X 18 toms. I had Steinway Piano Company do the finish onthem. They're wood and the shells are thick. Everything is brassplated, so it's all black and brass, with a solid brass 6 1/2" snaredrum. And then there's my Slingerland with the 28" bass drum.That's my 'heavy metal' set with everything in chrome, 20 X 20floor tom, and an 1 1 X 15. The Ludwig was basically my all-around studio set. I got into Gretsch for live performances. I useclear plastic heads on them, all wide open. Fiberglass drums, plex-iglass drums and all that is bul lshit . There's something about themI just don't l ike . There's something about the sound. You can blowthem all away. I go for the wood sound.

"As of late the recording engineers are getting into putting thedrums live out into the open room. The west coast recordingtechniques were pretty much standardized in the late 60's and early70's to the point where everybody's snare drum sounded the same.And you had to have them that way because that's the way theengineers wanted it. But now, peoples' heads are stretching out.Guys are getting back into putting drums out into the open roomwith just two overhead mikes, and getting an unbelievable sound. Ibasically have different set-ups for different recording projects.With Jackson Browne I'd have a more mellow sounding set withhuge toms for his kind of music. When I'm doing Boz Scaggs itmay be a little crisper, maybe wide open. But if Boz happens to doLido Shuffle, which is kind of Led Zeppelinish, then out comes thebig giant set. The Camco was made especially for live perfor-mances. It looks good, and sounds good too. I also have a slew ofsnare drums, all different sizes, ages and materials. I own fourcymbals and one pair of hi-hats. Out of all those sets, just one setof cymbals, and only one of those cymbals is solid, my 22" ride. Allof my cymbals were once my father's. That's a standing jokebetween us. 'Hey dad, can I borrow one of your cymbals?,' and henever sees it again."

Following along the lines of 'a set for all occasions', Jeff has dis-tinctive opinions and preferences in head choices and tuning. Heputs forth a total effort to achieve the proper balance of sound tocomplement the styles of different artists.

"For recording, I mainly use Ludwig DB-750 drum heads on allmy Ludwig toms. I use bottom heads. It's a thin head, and the bestsounding. I change the heads on all the drums of my recording setsevery three days. I tune them low and fat as hell and they soundperfect for recording. They're thin, but they're tuned so loose, theyget wrinkles. After a few hard takes they get dents and they're nogood anymore. I use Remo Ambassador on the snare drum, andsome of the Remo clear plastic on the other sets. No black dots. Idon't l ike any of that. One set has the Evans heads, tuned realtight.

"As far as snare drums go, I recently hit upon something that's al ittle hard to talk about, but you have to hear it on records. A lot ofthem like that big, fat, meaty snare drum like you hear onFleetwood Mac. That real thick sound. I use a 6 1/2 metal snare withthe bottom head pretty tight and the snares going all the wayacross. I put the top head on and use a splicing block, like thoseused for splicing tape, or something about that size. I put ittogether with some foam, and I wrap a piece of leather around andlay it so the foam is resting against the head. I don't like any inter-nal muffling, or cloth with tape. A wallet sounds good on top of thesnare. The top head is tuned loose, to where each lug is about tofall off. Start hitt ing it with the snares real loose and raise the pitchof the head from that position, tightening the snares slightly.Within about three rotations, you've got yourself a nice soundingsnare drum. I keep the top heads loose and the bottom heads tight

on my toms to get the pitch to bend a little."Coinciding with many of the "new" players, Jeff's preference in

stick grip leans toward the matched. With the standard grip hefound blisters developing on the middle finger of his left handsimply because of the power with which he plays.

"I don't have any of the chops I use to have with my left hand,but I feel a lot better using the new grip. It's the only way there is.My father was a professor of the traditional grip and even heswitched to the matched grip.

Jeff also has some strong feelings on matters ranging from drumsticks to drum electronics.

"I hate sticks. They're not l ike they used to be. I rememberwhen you could buy a pair of sticks and they would last awhile.They'd feel good. The wood was nice, and you knew it just by thefeel of the stick. When you hi t the tip on a cymbal, you could feel itin your hand. Now sticks are warped and the wood doesn't feelright. They don't last as long. I usually use a stick similar to a 5Ain weight, but not as thick, and maybe a l i tt le shorter.

As far as electronics go, I just did a bunch of records using theSyndrum. I was one of the first guys to see the prototype of that.Jim Keltner, Hal Blaine and myself were using those in recordingwhen the prototypes came out. Now, everybody is using them.That Carly Simon tune, Nobody Does it Better, was one of thethings I did using the Syndrum. The new Hall and Gates, BozScaggs and Leo Sayer albums have it all over the place. They'rethe best electronic drums I've heard or played. You can get them tosound just l ike a drum."

Recently a new homeowner, Jeff hopes to fix up his garage foruse as a studio, and with the new group, have more time for prac-tice and study.

continued on page 29

RUSS KUNKEL:

ON CALL

Russ Kunkel is a familiar name on theLos Angeles session scene. He has playeddrums for some of the most well-known ar-tists in the music business. As pulse makerof the rock-jazz quartet, The Section,Kunkel's breezy jazz-flavored playing is apleasurable experience to watch. Hisgraceful, animated movements, illustratethe rhythm of the music; one can almostsee it flowing through his arms down to hissticks.

The Section came together while back-ing James Taylor on his first national tour.As a backing unit, they have also workedwith Carole King, Jackson Browne andCrosby. Stills & Nash. The Sectionrecently issued their third album onCapitol called Fork It Over.

Kunkel started playing drums when hewas in high school, and began hisprofessional career playing demo sessionsfor publishing companies in Los Angeles.Although he still plays on many recordingprojects, he is far from the average sessionplayer.

MD How do you handle the demand foryour services'?RK The session work that I do I'mpleased with, because I just do projects forpeople. I have to get into a person's musicand feel a part of it . I never got into lettinga service call and say, "We have a date foryou at such and such," that's so imper-sonal. I could do back-to-back sessionsevery day, but I don't think it would begood for my musical head to do that muchplaying. I've got to think that eventually itwould get old — too much l ike a job. I'minto recording basically for the pleasure ofputting something together and hearing itall start to mesh and work.MD Do you dampen your drumsdifferently for a live show than for thestudio?RK I try not to if I can get away with i t . Iuse clear plastic heads with no dot. Thedots change sound. They are for peoplewho want a muffled sound. For me, theyk i l l the tonal i ty of the head.MD Have you tried hydraulic heads?RK Joe Vitale uses them a lot in thestudio and likes the sound. But I don'twant a set of hydraulic heads. Live, theywould sound awful to me. They don'tsound loud enough to my ear right whereI'm sitt ing. I'd rather have them soundgreat for me and even better out in the hall .It's all in miking. That's the secret betweendrums that sound flat and ones where youcan hear the tone. People say it's too muchring. Too much compared to what? Theymean they're not used to hearing the toneof the drum. I th ink internal muffling isphasing out. For one thing, it's the wrongapproach. If you really want to dampen a

by Susan Alexander

"I THINK INTERNALMUFFLING IS PHASINGOUT. FOR ONE THING, IT'STHE WRONG APPROACH.IF YOU REALLY WANT TODAMPEN A DRUM, IT'SWRONG TO DO IT FROMTHE INSIDE."

drum, it's wrong to do it from the inside.MD Have you ever had lessons, or areyou self taught?RK Self taught. The only thing worthstudying from a percussionist's point ofview is how to read, which is easy for per-cussion anyway. That's worth the cost oflessons because it's something you canalways use whether you're reading orwrit ing. But, I t h i n k that if you study withsomeone, what you're going to learn iswhat they have to offer. One teacher can'tgive you everything there is. They canteach you some technique and rudiments,but it's never as useful as watchingsomebody play. Sit down and watch JimKeltner play on a session. You're going tolearn a lot; something that you can ac-tual ly apply.MD Which drummers do you admireand why?RK One of my favorites is Jim Keltner.He's the magician. He's able to put hisspell on stuff. It's so light and so heavy atthe same time. He has a little leathertoiletry case, and he has paper and thingsthat look like junk, but he plays all of it. Il ike Jeff Porcaro, he's probably one of thebest drummers playing all kinds of music.

whatever feels best. That's exactly it!Don't l imit yourself to playing one way. Adrummer uses everything. I try to leadwith my left hand. If you're not used to do-ing it , it's hard to do it a lot. As far as I'mconcerned, Billy has it all wrapped up. Hehas the power and the stamina. I've neverseen a drummer wi th the incredibleamount of pacing that he has.MD With such stiff competition in themusic business, most session players readmusic. Do you read?RK Not enough to hurt my playing.MD There seems to be a controversyraging over whether practicing with bigsticks is truly beneficial. How do you feelabout this?RK What I used to do and still do fromtime to time, is warm up on a pillow orsome surface that doesn't give anyresponse. Sit down and do a single-strokeroll for five minutes and time it. You'llwarm up your wrists fast. Then, change tosmaller sticks and do it on a pad. Whetheryou practice with big sticks or the sticksyou always use, that's generally up to you.Going from big sticks to smaller onestends to throw me because I get used to aweight. I tend to feel there's not enoughthere. Then, I'd rather play with the bigsticks.MD You have a very impressive drumset up. What equipment do you use?RK I have two Pearl sets. I'm using aneleven-piece set with five cymbals andsome of Joe Pollard's Syndrums. I also usea lot of M X R equipment, and I have myown Yamaha mixer and sound system.Basically, I have the sound system thatYamaha built for their acoustic piano. Itwas designed to amplify the full range ofthe keyboard, and that's the closest thingto amplifying the full range of a drum set.I t works very well. I have two Paiste 602's,

"THE BOTTOM LINE FORME IS, IF THE PERSON I'MSUPPORTING IS HAPPY,THEN I'M HAPPY. WITHINTHAT FRAMEWORK, I CANMAKE IT INTERESTINGFOR MYSELF."

Within that framework, I can make it in-teresting for myself.MD Do you practice a lot?RK Yes. I have a studio in my house, andI'm constantly working down there writingthings. I have a set of drums down there, soI play every day whether I'm in the studioor out on the road.MD Many drummers who write useanother instrument to help their writ ing.Does this apply to you?RK Yes, I play piano and bass guitar. Iplay a little bit of everything. I surroundedmyself with all the instruments, and even-tually started playing them. It's also goodfor my chi ldren. All the instruments arearound and they can play anything theywant.MD How has your playing changed overthe years?RK If my playing has changed at all, it'sgotten better. I feel that the best qualitythat any musician can ever acquire is notnecessarily any kind of virtuosity, but be-ing able to play great with other people. Indoing so, you play great by yourself.That's always been the approach I'vetaken. You can make music all day byyourself, but it doesn't get you as high aswhen you play with other people.

"AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED, BILLY [COBHAM] HAS IT ALL WRAPPED UP. HE HAS THEPOWER AND THE STAMINA. I'VE NEVER SEEN A DRUMMER WITH THE INCREDIBLEAMOUNT OF PACING THAT HE HAS."

Everything that I've heard him do onrecord has been impeccable. Steve Green isthe same way. People like Rick Marottaand Steve Gadd; what can you say aboutthese people, they're great. How could younot l ike Jack DeJohnette. I've learned howmuch I don't know by listening to thoseguys. They play from the heart.

About three or four years ago, The Sec-tion did a tour with the originalMahavishnu Orchestra, and I got real tightwith B i l l y Cobham. There's nothinganybody could say bad about Billy's play-ing to me that I won't argue to the end. Tome, there's no one more in touch with whata human body can do as a drummer. Billyuses every part of his body to the fullestwhile playing. There's no right side or leftside to his playing. It's whatever is easiest,

both 18" medium, and they both soundvery different. I'd k i l l anybody if they stolethem. I also have two Zildjians, one 20"and another 18".MD How do you approach playingdrums?RK Approaching it as a very musical anda very rhythmic instrument, puts it in theright light for me. I always approach itdifferently. In the studio, I approach play-ing in reference to what's needed andwanted from me and my instrument. I'mnot playing for myself, I'm playing a sup-porting position to other instruments. I fit's a tracking date, then I'm part of a unit .I wi l l find out what's required of mebecause I want to make them comfortable.The bottom line for me is, if the person I'msupporting is happy, then I'm happy.

MD What are your future plans?RK I'd l ike the group to be successful sowe wouldn't have to back up people. Thenwe would have an outlet for our writing.It's easy for me to write instrumentalmusic, and it's the same for the rest of theguys. It doesn't make sense if there's nooutlet for i t . We've been together for sixyears, and the bond is tight. I'd l ike to seethat go on.

Right now, The Section has a dedicatedunderground; people who were our fansfive years ago still are. We're going tomake another record for Capitol. We'verealized it's going to take a few recordsand being on the road continuously forabout two or three years. Eventually wewil l be able to play the Santa Monica CivicAuditorium by ourselves.

RIDE RHYTHM INDEPENDENCEby Bill Charmelo

Traditionally, drummers have used the bass and snare drum toexecute independent yet interacting rhythms. The ride rhythm,whether played on the ride cymbal or hi-hat, usually was arepetitive steady rhythm, fi l l ing in holes and making everythingje l l .

However, jazz drummers — and more recently rock drummers— have become proficient in developing an independent feeling inthe cymbal ride rhythms. These cymbal patterns are improvised in-dependent rhythms, intermeshing with the bass and snare and add-ing to the complex counter-rhythmical quality.

To develop an independent ride rhythm hand, you must firstconcentrate on breaking the habit of playing only one or tworepetitive rhythms continually. A good way to accomplish this is topractice playing as many different ride rhythms as possible withnumerous and varied snare and bass patterns. Here are some ex-amples of a variety of rhythms:

Try playing all of the bass and snare patterns you can with thefirst ride rhythm, moving on to the second, third, etc., as each ismastered. Remember to start simply, and slowly, gradually ad-vancing to the more complex patterns.

The bass and snare rhythms below are graduated in the manner Ihave just described. Try working these rhythms out with each ofthe ride cymbal patterns above.

Now try varying the ride rhythms so it works well with, oragainst, the bass and snare patterns.

Here are a few exercises showing how the ride rhythm can bechanged from count to count and measure to measure, just as thebass and snare patterns change. The examples below are somewhatcomplex, and should be worked out both carefully and slowly.

When you have gained some degree of facility with these exer-cises, experiment writing and playing your own individual patterns.Soon you wil l develop the ability to fully improvise your cymbalpatterns while coordinating complex bass and snare drumrhythmic figures.

BUDDY RICH

WITH THE LOUISVILLE SYMPHONY

THIGPEN RETURNS

by Rick Mattingly by Eloise Fink

Has Buddy Rich embarked on a newcareer in symphonic music? Not really.But he is giving it a try, playing with localsymphony orchestras throughout the coun-try.

Recently, Rich appeared with theLouisv i l le Orchestra as part of their"Super Pops" series. Those familiar withRich through his talk-show appearancesmight have expected him to tell a fewjokes. Instead, with a quick wave and abow to the audience, Rich sat down andwent to work.

The first number was a Tommy New-som arrangement of "Strike Up TheBand." Rich was in control as theorchestra responded to his driving rhythmand probably came as close to "swinging"as could be expected of a symphonyorchestra.

The second part of the program wasdevoted to the Buddy Rich Trio. Rich wasjoined by Tom Warrington on electric bassand Bob Kaye on acoustic grand piano.This was not a drummer with a couple ofmusicians playing background for him,this was a Trio. Though Rich is an ac-knowledged star, he always gives his fellowmusicians plenty of solo space while hefunctions, in his own words, as "just thedrummer with the band." Warringtonplayed a couple of bass solos and, at onepoint, Rich and Warrington dropped out

while Kaye played a beautiful piano solo.Rich did not solo during this part of theprogram, but demonstrated his techniquewith brushes. My personal favorite fromthis set was a swinging rendition of"Someday My Prince Will Come."

The orchestra returned for the finale,"West Side Story." The arrangement, alsoby Tommy Newsom, was closer toBernstein's original than it was to Rich'sbig-band version. Rich became a memberof the orchestra, adding delicate cymbalcolors with sensitivity and exquisite taste.As the piece progressed, Rich graduallybegan taking over, constantly building inintensity, until the orchestra dropped out,leaving Rich to do the solo everyone knewwas coming.

Symphony orchestras are used to havingfamous virtuosos in their midst, perform-ing great classical works. But this wasdifferent. Rich was not playing somethingthat was written years before. He wascreating his own solo right there on thespot. When it was over, members of theorchestra joined the audience in shouts of"more!" But Rich had given of himselffully and after taking several bows, left thestage.

Before the performance, Rich said therehas been talk of recording one of theseconcerts, but no definite plans have beenmade. For the present, if you hear of Richplaying with your local symphony, plan toattend. You won't be disappointed.

That Saturday morning was iced-in;even O'Hare Field in Chicago was closed.But the kids kept coming to De Paul'sstone auditorium — lots of them — aginganywhere from five to fifty five. They camefor jazz drummer Ed Thigpen's ten o'clockdrum clinic. Thigpen had come a long dis-tance, too — from Copenhagen, after along time away — six years, and theyweren't about to miss him. This free drumclinic was sponsored by Drums, Ltd., 218South Wabash in Chicago, and De PaulUniversity.

Standing there looking around, expec-tant, trim in his green leather jacket, hecould have been almost any one of them —magic, but no pomp, no you've-gotta-do-it-wi'-way. When they asked about how tohold the sticks, he said, "Whatever is com-fortable," explaining that drums whichused to be played on the slant in marchingbands don't need a specific grip anymore.About the bass drum, he said, "I do adance-action," but he described a studentof his: "He uses his heel — a doubleclutch!" That worked too.

Thigpen got everyone sitting up a littlestraighter. "Posture's the same as dance.Keep that spinal cord in line." Theneveryone counted out loud: "One and twoand three and four," and "playing the air,"on pretend drums. The whole audience wasmotion. "Keep that foot going four," hereminded them. As a member of the clinicstaff for Ludwig Drums since 1958, he hasdeveloped an easy way with the audience.

It's got to be total involvement, "Eyes,ears, hands, both feet, and the voice to ac-

tivate co-ordination." The rhythm feltgreat. "You're like a jockey," he said."The horse is gonna run, and you've gottahold it."

In a combo the drummer doesn't let themeter fluctuate, "or it sounds like a guywalking around with a bad heart."

"Any other points? This is your clinic,"he said. Hands up; someone asking aboutthe bass drum again.

"They've moved the time from the bassdrum up onto the cymbals so that the bassdrum can punctuate now . . . Horns needthe bass drum to hold it together . . . Youshould feel it instead of hear it . . . Theboom can get in the way . . ."

Someone mentioned the bossa nova. "Itwas discovered by mistake — like mostthings."

He was into the demonstration by then,squinting like a surgeon, looking for theright stick. On to the tambourine — ashake, then a sound like the hiss of windthrough tall dune grasses, and his fingersraining all over the tambourine.

"Then we have another little toy — thequica." He rubs a squeaky laugh from it,"squeaking" the audience to make themlaugh too.

Practicing? "I always thought, give me agig. As long as I stay behind a drum set,I'm gonna get better."

Reading music? "If you can read yourname, you can read music. Can you countto four? You can read music."

Difficulty with rhythm sections? "Youhave to sit down and decide where youwant that beat to be: layin' back on thetime, or right on it l ike a metronome. Thecombo's l ike a good marriage — you eachhave a function." He had been with jazzlong enough to be part of the music ofJohnny Mathis , Pat Boone, AndyWilliams, Peggy Lee, Carmen McCrea,and Ella Fitzgerald.

Any changes since he was with OscarPeterson? "I looked up one day and I wasthirty-three years old and I was gonna be ahas-been. I couldn't play rock. The Beatleshad gotten hot, and a new kind of thingwas happening." He didn't need to tellthem something was going on with hismusic, too — much of it the last few yearsas instructor in Malmo, Sweden's JazzInstitute and the Music Collage Vid LundsUniversitet.

The drums began again, almost as if bythemselves. Of cliche rhythms he said,"I'm rather tired of them." He leaned inover the rhythm, cradling it in close. Thecymbal was like an oriental sun, and hespun it 'round with his finger. Then thedrums took over the universe — very sure— telling everyone who Thigpen was,where he'd been, and what he had to say.

And the audience was glad to be there.He smiled. It was his "audition day" andhe had wanted to please them — "the waywe all want to make things that have somevalidity, some meaning."

UNDERSTANDING PHRASING

by John Pickering

Because of the l imitations of his instrument, the drummer needbe concerned only with notes of two basic durational values.LONG AND SHORT. Generally, and unless otherwise indicated,quarter notes and all notes of a lesser durational value are con-sidered to be relatively short in duration. Short notes can be playedon any of the drums, but are usually most effective when played onthe snare or bass drum.

Written as Section Accent:

The choice of which drum to use when playing section figures isentirely up to the musical judgement of the individual drummer.However, the following suggestions may prove helpful: If theabove accent were played by the trumpet section, it would be wisestto use the snare drum because its sharper attack is most similar tothe natural crispness of the trumpet tone. (Example A) On theother hand, if the same accent were played by the trombones or thebaritone sax, it may be more effective to use bass drum because thenatural timber (tone color) of a trombone or baritone sax is athicker, broader sound than the trumpet, and the tone of the bassdrum most closely parallels it. (Example B)

Quarter notes can be interpreted as long or short notes, depend-ing on the context in which they are used. They may be played onthe snare drum or on the bass drum and cymbal. Generally,quarter notes are not played staccato unless a dot appears over thenote.

Written as an ensemble accent:

Both B and C above are two sample solutions to the ensembleaccent given in example A. They are both basically the same exceptthat C makes use of a simple fill-in to increase interest and buildexcitement. Note that in both examples, the short note (2&) isplayed with an accent on the snare drum. In most cases, the snaredrum is the best choice for playing short or staccato ensembleaccents.

Theoretically, the bass drum could be used to play the accent,but because the accent is an ensemble accent, (being played by amajority of the band, if not all of it) considerable volume anddefinition are needed for maximum dynamic effect, and thecapabilities of the bass drum are limited in this respect. That is notto say it can't be done, only that the snare drum accent is the saferalternative.

LONG NOTES

From a drummer's viewpoint, long notes are generally con-sidered to be any note longer in duration than a quarter note. Longnotes are most effectively played by hitting the cymbal and thebass drum together. The cymbal adds the sustaining quality thatmakes it a long note and the bass drum adds the bottom and thestrength and power to the accent figure. To sharpen the attack, thesnare drum is often added. When playing ensemble accents andfigures, a cymbal crash without the added bass drum is usuallyconsidered too thin a sound to be effective.

Note that in both the above examples the accent (2&) wasplayed by the bass drum and cymbal. Occasionally, when an accentoccurs on 4 or 4& and is tied into the next bar, the arranger simplywrites the first note with the tie sign and omits the second note ofthe tie. These notes should still be considered long notes and playedas such.

JEFF PORCARO continued from page 19"I haven't had much of a chance to do any practicing. It's really

weird because when you start doing lots of sessions and workingevery day, you have to start meeting up to what people imagine ofyou as a player. I'm really not into that. I don't care what peoplethink of me, as opposed to being a really good all-around player. Ijust enjoy what I'm doing."

At the ripe age of 24, Jeff has also developed a fine ear for thework of a wide variety of drummers, along with some astutefeelings on the importance of a drummer's concern for musicality,first and foremost.

"One guy that has really impressed me is Steve Gadd. The finestdrummer out right now. He's unbelievably straight and wellschooled. He's getting to be known as one of the most schooleddrummers in history. He's amazing. He can read anything you putin front of h im. He blows peoples' minds. Then there are peoplelike Jim Gordon and Harvey Mason. I wouldn't put myself up withany of those guys. They're the guys that are doing it today. EdGreen, Rick Mirada, Bernard Purdie, and Jim Keltner. In the pop-rock field, Keltner has to be the master. The shame is that he'sdone a lot of sessions and is not someone everybody is aware of.He's done a lot of big records with John Lennon, Joe Cocker, andall the George Harrison things. Those aren't the real Keltnerthough. The real Keltner is stuff like the original Delaney and Bon-nie album, and the old Leon Russell, and his own group called Al-titudes. He's incredible. Among jazz players, there really aren'tmany guys who are playing like Elvin, or Philly, or Art Blakey orany of those guys. When those guys do a solo in the jazz context ofsoloing, it's cool because they play a chorus and still playmusically. I'm not interested in a guy showing me what he can dorudimentally when it's not musical. When you don't hear any nicenotes, or phrases, and when there's no soul to it whatsoever, it'slike saying, 'Hey, dig what I can do'. No thank you. That's not forme."

Reprinted from Stage Band Drummers Guide, by John Pickering.Published by Mel Bay Publications, Inc., Pacific, Mo. Used bypermission.

THE BEGINNING TIMPANIST:PART 1by George Frock

Because the timpani are among the "musical" percussion in-struments they present special problems for both the beginner andhis teacher. The intent of this article is to offer some practicalsuggestions which will render the teaching of this instrument lessformidable.

REPLACING AND TUNING HEADS: The first, both in timeand importance, is to start the student on drums that have beenproperly set up. It may seem odd to begin an article on teachingwith a note on maintenance, but a carelessly aligned head canmake it almost impossible for a student to learn tuning. Timpaniheads go through frequent and various tension changes throughtunings. If a head is more than two years old, it has probably lostits elasticity, and hence its tone, because the constant change oftension has worn it out. I think it is better to replace the heads eachyear than wait for this to happen.

To change a head the following steps may prove helpful: 1)Remove the old head and wipe clean the counter hoop, bowl andtension rods. 2) Lightly sand the lip of the bowl with a piece ofemery cloth. Again wipe clean with a towel or cloth. 3) Spread athin layer of wax or paraffin across the rim. 4) Carefully seat thehead on the bowl, being careful to see that the head is centered andis even around the drum. 5) Put the counter hoop over the head, be-ing careful to center the tension rings directly over their recep-tacles. Dip each tension screw in Vaseline and screw down until itstarts to put pressure on the counter hoop. 6) Turning each tensionscrew no more than 1/4 turn, slowly put pressure on the counterhoop. A caliper to measure each tension screw will help you seethat each has the same degree of tension.

A second method is to place a yardstick across the head andobserve that the counter hoop is pulled the same distance aroundthe drum. Since the counter hoop will be below the surface of therim, it is easy to sight the distance between the yardstick and thecounter hoop. Place the pedal in the middle of its arc. 7) If you arefortunate enough to own timpani with master tuners, you may nowpull the head to its proper range. If your timpani lacks this feature,it is necessary to continue pulling the head into its range by usingthe tension screws. The notes and range of the drums are asfollows:

For a beginning student, a set of mallets from the manufacturer issufficient. However, as the student advances, he or she shouldmove to a higher quality mallet such as the custom-designedmallets of a professional timpanist. These are usually available atpercussion specialty shops, or possibly from a symphony orchestratimpanist who makes his own.

A student t impanist should have at least three pairs of mallets(hard, medium, soft). The more advanced player's set usually in-cludes the following assortment: 1) General Purpose — most play-ing 2) Custom general — for loud tutti playing 3) Staccato — formore rhythmic definition 4) Ultra Staccato — for very articulateor rapid notes 5) Wood — for specially indicated parts.

DEVELOPING THE STROKE: It is most important for theteacher to be famil iar with the two most common grips used tohold the mallets. For the beginning student, I suggest the malletsbe held with the back of the hands up, since this grip has the mostcarry-over from the other percussion instruments. More advancedtimpanists usually use a thumbs-up grip. This probably facilitateslateral movement across the drums, and also gives the touch andstroke more finesse and control.

There are several philosophies on playing techniques, varyingfrom use of the fingers to the wrist or the arm. I recommend awrist and finger combination for most playing. To avoid a heavy orpounding sound, much practice must be directed toward pullingthe sound out of the drum. Careful attention should be given toavoid lifting the sticks too high. The mallets should never beallowed to rise above 12 to 15 inches off the head surface. Studentswho l i ft their mallets higher than the suggested limits usuallyproduce a pounding, non-musical sound. This is especially true onloud rolls. The following exercise can be employed to teach thebasic stroke:1) Hold the mallet about three inches off the head surface.

8) The final step is to carefully fine tune each post, being sure thateach one is ringing true and holding the overtones. If a series ofbeats occurs, more fine tuning is needed.

SELECTING THE PROPER MALLETS: Timpani malletscome in many sizes and in varying degrees of hardness. Each isdesigned for playing a specific style of music. The quality (andprice) of mallets varies with the type of felt which covers the ball.

2) With the wrist, lift the mallet to the stroke preparation height.The height will vary depending on the volume desired.

3) With a relaxed motion, drop the stick to the head surface and inone motion return the stick to the starting position. Note that theshaft of the mallet is parallel to the head surface.

4) A second exercise designed for developing articulation is topractice alternating 16th notes and 32nd notes. To execute ar-ticulated passages, grip the mallet very firmly and keep the malletshaft parallel to the head surface, even on the l ift .

Perfection of this technique is extremely valuable because itavoids the temptation common to beginning timpanists to usemallets harder than necessary in order to produce rhythmic preci-sion. This results in a poorer tone quality, thus a lack of musicality.

The second part of this article will deal with the techniques oftimpani rolls, tuning, muffling and sticking.

Reprinted from the Selmer Bandwagon, No. 83, copyright 1977,by permission of the Selmer Company, Elkhart, Indiana.

BACKING

SINGERS

by Danny Pucillo

Danny Pucillo is a west coast baseddrummer with a wealth of performing ex-perience. He has hacked numerous leadingvocalists including Peggy Lee. SammyDavis, Jr., Robert Goulet, Joe Williamsand Tony Bennett, and has played the TVshows of Andy Williams, Sonny and Cher,and Pearl Bailey. A most versatile per-former, Danny presently divides his timebetween L.A. studio work, and his ownjazz-rock group.

Singers (particularly those with long-standing reputations) are very importantto every practical musician in that theyhave the power to provide jobs for us. Andthe jobs can be plentiful and pleasant if wetake the time to understand our role as in-strumentalists and the unwritten rulesdefining the relationship between voice anddrums.

The first thing we must all concede isthat most professional singers knowprecisely what they want from the boys inthe band, so let us respect them for it anddo our best to satisfy them. It is true theyare unable to suggest Debussy-like har-monies as l ikely substitutes for an alreadyeffective piano part — as many arrangerslove to do; or to hash out a problem inaccent d i s t r ibut ion with an obedientdrummer; or point an accusing finger atthe third fiddle player who may havegoofed a cue; or in the midst of a full tuttipassage single out the vi l lain who forgot tomake a change of notation in his part. But,they have an idea of what the chart is sup-posed to sound like, and when somethingisn't right, they know it.

They also know that a sure sense of timeis indispensable to an effective perfor-

mance of those expensive arrangementsthey proudly pass among the boys at firstrehearsal. For this reason, they've come toappreciate the value of a solid, harmoniousrhythm section. And the sometimeselaborate, sometimes insipid tempochanges and dynamic effects that highlighttheir performance have taught them tocherish the presence of a well-seasoneddrummer who is tactful enough to play forthem and not for prosperity. In short, adrummer who acquires the skill of playingfor singers is a drummer much in demand.It seems that most drummers acquire thisskil l over many long years of trial anderror and at the expense of many disap-pointed singers. This unfortunate fact isjust i f ication enough for the space devotedto this article.

Although no two singers are exactlyal ike with regard to their particulartalents, they are alike in that they sharecommon problems with us. They too mustknow their instrument, understand the ac-companiment provided for them by theirarranger, and struggle to achieve a goodperformance. Their success or failuredepends largely on our success or failure tomeet the requirements of the musical

problems involved. My experience (and Ithink most drummers actively workingwith singers will testify to this) tends tofocus attention on a few rules of thumbwhich, if observed, will greatly simplify theproblems facing the young drummerwishing to acquire this skil l . I'd like totouch lightly upon the most obvious ofthese principles in the next few paragraphs.

The first point is so universally true thatit is hardly worth mentioning. But it mustnot be taken for granted, so just for therecord, here it is: YOU MUST HAVE ACOMPLETE MASTERY OF BASICPERCUSSION TECHNIQUE. There isno substitute for this fundamental require-ment.

The second point is this: YOU MUSTACQUIRE SKILL IN THE ART OFM E M O R I Z I N G MUSIC. This isbasically a problem of grasping and retain-ing what you read. For a drummer with nofaculty for memory, every reading is a firstreading. Obviously, you can't watch thesinger or conductor for direction if youreyes are glued to the page any more thanan ostrich can count the stars with his headburied underground. In addition, you canonly put the life element into a piece of

music you understand. And you can't getfamiliar with a piece you're sight-readingfor the tenth time. Familiarization is aproduct of memory. Read, grasp, andretain! That's the secret. Work at it daily!That's the method.

You'll probably think I'm beingfacetious when I call your attention topoint number three: A CONDUCTOR ISNOT A TRAFFIC COP. Frequently thepiano player will serve in the capacity ofconductor as well. Because of hisfamiliarity with the music and the artist,(he's usually a steady man) the question oftempos and interpretation are made easier.If you work with him on these matters,you'll satisfy the singer. Unlike the stand-up conductor, the pianist-conductor canusually employ but one hand at a time.Frequently, when he is involved at thepiano, he will resort to head movements toemphasize downbeats. At this point thetempo is set by you more often than not.Have a clear mental picture of the tempoand once you lay it down, keep it there.Facial expressions are also a part of thepianist-conductor's technique.

Point number four: D Y N A M I CMARKS ARE FOR THE AUDIENCETOO. Most stages will permit you to setup in the back with the brass section. Thisoccasionally isolates you from the singerand might create a problem of com-

munication. If there are any monitors onstage, try to get as close to one as the situa-tion allows. Another constant problem isthe room itself. Try to adjust to theacoustical climate if you don't want theperformance to sound like a drum solowith vocal accompaniment. Tact coupledwith a sensitive ear is most needed in thiswar against acoustical conditions.

The human element is the reason forpoint number five. SINGERS ARE NOTMETRONOMES. From night to night, orfrom date to date they may vary their tem-pos. You must listen closely for such dis-crepancies and acknowledge them with adisplay of good musicianship, keeping afree feeling and a good pulse. Singers —like any soloist — can perform at their bestwhen the background is good, time-wise.Certainly, you can add color through theuse of fill-ins, dynamic shading, etc., whencalled for, but the real element is time.

Point number six: YOU MUSTBECOME AN OLD RELIABLE. Mostestablished singers carry a steady rhythmsection with them on the road. These one-nighters are an experience apart from allothers. The rest of the band will consist oflocal boys. The house band will usuallycontain a nucleus of good musiciansalthough you should be prepared for unfor-tunate exceptions. This is where you reallyplay for the singer even if it should require

a healthy disregard for your fellowbandsmen. Insist upon the proper tempos,listen for the tempo-changes. Keep thetime against all odds. Be like the Rock ofGibraltar on this point. You must playwith a strong will but never over play involume. Time and dynamics are not thesame thing. This requires great control butyou can do it if you have observed rulenumber one. Mentally, it's like shutting offthe sound of the band, keeping your earsopen only for the sound of the singer brav-ing it up front. He (or she) will not let thisdisplay of reliability go unnoticed. This isyour security.

Point number seven: SINGERS HAVECONFIDENCE IN CONFIDENCE.When the chart calls for solos or importantfill-ins, sound it out. When rehearsing theband, any help you can give them will givethem confidence in you. The ever-presentproblem of tempo changes, dynamics etc.,will be greatly minimized if the boysrespect you enough to listen and look toyou at show time. The music will come offbetter, the singer will do top quality workand you'll be rewarded with repeated joboffers. Word of mouth is the best adver-tisement. One more point about con-fidence; there's only one way to get it, andthat comes from competence! Anythingshort of this is vanity.

STEVE GADD:

AJA-STEELY DANby Chuck Kerrigan

Chuck Kerrigan is a highly respected teacher and performerresiding in the Johnstown, Pennsylvania area. During his 12 yearsof experience he has transcribed the drum parts for more than 230songs. A former student of Alan Dawson, Chuck is currentlyworking on a soon to be released book entitled, The Art of RockDrumming.

CHOOSING DRUMS,

HEADS AND CYMBALSby Jon Terry

Choosing a set of drums was once arelatively simple procedure. Today, the op-tions are so varied in terms of constructionmaterials, sizes, styles and hardwarechoices, that one could easily become ex-tremely confused in his search for that newset.

My first suggestion would be to obtainas many manufacturer's catalogs as possi-ble. Make your basic decisions from theliterature which is readily available. Yourlocal music store or favorite drum shop isan excellent place to obtain a catalogwhich you can read and compare beforemaking any serious choices. Most of theleading drum companies will also gladlyfurnish a catalog free, or for a smallcharge.

Assuming you've narrowed your choicesdown to 2 or 3 leading manufacturer's,you'll soon realize that further choicesmust st i l l be made even after you havedecided on the brand name. Along with thestandard wood shells, we now have to con-tend with the l ikes of fiberglass, fiberglassand wood combinations, plastics, chrome,stainless steel, etc. Basically, it is wise toremember that fiberglass, stainless steeland plastics offer a louder, harsher tonequal i ty — good for volume and sheer pro-j e c t i o n . Wood drums are by nature,warmer and mellower. In regards to sizes— after all is said and done — largerdrums very simply can be tuned deeper andare capable of greater volume than smallerdrums. With this basic understanding, allthat really remains to be done is to get outto see and hopefully try the equipment youare seriously considering, and to choosethe sizes that best meet your musical re-quirements, combined with sensible com-mon sense choices in construction andhardware.

When making a decision to buy a par-ticular brand of drum, be critical of thesound. Ask yourself a few simplequestions. Does it have the sound I'mlooking for? Is it the best possible choice inf u l f i l l i n g my part icular musica l re-quirements? Is there anything in the designor construction of the drums or hardwarethat is not conducive to the kind of music Iplay? Could I improve the sound by replac-ing the heads? Does the hardware offer thecustomizing options I may want to incor-porate a year from now? Check out allhardware with moving parts (hi-hat stand,bass drum pedal). Do all internal mufflingdevices work effectively and properly? Am

I getting the most efficiency for my moneyin this area? Does it look fairly certain theequipment will hold up under hundreds ofset-ups and break-downs and under allkinds of playing and hauling conditions?

If you're considering the purchase of aused set, be sure the set has been properlycared for. Are the shells free of knicks,cracks or scratches? Are chrome parts freeof corrosion and in good working order?Does the equipment look as though it hasbeen subject to extraordinary or unduepunishment or neglect? If so, stay away.

Assuming you've made your basicpurchasing decision, you now have themassive options of customizing to considerand the first place to start is with theheads. There are several excellent com-panies manufacturing an astounding arrayof head sizes, types and styles. The twomost highly recognized names are theSilver Dot series by Ludwig, and the entireline of Remo, Inc., the specialized leader inthe field. Remo makes the widest assort-ment ranging from frosted and clear styles,to the more recent CS (Controlled Sound)series with a reinforced black dot affixeddead center for reduced overtones.Another new entry is the FiberSkyn head,also by Remo, for an even darker, warmerand more mellow tone with very little ring.Ludwig heads are somewhat more elasticthan Remo, however they do offer a lively,and deep tom-tom tone. For volume anddepth, with low tension tuning, Ludwigheads are excellent. For more control, witha dead sound and tight tuning, Remo leadsthe way. They're easy to keep in tune, andrarely dent or go dead.

Of course there are also the options ofwhat heads to use and what heads to leaveoff. The bottom tom-heads and the outsidebass drum head can be removed whichresults in increased volume and projection,however resonance is most certainly com-promised. El iminat ion of bass or tomheads wi l l give the drum an added punch,and heavy muffling cuts back on over-tones. This, in essence, is the basis of therock drum sound. For other types of play-ing such as light rock, jazz, or country,bottom heads are on with tighter, higher-pitched, crisper tuning, the key words. Ex-perimentation in this area is the best wayto decide on the most appropriate setupand tuning in accordance with your in-dividual taste and musical situation.

continued on page 36

When choosing cymbals, keep in mindthe two basic factors which determinetonal quality in the top line cymbals. Theyare size and weight. A light, small cymbalwill have a higher pitch with a shorterovertone and wi l l react faster than a largercymbal. The larger sizes are deeper pitchedwith more sustained overtones, yet reac-tion time is considerably longer. It istherefore easy to understand the necessityof two or more cymbals of different sizesand weights to achieve the many variedmusical nuances a drummer must produce.There are also further distinctions in toneif one considers the possibilities of riveted"sizzle-cymbals", "swish-cymbals", andthe paper thin "splash". Needless to say thepossibilities and combinations of sizes,weights and styles are staggering. You cannarrow down the confusion in this area ifyou remember, that as with heads anddrums themselves, the wisest choices incymbals are made when they are kept inaccordance with your individual musicalneeds. This must remain the primary con-sideration, at all times.

If you're buying new cymbals, find ashop with a good variety to choose from.Be sure to set them on stands, and try themout with your regular drumstick. Tap thecymbal at the bell, the center, and theedge. Listen for consistency in pitch. Spinthe cymbal on its stand being sure itrotates evenly. When buying "crash cym-bals," used to cut through and reinforcerhythmic figures, don't be afraid to trythem out as crash cymbals. Listen for howfast (or slow) it reacts and reaches its peakpower. A good crash cymbal will respondquickly and consistantly. Listen for highand low pitch. Will the cymbal blend inwith the majority of musical situations youencounter? It's also wise to try out hi-hatson your own hi-hat stand. Listen for blendand balance, and a good "chick" sound.(See MD-January 78, Shop Talk, forfurther suggestions when selecting cym-bals)

Take your time. Remember, cymbalsare generally a long term investment, andyou must be critical of what you're buying.

continued on page 39

A MUSICAL APPROACH TOTHE SINGLE STROKE ROLLby Tom Lonardo

The single stroke roll has always presented some interestingpoints for discussion. The most common method for teaching andpracticing this rudiment has basically been alternating sticking,starting slowly and gradually accelerating to top speed, with no in-herent regard for tempo. This is a poor method for a number ofreasons: First, it encourages the player to rush, or at least feel thesensation of rushing. Second, it does not teach a value for meterconcepts, and thirdly, our notational system does not have a truemeans of presenting the way in which most drummers practice the

rudiment.The method presented below incorporates the elements of 1) a

constant tempo throughout 2) notational interpretation 3) apolymetrical concept 4) The rudiment retains its character as anexcellent exercise for the development of speed and endurance.

The following rules are suggested: 1) Set your metronome at acomfortable setting 2) Practice each exercise in series (one intoanother) 3) Gradually increase the metronome speed by a beat ortwo, per week.

One thing is for certain. You get what youpay for in the cymbal market, and I wouldstrongly suggest staying with the top linesin cymbals for the best possible qual i ty andlong term satisfaction. It is certainly nosecret that the Avedis Zildjian CymbalCompany, and the Paiste Cymbal Com-pany are the undisputed leaders in thecymbal world. Both get top dollar for theirproduct, but certainly worth the invest-ment in terms of long term satisfaction andquality.

If your pocket book dictates staying inthe used cymbal department, keep a fewbasic pointers in mind. First, try to staywithin the top brand names, if possible.Check the cymbal out with the samecritical awareness you would when choos-ing a new cymbal. Keep an open eye outfor any deep scratches or abrasions. Mostimportant, be wary of hairl ine crackswhich could be the start of a much biggerproblem after a few months of playing. Agood second hand cymbal, if properlycared for, can often be a fine bargain.Many times a used cymbal has already un-dergone its break-in period and couldprove to be a real gem in terms of tone andclarity.

With a little preliminary knowledge,planning, a good understanding of themarket, and some common sense, anyoneshould be able to make a sound investmentamong the mind-boggling array of choicesavailable. An investment which he can becomfortable with for years to come. Stayalert, read, learn and compare. Drumequipment is progressing faster then everbefore, and it's your responsibility to stayon top of it all.

PERCUSSION SOCIETYA group of percussionists from

Adelaide, Australia have recently formedthe Percussion Society of Austral ia ,dedicated to "promoting all aspects of per-cussion and encouraging the cross-fertil ization of ideas from the various fieldsof jazz, orchestral, rock and 'ethnic'traditions," according to Brenton Holmes,secretary of the society.

The society plans to establish a percus-sion library, workshops and percussionclasses. Holmes would like to share infor-mation with MD readers. Contact him atthis address — 1 Rokewood Avenue,Belair, South Australia 5052.

ROGERS NAMES NEWMARKETING REP

The Rogers Drum Division of CBSMusical Instruments has recently namedGregory Perry marketing representativefor the company. Perry will coordinatenew product releases and function as aliason between Rogers and its advertisingagency. His duties wi l l include research,development, and field testing of Rogersand Paiste's new products and handlingdealer and consumer training sessions. Hewill also be in charge of artist relations andscheduling of Rogers drum clinics.

CONTINENTALCONFERENCE '78

Jimmy Tagford (right) Secretary of theContemporary Drummers Society ofEngland recently dropped by at MD's of-fices for a tour and day long conferencewith Editor Ron Spagnardi. MD and CDSplan to work closely to attain a morethorough exchange of information betweenAmerican and English drummers.

SOPH JOINS PREMIERDrummer Ed Soph has joined the staff

of Premier percussion clinicians, addinghis outstanding talent to the rapidly grow-ing number of top-flight performers andconsultants now available through thef irm.

Soph, who has been playingprofessionally for 18 of his 32 years, is awell-known freelance artist in the NewYork area. He has conducted many clinics,both independently and in conjunctionwith the National Stage Band and ComboCamps with which he has been associatedsince 1 9 7 1 . Ed also serves as a clinician forthe Creative Jazz Composers and the Per-cussive Arts Society.

Zildjian and the grandson of Avedis, whobrought the 355 year old family secret formaking cymbals from Istanbul to the U.S.in 1929. The secret formula has beenclosely held within the Zildjian familysince 1623 when the process was dis-covered.

BELLSON AND RICHLouie Bellson and Buddy Rich delighted

an audience at the University of Redlands,California, recently. The two virtuososwere featured, with their bands, in one seg-ment of the University's Jazz-ConcertSeries. The series is presented in conjunc-tion with Buddy Clements, the Com-missioner of Cultural Affairs at Redlands.

NEW ZILDJIAN REPRobert Avedis Zildjian has recently

been named the Western States marketingrepresentative for the Avedis ZildjianCompany. He will be based in San Fran-cisco and will direct sales and marketingfor the firm's cymbal products throughoutthe 14 western states. He will also coor-dinate all sales promotional activities forthe company including trade show par-ticipation, special appearances, clinics, andrelated activities involving dealers and dis-tributors within the territory.

A graduate of the University of NewHampshire, Robert is the son of Armand

Our photographers were on hand to cap-ture this moment of mutual regardbetween the two masters, Louie Bellsonand Buddy Rich.

RELOCATIONPeter Magadini of Briko Ltd., Los

Angeles, California, announced that the"Power Rod" manufacturing plant willrelocate its headquarters in Toronto, On-tario, Canada.

The "Power Rod" Bass Drum Pedal willnot be available for purchase until thetransfer is complete and manufacturingcan begin once again.

LONDON CLINICThe Contemporary Drummers Society

of England recently sponsored a drumclinic at the Kenilworth Hotel, London.

The presentation, "Drums on a SundayAfternoon," featured c l in ic ians fromSonor, Pearl, Premier and Ludwig In-dustries.

Percussionists enjoy viewing and tryingout new drum products. All the major in-dustries were represented with a vast arrayof products on exhibition.

Bob Henrit of Henrit's Drum Shop,London.

John Shearer — Ludwig Clinician

Jim Kilpatrick — Premier Clinician

BUDDY JOINS LUDWIGLudwig Industries has announced that

Buddy Rich wil l now play Ludwig Drumsand accessories, exclusively. In 1966, Bud-dy, regarded by many as the drum master,began his famous big band which has sincetraveled and performed al l over the world.Ludwig is proud to join forces with one ofthe greatest drummers of our times.

Martin Drew — Sonor Clinician

REFILLABLE BRUSHThe firm of L.A. Elkington, 2664 Park

Avenue, Bronx, New York has beenawarded a patent for the new Eltonrefillable wire brush. A new set of wirerefil ls can be inserted in a few moments byscrewing the second knob in the handle.The unit comes in two models, one with aplastic-covered handle and the other with apolished a l u m i n u m handle.

The loop and ball model ref i l l brush hasa special spreading and locking knob. Theuser can open and lock the brush wires toany desired length or spread positionsimply by loosening or tightening the firstknob in the wire. The brushes also holdalmost double the amount of brush wirecommonly used for long lasting and clearplaying. Packaged in an attractive see-through container, and available at yourlocal dealer.

ROGERS DEALERS FEATUREACUNA FACTSHEETS

An informative new factsheet entitled,Creativity in Drum Set-Ups is now beingprovided to Rogers Drum dealers for con-sumer distribution. Authored by fameddrummer Alex Acuna, the PercussionFactsheet provides tips for instrumenta-tion in Latin, Jazz, Rock and Electronictypes of musical formats. In addition, adetailed diagram of Acuna's concert set-upis provided.

According to Don Canedy, RogersMarketing Director, "The use of thesefactsheets helps provide the drummer withnew i n s i g h t s on creative set-ups andreflects the new trends in contemporary in-strumentation."

Alex Acuna is the drummer /per -cussionist in the world-famous WeatherReport group and has played with notedmusicians representing nearly every part ofthe musical spectrum . . . from PabloCasals, Perez Prado and Sergio Mendes toElvis Presley and Diana Ross.

SELMER PERCUSSIONBROCHURE

The Selmer Company has released itsPremier Marching Percussion brochure.The handsome, 12 page catalog features thecomplete l ine of Premier marching percus-sion products, including marching duosand timp-tom trio, timbales and bongos,rudimental bass drums, regulation paradedrums, the Projector 15, a lightweightSpeedex glockenspiel , and the muchcoveted Super Royal Scot and Royal Scotdrums originally designed for pipe bands.A special section is also devoted to RemoRoto-Toms, Lat in special effects in-struments, and sticks, mallets and beaters,which round out the l ine. Available fromthe Selmer Company, PO Box 310,Elkhart, Indiana 46514, for 25 cents.

BASS PRACTICE PADThe Drum Workshop has brought back

and improved the Practice Bass DrumPad, once part of the "Camco" hardwarel ine which they recently purchased. Thisproduct f i l l s the needs of both beginnersand professionals who know the ever in-creasing importance of developing "FootWork" for today's drumming, and is "theonly self contained pad on the market,"says Drum Workshop spokespersons DonLombardi and Paul Real. "Along with ourCymbal Muffler the Practice Bass DrumPad will add to the Drum Workshop lineof practice aids for the drummer."

For more details, write: The DrumWorkshop, Inc., 1 6 8 1 6 So. Broadway,Gardena, Calif . 90248.

CAMBER INTRODUCES T-TOPA unique new product has recently been

introduced by Camber, distributors of theCamber Cymbals. This new product,called the T-Top (patented), el iminates theneed of a wing nut on the top of the cymbalstand. The T-Top is screwed onto the cym-bal stand; then by t i l t ing the cymbal overthe T-Top, the cymbal can be easily put onor taken off. No more time consumingsteps. The T-Top remains on the stand per-manently, thereby eliminating loss of thewing nuts . I t is made of one piece, chromeplated metal and threaded to accept allstands on the market without additionaladapters.

The retail price of the T-Top is $4.95 perset of 2, attractively packaged in a new 12pr. display. Available through most musicoutlets.

IMPROVED CONGALatin Percussion's Conga Drum has a

surface finish "much superior to what ithad been," owing to the complete re-building of the tooling used to manu-facture the shell . New molding techniqueshave "vastly improved the structural in-tegrity of the product," a spokesmanreported.

LUDWIG INTRODUCES A6-PLY WOOD SHELL

Ludwig is introducing a 6-ply die-moldwood drum she l l .

With the reb i r th in popularity of wooddrums, Ludwig is making a wood drumshell claimed to be the strongest in the in-dustry. The 6-ply die-mold shell consists ofselect wood veneer panels carefully butt-jo inted to avoid any overlaps and create an e a r l y s e a m l e s s c o n f i g u r a t i o n . Ad-d i t i o n a l l y , a l l plies of wood are cross-grained to further maximize strength. Thef i r s t ply is hor i zonta l , the second is ver-t i ca l , the th i rd is hor i zonta l .

Ludwig's 6-ply wood shel l is craftedfrom the f inest wood, both inside and out,and is avai lable in a choice of f inishes in-c luding Natural Maple and MahoganyWood.

brand new from Ludwig. It acts l ike acymbal boom, and can project 6" to 12"toms up and over the other tom-toms.

The complete new l ine of Herculesstands is avai lab le at your Ludwig dealer.

PRO-MARK DEVELOPSNEW WOOD TREATMENT

PROCESSPro-Mark, after two years of research

and development, claims to be the onlydrumstick maker to successfully reducewarpage of natural wood drumsticks.

According to Pro-Mark president, HerbBrochstein, "we are not 100% on this yet,but very close to it . . . you might say Pro-Mark has Mother Nature under control,though not completely conquered regard-ing warpage of natural wood drumsticks."

Brochstein called the wood treatmentprocess a "unique secret." The techniqueinvolves moisture control of the wood usedto make Pro-Mark's drumsticks. Refine-ment of new sanding and finishing equip-ment and development of a new formula oflacquer are part of Pro-Mark's "qualitycontrol improvements."

The current l ine of Pro-Mark sticks wil leach have a code number on them, signify-ing when the drumstick was manufacturedand the formula used in treating the wood.This wil l enable Pro-Mark to monitortheir qual i ty control system.

Current Pro-Mark drumsticks consist ofthe new wood treatment process. For freeliterature write: Pro-Mark Corporation,10710 Craighead Drive, Houston, Texas77025.

HERCULES™ STANDSFROM LUDWIG

Ludwig is introducing a new line ofheavy-duty drum stands, aptly named Her-cules

T M

. These stands are Ludwig's finestand include features that should make itthe standard of the industry.

Each stand has an adjustable wide-tracktubular base with a lower center of gravi tythat prevents the stand from tipping understress. And heavy sure-grip rubber feetkeep the stand in place.

Big hand-size tension a d j u s t m e n t knobsare easy to grip and turn. These tensiona d j u s t m e n t knobs are attached to heavydie-cast tube clamps that hold the standt igh t ly in place at any height.

Hercules also features heavy-dutyratchets that won't break or come looseeven under the toughest abuse on a tom-tom or cymbal boom stand.

Hercules stands are easier to take down,set up, and to carry. Large bore steel tubestelescope neatly inside each other, and thebase folds down to a neat parcel.

The Hercules stand l ine includes: Snaredrum stand, Hi -Hat stand. Cymbal stand.Cymbal boom stand, Tom-Tom boomstand, and two types of Double Tom-Tomfloor stands. The Tom-Tom boom stand is