Out of Hock Drum Studio

A Simple Problem, a Simple Solution

I swear I overheard this exchange during a Shelly Manne clinic at a high school jazz festival...

Band director: "Shelly, I’m having some trouble with my drummer. Whenever he plays with sticks he rushes and whenever he plays with brushes he drags. Any advice?"

Shelly Manne: "Sure. Give him one stick and one brush."

The Benefits of Slow Practice: What’s Your Hurry?

Hi, all -- Making some final preparations for re-entry after a lengthy Facebook hiatus. Gotta get the heat shield in place…

Several months ago I wrote a very short essay on the benefits of slow practice. To my surprise, it generated more interest on Facebook than anything I’d ever posted. If you missed it, here it is. Feel free to pass it along, and as always I welcome your comments! -- David Hocker

I was recently reading Jim Payne’s book, “The Great Drummers of R&B, Funk, and Soul” (which is fabulously entertaining and informative, by the way - if you don’t have it, get it!) and found a great quote from drummer Andy Newmark.

In addition to his work with John Lennon, David Bowie, and many others, Andy played on Sly and the Family Stone’s 1973 album Fresh, which includes the track “In Time,” hands down one of the funkiest tunes ever. He plays on every track on the record and absolutely kills that one. Andy’s philosophy on refining his technique through slow practice is about as close to my own as anything I’ve ever read. The concept was extremely valuable to me years ago when working on Murray Spivack and Richard Wilson’s material and I’ve been passing it along to my students ever since:

“It’s not about playing fast, but about having control over every note you play. Playing slowly, quietly, and having real control over every bounce. That’s the kind of valuable chops I always work on and strive towards. It’s not just speed, but having control over every grace note. This involves having the metronome down at 50 or 60 and playing very slowly and evenly, hearing all the air in between the beats, really feeling that air and giving every note its full value. In the end, that’s what really makes drummers swing.”

As performance psychologist Dr. Noa Kageyama notes on his website The Bulletproof Musician, “Since the whole point is to be able to think, monitor, and analyze our technique as we are playing, practicing at a moderate (read: brisk) tempo defeats the purpose. It’s too fast for us to observe, fully process, and tweak all the little details. The idea is to utilize super slow practice so that we can pay attention to all the subtle nuances of our mechanics, increase our awareness of what is actually happening, and find ways to make things better.”

I couldn’t have said it better myself! So take a big chill pill, set your metronome at quarter note = 40 bpm, and play some 16th note rebound doubles for a while (a wrist turn followed by a bounce, i.e., one motion, two notes). Feel the weight of the stick resting in the first crease of the middle finger (the fulcrum). Hold the stick loosely but securely. DO NOT squeeze tightly with the thumb and first finger. As you gradually move the metronome up one or two clicks, pay attention to the changes in pressure in the fulcrum necessary to control the bounce at each new tempo.

Now move over to the drums. Pick a groove, or just improvise for a while. I’ll bet your phrases feel more relaxed, the spaces between the notes are a little wider, and everything slots in a whole lot better.

Here’s a nice interview with Tower of Power’s David Garibaldi from the Drum Ninja website. Along with Mike Clark, David was one of the pioneers of the so-called linear style that began to percolate in the Bay Area in the early 1970s. Whereas Mike had a kind of mutative theme and variations approach, i.e. creating a groove and improvising on it throughout the tune, David would work out and orchestrate specific parts for each section and play them perfectly with little to no variation. In both cases, the results were often spectacular.

It’s always refreshing to hear great musicians talk about their failures and insecurities as well as their successes. Thanks, David!

http://thedrumninja.com/2010/08/david-garibaldi-interview/

David Garibaldi Interview David Garibaldi talks about drums, practice, career highs and life with Tower Of Power

The Benefits of Slow Practice: What’s Your Hurry?

I was recently reading through Jim Payne's book, “The Great Drummers of R&B, Funk, and Soul” (which is fabulously entertaining and informative, by the way - if you don’t have it, get it!) and found this great quote from drummer Andy Newmark.

In addition to his work with John Lennon, David Bowie, and many others, Andy played on Sly and the Family Stone’s 1973 album Fresh, which includes the track “In Time,” hands down one of the funkiest tunes ever. He plays on every track on the record and is absolutely killing on that one. Andy’s philosophy on refining his technique through slow practice is about as close to my own as anything I’ve ever read. The concept was extremely valuable to me years ago when working on Murray Spivack’s and Richard Wilson’s material and I’ve been passing it along to my students ever since:

“It’s not about playing fast, but about having control over every note you play. Playing slowly, quietly, and having real control over every bounce. That’s the kind of valuable chops I always work on and strive towards. It’s not just speed, but having control over every grace note. This involves having the metronome down at 50 or 60 and playing very slowly and evenly, hearing all the air in between the beats, really feeling that air and giving every note its full value. In the end, that’s what really makes drummers swing.”

As performance psychologist Dr. Noa Kageyama notes on his website The Bulletproof Musician, “Since the whole point is to be able to think, monitor, and analyze our technique as we are playing, practicing at a moderate (read: brisk) tempo defeats the purpose. It’s too fast for us to observe, fully process, and tweak all the little details. The idea is to utilize super slow practice so that we can pay attention to all the subtle nuances of our mechanics, increase our awareness of what is actually happening, and find ways to make things better.”

I couldn’t have said it better myself! So take a big chill pill, set your metronome at quarter note = 40 bpm, and play some 16th note rebound doubles for a while (a wrist turn followed by a bounce, i.e., one motion, two notes). Feel the weight of the stick resting in the first crease of the middle finger (the fulcrum). Hold the stick loosely, but securely. Do NOT squeeze tightly with the thumb and first finger. As you gradually move the metronome up one or two clicks, pay attention to the changes in pressure in the fulcrum necessary to control the bounce at each new tempo.

Now move over to the drums. Pick a groove, or just improvise for a while. I’ll bet your phrases feel more relaxed, the spaces between the notes are a little wider, and everything slots in a whole lot better.

Two old K. Zildjians for $165? I’ll take three dozen, please…

Well, at least that counts for something...

Shhhh! Genius at work. Do you know that this year marks the 50th anniversary of Tony Williams joining Miles’ band? Can you believe that? Fifty years! Play any track of a Miles Davis record with Tony on it and it will sound as fresh as anything out there today. Fifty years… I just find that amazing.

Too bad Shelly couldn’t book anybody of note into his club…

I’m always chatting up my students about the benefits of music to one’s health and well-being (I talk about it on my website as well: http://www.outofhockdrumstudio.com/beginners.html). So I thought I’d pass along something my wife Susan read recently:

“Music can actually aid both brain and cardiovascular function. One study noted higher cognitive performance among individuals who listened to music while working out. And University of Maryland researchers found that participants who listened to music of their choice for 30 minutes displayed an increase in blood flow equal to that observed with drug therapies and aerobic exercise.

So crank it up! Play music in the home. Research suggests that children who grow up in a home infused with music develop more neural pathways that enhance mathematical ability, literacy, and coordination. Plus, you may sleep better, according to a Taiwanese study. Also, listen to upbeat tunes when you hit the gym. One study found that women exercised more consistently when they set their workouts to a soundtrack. Music seems to do more than distract—it inspires.

Feeling blue? Attend a concert, strum a guitar, or just pop in your favorite CD. Creative expression—playing an instrument, singing, or simply enjoying the artistic work of others—can reduce symptoms of depression and boost your sense of well-being, according to a Norwegian study.”

Hear, hear!

For more detailed info, here are a few links:

http://researchnews.osu.edu/archive/hartsong.htm
http://www.umm.edu/news/releases/music-cardiovascular.htm
http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/exercise-music-tunes-to-get-fit-by
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091215160651.htm

I guess it wasn’t Bernard Purdie on all those Beatle tracks after all...