Worship Musician November 2018 | Page 136

PERCUSSION WHY PERCUSSIONISTS NEED DRUM SET SKILLS | Mark Shelton The door opened, and Mr. Congiardo walked two or three limbs are being employed on a orchestrate portions onto my cajon-based set- into the practice room. My friend and I had been percussion set-up. Juggling a sixteenth-note up. Kick and snare parts easily transfer to bass taking turns exploring the drum set. Our band shaker pattern along with a few syncopated tone and corner slaps on “the box.” The ride director had probably heard enough of those eighths on a cowbell can seem like a piece of cymbal and stick-played high-hat lines can be feeble attempts to play a groove. Although his cake after you have been practicing a dense implied on the corners of the cajon or ghosted primary instrument was the saxophone, Mr. C four-part fusion lick on the drum set. on the bass tone area. I believe this transcription sat down at the drum kit and proceeded to and orchestration process is made easier when confidently demonstrate a simple rock beat. His I highly recommend these classic books to you have experience transcribing and playing brief presentation was accompanied by some build your multi-limb independence: drum set grooves. incisive advice to begin practicing his example. • “Advanced Techniques for the Modern It was a major moment in my musical journey. Drummer” by Jim Chapin - Alfred Publishing • “4-Way Coordination” by Marvin Dahlgren While I had played percussion in school band and Elliot Fine - Alfred Publishing for a few years, my studies had not included INTERACTION It is crucial that the drum set and percussion parts mesh properly to form a solid groove. Timbres and rhythms should combine and instruction on drum set--until that day. Further TRANSCRIPTION complement, rather than collide and confuse. study and practice led to playing drums for Experience with the drum set is beneficial It is a delicate interaction. As the percussionist, jazz ensembles, pit orchestras, big bands, when transcribing a groove. When working in I generally allow the drum set player to take the praise and worship groups, and symphony a situation without a kit player, a percussionist more dominant role in establishing the basic orchestras during the ensuing decades. It might create a part that is based on a drum framework of the groove, and I weave my is hard to imagine my percussion life without set groove. When I play in the ‘no drum set’ parts around that framework. A background in the fundamental abilities to play drum set and situation, my set-up is often centered around studying the drum set informs me as I analyze understand its workings within an ensemble. a cajon. Rather than reinvent the wheel, I will the drummer’s rhythms and timbral choices often borrow ideas from a drum set groove and so that I can find appropriate rhythmic and Drum set proficiency is an asset whether I am actually sitting behind the kit, standing in a percussion set-up, or transcribing a groove. Read on and I will state my case for the importance for making “drum set know-how” an essential element of your percussion life. COORDINATION Percussion frequently requires multi-limb coordination. It can be simply playing a single line between your two hands, but there are moments when each hand is rendering a separate rhythm on a different instrument. Perhaps you decide to toss in a foot tambourine to further complicate the situation. Now you are synching up three limbs! Playing drum set requires four-way coordination; all limbs are working independently. Few instruments, other than organ and pedal steel guitar, so regularly require that multi-limb skill set. The independence gained from playing drum set carries over into those moments when 136 November 2018 WorshipMusician.com