A couple of months ago someone said to me (in a cover band situation), "Either play it exactly like to original, better than the original, or don't play it at all". I disagreee with this on so many different levels, it's taken me till now to sort it out in my head.

First of all,  a basic point-to-point rebuttal:

You're never going to play anything exactly like the original. Not even the original artist is going to play it exactly like the recording (which actually isn't the original - the original is an idea in the composer's mind, but that's a tangent I won't go off on just yet). This is why I've always believed that if all you're hoping to accomplish is to reproduce a recording, you'd be better off bringing a CD than a musical instrument - that's the only way it;s going to happen.

Whether you're playing something better than the original is highly subjective. Some people fell in love with a certain version of a song, and will never accept anything other than that version as acceptable (again, bring the CD). Some people love hearing reinterpretations of songs and want to hear it as different as possible. I would guess that most are somewhere in between. So, who's to judge? Better to just leave that one alone.

Second, moving just a little deeper into the psyche behind the quote:

The person who said this to me spends a great deal of time informing everyone whom he's played with in the past. The list is long and illustrious, as he tells it (over and over again). He's also quite fond of telling everyone how to play their particular instruments (while ignoring his own shortcomings, of course) regardless of if he's able to demonstrate better technique himself. This person is also, shall we say, frequently the most "experienced" member of the group he's playing in (ok, not sure if that got through - he's freakin' old). This leads me to believe that his only standard of accomplishment has been to try and duplicate what has already been done, many times, by many other players. Through his supposedly long and illustrious career, he's still playing the sideman in a cover band, and putting himself in thr position of being hired (and yes, subsequently fired) by someone half his age. Maybe I'm cocky (alright, I'm beyond cocky, no maybe about it), but I don't bother telling people whom I've played with. I tend to make it clear that they are playing with me. End of story.

Third, to broaden the perspective musically:

My personal path as a musician would be, "If you aren't creating something new, don't bother". And yes, this applies even (maybe especially) to cover bands. As an example, as a percussionist in a symphony orchestra (the most extreme example of a cover band there is), I am required to play certain notes at a certain time. They are written down, published for the world to see, set in stone. However, the depth of interpretive variation from one player is staggering. Listen to two recordings of a Bethoven symphony and you start to wonder if they're looking at the same piece of music. Get into Rimsky-Korsakov and the differences are astounding. My goal as a symphonic percussionist is to filter the dots on the page through my own musical training, influences, and experience to come up with my own reality of how those notes should be played. To make that part Beethoven (or Rimsky-Korsakov, or Tchaikovsky et. al.) through me, and because of me. I've always said, "When I'm playing with a symphony, I feel like a drumset player. When I'm playing with a rock band, I feel like a djembe player. When I'm playing djembe, I feel like a jazz vibraphonist". It never ends. There's always something new to express, and the more rigid the part I play, the deeper I dig to make that expression come alive through the music.

In the end, music is a creative art, at every level. Playing a notated part is no more or less creative than playing free improv. It's just creativity expressed in a different way. If you're not here to create, press [PLAY].

Beverly Bottsford was one of my first djembe teachers - check out her new solo performance piece...

> " Gourd and Groove Around the World"

> with Cross-Cultural Percussionist, Beverly Botsford

> Gourds have been used as musical instruments for centuries

> throughout the world. Using an assortment of gourds, Botsford

> creates stirring rhythms accented with folklore, history, humor,

> science, and art.

>

> Sunday August 10th, 2008 3:00 to 4:00 PM

> NC Museum of History in Raleigh, NC tel: 919-807-7900

> 5 East Edenton Street (between Salisbury and Wilmington Streets) in

> downtown Raleigh, North Carolina.

> www.ncmuseumofhistory.org

>

> FREE ADMISSION

>

> A Closer Look: Making Music in North Carolina

> Sunday, August 10

> 1:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. (drop-in program)

> ____________ _________ _________ _________ _________ _________ _

> I hope you all can make it. It blends music w/ spoken-word,

> movement, stories, wisdoms and humor. I'll be telling my

> autobiographical tale of life with the Cogui Indians in the Sierra

> Nevada of Columbia. !!!!

> It's not "kids show", but is certainly appropriate for families

> w/ children. "Edutainment" with an edge.

> PLEASE HELP ME SPREAD THE WORD.

>

> In Peace and Rhythm, Beverly

Durham Symphony Supporters,

Just a reminder, you have one more week to save on season tickets for the Durham Symphony Orchestra. You don't want to miss this exciting season!

 

Buy in July

Buy your Durham Symphony Orchestra

Season Tickets in July for $75 ($80 after July)

Season Tickets include admission to:

Fall Classical Concert

November 2, 3pm ~ Carolina Theatre

Fundraiser for the Center for Child and Family Health

featuring Guest Artist, Shana Blake Hill, Soprano

and Conductor Candidate, William Henry Curry

Holiday Pops Concert

December 5, 7pm ~ Carolina Theatre

featuring Conductor Candidate, Fouad Fakhouri

Classical Concert

February 8, 3pm ~ Baldwin Auditorium

featuring Young Artists Competition Winners

and Conductor Candidate Harry Davidson

For more information or to purchase your tickets,

please call the Durham Symphony office 919-560-2736

or email office@durhamsymphony.org.

Or you can send a check made payable to Durham Symphony

to PO Box 1993, Durham, NC 27702.

Neil  Grover of the Boston Pops, having a bit of fun with the soloist...

(you can't do that sitting behind a drumset!)

Classic drummer joke:

What's the drummer say when you ask hime to play with more dynamics?

"I'm already playing as loud as I can!"

hahahaha

Anyway, I had some shows this weekend with an un-mic'ed chorus in a very "live" hall. Pretty much everything I played was too loud.

Loved it!

I really enjoy the challenge of playing softly. How do you get the instruments to speak with good tone when you're barely getting them vibrating? It's a great challenge. I'd much rather do that than try and force the drums to play louder. I ended up playing the whole show with timbale sticks - the small diameter kept the volume down, but they were dense enough to get a good attack. They also gave a good rim click snare sound, which was in every song. One song had 16ths on the hihat, so I switched to "rutes" for that one - I know I'd get overzealous once both hands get going, so I went ahead and sacrificed a little tone to keep myself out of trouble.

In the preface to Stone's "Stick Control", talking specifically about rolls, he mantions taht playing softly increases your control over the sticks, making it easier to play loud. I have to agree. If you can play with conviction under a solo voice, everything else is easy!

(then I went to salsa rehearsal and played loud enough to make my hands hurt - keep it full spectrum!)