Starting around 1:30 Nate Smith really lets loose over this odd meter, funky Adam Rogers tune, wow! Also, it’s nice to hear Adam Rogers in his element. Hard to catch all of the Fima Ephron stuff, but I can assure you it was tasty and locked right in. This is another set from my 2011 stint in NYC.
Adam Rogers – Guitar
Nate Smith – Drums
Fima Ephron – Bass
55 Bar, NYC, 10.13.2011
Following up my first post regarding bebop drum vocabulary, I thought it would be fun to present an incredibly tasty Roy Haynes transcription. This particular solo is from Thelonious Monk’s 1958 live album Misterioso, and features Thelonious on piano, Johnny Griffin on tenor sax, Ahmed Abdul-Malik on bass, and the incomparable Roy Haynes on drums.
There are several reasons that make this particular drum solo so enjoyable, both as a listener and as a student honing one’s craft.
I’m left wanting to hear the rest! Here’s a preview of Chicago drummer Juan Pastor’s new album, Chinchano featuring Jorge Roeder on bass, Stu Mindeman on piano, Rich Moore on sax, and Marquis Hill on trumpet, all fantastic musicians deserving of wider praise. Paul Mutzabaugh works his magic to really bring Juan’s arrangement to life. Check it out:
Bebop Drum Solos
One of the challenges in teaching jazz drumset to younger musicians is connecting the dots between their existing physical technique and a stylistic concept of what it means to play jazz/bebop vocabulary. John Riley has authored three incredible books: The Art of Bop Drumming, Beyond Bop Drumming, and The Jazz Drummer’s Workshop; all of which prove helpful to students over the course of their development.
It also goes without saying that listening to jazz music (or any style of music one is attempting to master) is first and foremost the most vital learning tool. A particular strategy that I have utilized more often in recent years is composing short exercises to introduce classic bebop drum vocabulary. Many of these phrases are common, and are reminiscent of Max Roach or Roy Haynes. That being said, they feel fresh and exciting for a young drummer only beginning to build a toolkit of jazz phrasing/vocabulary.
