SKF NOTE: This collection of papers is drummer Roberto Petaccia‘s first contact with Modern Drummer.

It’s also an illustration of how an idea sent to MD in 1981 established a new relationship with an exciting drummer, which gave birth to a new MD column (Rock ‘N Jazz Clinic).

Readers will see how MD Founder/Publisher Ron Spagnardi, who first received Petaccia’s letter, passed the letter to me, MD‘s Managing Editor, for a follow-up.

Then we have another letter from Roberto, this one written to me because we were now working on his initial column, which is posted here just as Petaccia sent it to me at MD.

Finally, you can see my handwritten note to Spagnardi letting him know Petaccia’s column in hand was being rewritten as two columns. That was strictly for space considerations. Petaccia’s original column is much longer than MD was publishing in 1981.