Category Archives: SKF Blog

The Secrets of Chick Webb’s Drumming Technique 1938

Posted on October 4, 2016 by Scott K Fish

SKF NOTE: John P. Noonan‘s terrific piece, The Secrets of Chick Webb’s Drumming Technique, (Down Beat 1938), which I’m excerpting here, is a valuable inheritance. John Noonan is a noted percussion player and teacher who studied with Ed Straight, Roy … Continue reading →

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Brubeck on Roach and Odd-Time Signatures

Posted on October 2, 2016 by Scott K Fish

SKF NOTE: In July 1974 I bought the current issue of Different Drummer magazine in which Doug Ramsey interviewed Dave Brubeck. A few years up the road I copied a this Dave Brubeck quote on Max Roach and odd-time signatures, … Continue reading →

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Art Hodes: That Was the Big Thing – The Story

Posted on October 1, 2016 by Scott K Fish

SKF NOTE: Art Hodes wrote wonderful columns for Down Beat magazine from his vantage point as a jazz musician (pianist) who mixed company with some of the early great jazz pioneers. Plus, I love Art Hodes’s writing. Here’s a quote … Continue reading →

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George Lewis: You Got To Learn to Make It Talk

Posted on September 30, 2016 by Scott K Fish

SKF NOTE: Discovering music pioneers of horns, keyboards, strings, reeds; songwriters, lyricists, arrangers — this remains one of my favorite parts of studying drum pioneers. A common theme among pioneer musicians is the importance of originality, of learning to express … Continue reading →

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Kenny Clarke: The Magic Cymbal

Posted on September 28, 2016 by Scott K Fish

Pianist Dick Katz said in an interview with Ira Gitler, “People don’t know that [Kenny Clarke] had one cymbal. It wasn’t very big, and we used to call it the magic cymbal, because when somebody would sit in on drums, … Continue reading →

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