SKF NOTE: I’m a longtime fan of Yo-Yo Ma, his music, his artistry as a cellist, and for his ongoing willingness to experiment with music, to take risks. This excerpt is from a new book I’m reading titled,Yo-Yo Ma – Portrait of a Cellist, Mentor, & Musical Explorer, Edited by Megan Westberg.
Ma’s advice here is applicable to all musicians, including drummers.
Yo-Yo Ma: My sense is that the world never needs another musician – you have to create a place for yourself by touching someone whenever you play so that they will want to hear more of what you do.
That’s essentially your only job: to communicate something that another person can identify with, remember, and tell other people about. Then it spreads by word of mouth, and slowly you can build something up.
It’s not the road always traveled; it’s the road never traveled that you have find.
SKF NOTE: From the transcript of my interview with John Von Ohlen, published in the March 1985 Modern Drummer. This interview was done by phone. I was in my MD office. John was home in Indiana. My introduction to John’s playing, years earlier, was through Stan Kenton’s Live in London album.
Scott K Fish: How do you feel about drum method books?
John Von Ohlen: I’ll have to tell you a story, reportedly true, about a wise old Indian sage.
This German came to the village where this sage lived and he wanted to find The Truth.
The German was in a bookstore one day and this sage happened to walk by and see him in there. And this wise man knew what the German wanted.
So the sage picked the guy up by the collar, threw him out of the bookstore and said, “It’s not in books, you fool.”
That’s the way I feel about drumming. I’m sorry, but I look at things in an ass-backwards way.
I know it’s nice to have a book. I know these teachers who put out books are well-meaning. Maybe some of them are just trying to make a buck. If some of them have families — they ought to put out a book. But it’s not in books.
What book did Mel Lewis study out of? What book did Elvin Jones study out of?
You might study rudiments. Okay, that’s a good foundation. It’s like learning the scales on a piano. Once you’re past the rudiments, I’d say don’t get too steeped in the book knowledge of drums. You need to go out and work. That’s where you get it. You get it on the job. If a guy works, and he’s a well-meaning drummer, and he’s right in there pitching, and he’s working all the time, these things will come to him anyway.
My main gripe is in developing musclebound chops from practicing things that aren’t natural for you anyway, in the name of speed.
You’ve got your own natural licks. If a guy just keeps playing, man, he’ll come up with some bomb licks that nobody can play. It may not be that big a thing, but there will be nobody else who can play it. Like you’ve got a patent on it. That’s the kind of chops you should have. You should have things that came out — an you didn’t even know how you did it.
Stay positive, America Staff, Piscataquis Observer • March 13, 2020 By Scott K. Fish
Sometimes, when six-year old Grafton was younger, we’d step out of the house to explore or to drive somewhere. Later, I’d notice he had his shoes or boots on the wrong feet. Walking the grocery store aisles, for example, I would see Grafton’s boots and do a double-take.
“You’re shoes are on the wrong feet,” I’d laugh. Grafton would look at me as if to say, “What do you mean ‘wrong feet’? These are the only feet I have.”
“Aren’t you uncomfortable?” I’d ask. Grafton shrugged. I’d reposition his boots and off we’d go.
This past week especially I feel as if much of America, overreacting to non-stop worst case scenario coronavirus news, is effectively moving through each day with their shoes on the wrong feet.
My bank President/CEO sent me an email on Wednesday. Presumably the email went to all the bank customers. We’re here to help, said the bank Top Dog. “We recognize there is uncertainty related to the spread of the virus and that some of our clients may face financial challenges as a result of illness and/or business interruption.”
“We’re working with our cleaning professionals to coordinate more extensive and frequent cleanings of our branches and ATMs. We’ve made hand sanitizer readily available and are reinforcing best practices recommended by the CDC,” said the bank executive, concluding his email with tips on coronavirus and “fraudsters,” and assurances the bank was staying on top of coronavirus health developments.
I have a flight scheduled later this month. The airline Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer included me in his March 9 “valued customers” email.
“We want you to feel confident when traveling with [our] Airlines. As a result, we have enhanced some of our cleaning procedures in the interest of our Customers’ and Employees’ health and safety,” wrote the Airline executive, following with details of aircraft cleaning.
I learned the airline “spend[s] between 6-7 hours cleaning each aircraft every night, and, as of March 4, 2020, we have enhanced our overnight cleaning procedures.” The exec tells me what grade disinfectant they use and where, which, he further assures, “goes beyond the standard CDC guidelines.”
If the added airline info on aircraft air filter types doesn’t give me enough confidence, I’m offered a link to “our blog for a detailed overview, along with a video and photos of the process.”
Yesterday I received yet another email, this time from Merrill Auditorium that the Sunday, March 15, Portland Symphony Orchestra celebration of Maine’s bicentennial is cancelled, and, said the Auditorium folks, here’s what you can do to make good on the concert tickets you bought.
The same type of message also arrived last night, instructing me on what to do with my tickets for Portland Ovations’s cancelled Blue Man Group performance in April.
I drove to the local Hannaford for some milk and soup. Then I worked my way to the aisle with kids’ books displayed. The same aisle also has paper products i.e. tissues, napkins, paper towels, toilet paper. Except the toilet paper shelves — all of them — were empty. It looked like a scene from a Venezuelan food store.
A stock clerk with a wheeled hand truck topped with cardboard boxes of toilet paper had placed three packages on the empty shelves. I asked him if people were really buying this much toilet paper? “Yes,” said the clerk. “It’s crazy.”
Yesterday coming to a close, I read one final email from a nearby farm/restaurant where we have Mother’s Day reservations. The farm owner was writing about daily measures taken there to “sanitize” everything. “While the virus has not been confirmed in Maine we are taking precautions here…,” she said, ending with, “Remember to stay positive….”
To those farmer’s words of wisdom I will only suggest, when leaving your house, be sure your shoes are on the right feet.
SKF NOTE: Happy Birthday to drum pioneer Roy Haynes. I am thankful to have listened to Roy in concert twice, and to have interviewed him.
I can’t explain why, but what I remember most of my interview with him, was Roy telling me, “Not everything I play has a name.” His point was, his drumming is made up of sounds, creativity, and not just variations on drum rudiments, Stick Control, or anything else.
SKF NOTE: A re-release of note. Recorded in 1957, Hank Mobley Poppin’ date’s lineup of musicians is stellar: Hank Mobley (tenor), Pepper Adams (baritone), Philly Joe Jones (drums), Art Farmer (trumpet), Sonny Clark (piano), Paul Chambers (bass). I just bought the MP3 album. Any chance I get to hear new-to-my-ears Philly Joe Jones, I take advantage of it.
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