With the passing of time, we have encountered the emergence of many different styles of music. In the 40's with the music of such artists as Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker we saw the advent of what came to be known as "Be-Bop". In the late 60's, with the release of Miles Davis's album "Bitches Brew", we saw the beginnings of what has come to be known as "Fusion". "Cool Jazz" came out of the west coast recordings of the 50's by such musicians as Chet Baker and Gerry Mulligan. Throughout the 80's and into the 90's with recordings by John Scofield and Joe Lovano, and having been preceded by the music of John Coltrane, jazz has taken on a much freer form. I guess this can be best described as a combination of post-bop and avant-garde.
All through this evolution, we as drummers have been expected to adapt to and be able to perform proficiently in all of these styles. Where as in the early styles of jazz, the roll of the drummer was to keep steady time through use of the hi-hat and ride cymbal, we are now free to experiment with melody and keep the time not only on the ride cymbal but incorporate the drumset as a whole into our timekeeping. We are no longer expected to play the hi-hat on 2 & 4 but now see many drummers using it more independently and melodically. Some, however, have eliminated it from their kit altogether. I happen to be a fan of the former rather than the latter. I think that proper use of the hi-hat adds color and fattens one's groove.
Out of our thirst for improvement and our desire to keep up with an everchanging evolution of new music, along with being members within a highly competitive profession, I think some of us have somehow lost track of what we had initially started out to accomplish. That is to play "MUSIC". The key word here is "MUSIC". Although a relative term, "MUSIC", as well as all art forms, has always been communicative. Solo performers, through music, communicate between themselves and their audience. Band members communicate with each other through their musical interaction and thusly with their audience.
The pressures put upon us as professional musicians and the desire to reach that sometimes unreachable musical goal has somehow driven us to forget about the art of communication and has lead us in a direction where, through showcasing our own technical proficiency, we have forgotten that communication involves more than just the exhibition of oneself.
In listening to many of the newer recordings of younger artists and attending an occasional live performance, I wonder sometimes what happened to taste. Why does the drummer who might be a great technician, sound like he or she is not listening to the rest of the band. Sometimes when it's time for a drum solo, the drummer has nothing else to say. They have been playing a solo throughout the whole tune. This is not to say that I am not a proponent of the newer style. As Miles Davis said, we can't go backwards. Music must go forward and we must all strive for newer, bigger and better horizons.
In doing so, however, I'm afraid many young players are starting halfway up the ladder without beginning first at the bottom. We cannot avoid the roots from which our instrument has evolved. We should not, as maturing musicians, loose sight of the fact that throughout music history, we, as drummers have assumed the role of only one participant within the whole, a piece of the pie, so to speak, from which comes a group effort. I believe, however modern or free the music becomes, our role is still to establish, in some relative way, a groove or foundation for the music. This entails what I have said before, a "GROUP EFFORT", and requires the use of our ears as well as our musical taste. Unless we are performing solo, playing music is not about oneself but about "US" as a group. We, as modern drummers and in a time where music is evolving as fast as the newest computer software, should not forget those masters who have come before us. There once lived such greats as Philly Joe Jones, Papa Jo Jones, Elvin Jones, Art Taylor, Gene Krupa, Shadow Wilson, Art Blakey and a score of many more who during their time were at the leading edge of their profession. Without them we would not be endowed with the likes of our living legends such as Roy Haynes, Joe Chambers, Louis Hayes, Jack DeJohnette and many more....all who learned from their predecessors.
We, as clinicians, educators and professional performers must make a serious effort in at least exposing our students to those traditional giants and their styles. With all due respect, the history of the drums did not begin with Neil Peart, John Bonham, Billy Cobham or Tony Williams. However great these drummers are, they were all preceded by and learned from those (for a lack of a better word) traditional giants. This, I believe, is what makes them great.
Having once made the same mistake as many young drummers do today, I thought the history of the jazz drums began with Tony Williams. It took me a few years and a lot of Miles Davis records to realize that maybe he had developed his great ride cymbal chops by listening to and learning from others who had preceded him. Then I found out that a drummer by the name of Roy Haynes had come from the same town as Tony. Tony, being a few years younger then Roy might have listened to and learned from Roy who in turn had maybe listened to and learned from Philly Joe who might have studied a drummer by the name of Papa Jo Jones or Shadow Wilson.
I believe the more aware of the roots of your instrument and styles of those who came before us, the stronger your musical foundation. The stronger your foundation, the freer you become to express yourself in any of the modern musical idioms. As I inferred before, you can't reach the top without starting at the bottom. Learning music is a process of levels. Level 5 only comes after level 4 has been mastered.
It's kind of understandable but somewhat frustrating to see that some of our young talent might be skipping over the basics that could possibly determine the difference between whether they will become "good" musicians or "great" musicians. You can't build a house without a strong foundation. We should make sure our students, while learning all those hip funk beats and intricate polyrhythms, have also studied the styles of those drummers who have come before us...those who might not have exhibited the fastest chops or played the slickest fills, but have given us a legacy, a foundation and a feel for swing that has, to this day, been unsurpassed....a vital chapter in the education of most of today's master drummers. Certainly, Elvin Jones didn't learn to play those slick triplet patterns before he learned to play eighth notes......I don't think.
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