neveronfriday

In Germany we have a company called "Hearsafe" that tries to help drummers avoid developing hearing loss. They're called HearSafe and they offer a wide range of protective gear: http://www.hearsafe.de/englisch/frsetE02.htm Cheers! P.S.: The company is actively promoted by a German drummer named Wolf Simon, founder of the charity HEAR!, who after years of having exposed himself to too much noise as one of Germany's most in-demand session and live drummers, lost his hearing in (over?) a wide frequency range. He almost had to stop drumming altogether.

Wingy, funny you should mention a test like that. A few years ago I got my ears blown out by an amassment of horns on top of some stupid truck whose driver had to signal his compadre right when I was standing next to the truck that it was lunch time (those horns are illegal over here, but of course those nitwits didn't give a hoot ). Luckily enough, there is a doctor right down the road who is a good friend of mine, so I was ushered right by the imbeciles in the waiting room (speed is of the essence in cases like these, I have been told) and got the first infusion of many to stop my hearing from disappearing completely. Anyway, here comes the fun part of the story: At some point, a couple of days down the road, I had to do that frequency test a second time, and the chick who was doing the frequency button thing did so in rhythm! Beep, check off list, beep, check off list, beep. Needless to say, although I'm not prone to cheating, I did. I couldn't help it. My friend was wondering what I had been yapping about all the time. He let me know I had bionic hearing. Cheers! P.S.: My hearing did return back to normal, somewhat (I still get those high-pitched whines once in a while), but then again, sitting next to two huge Marshall stacks for more than 5 years probably didn't help the whole thing either.

Wingy, Am listening to the 1:30 min. of "Sharkey". Nice tune. The drums sound quite resonant. Do you have clear skins on the toms, or is it just the compression of the sound file?

Wingy, the only Mapex set I've ever tried was one from their their rather costly "Deep Forest" line. I liked those, but I guess they're not all that representative of what Mapex usually sounds like. This set was one in Walnut and had a very distinct sound, probably due to the rather thin shells. That one was definetely one for a drummer looking for a more unique sound. But they did pack quite a punch. It's only about a week ago I accidently stumbled over a company from Italy (Le Soprano ... quel surprise) (again, darn expensive stuff) which produces fascinating sets: This one is their "New Vintage" line which is an attempt to reproduce classic-sounding drums. Quite a blast to play. This one I found most fascinating though: It's their "Prima Original" line. Looks cool, sounds stunning and fits like a glove. But, their handmade stuff costs an arm and a leg (the bassdrum, as far as I recall, is yours for around $850, or so). If I ever get around to purchasing acoustic drums again, I might well go the Mapex or similar way. If I compare newer budget- or mid-price drums with my old, old, old Tama Swingstar (way back in school), quality standards have risen dramatically since then. Cheers!

There's probably someone out there who is willing to, err, reproduce that one on one of those round silver thingies, just out of natural curiosity? I'd like to meet that individual ... if only to chat a bit via PM. You know, make him/her see the error of his/her ways and all of that.

Did you have a favourite set amongst all of those?

Yeah, the good old Simmons. They actually had some very good ideas that time and the last kit they put out was stunning (I recall Bill Bruford demonstrating it on the German TV series "Super Drumming" ... that was a blast). Compared to what's possible today, the pads were the negative side ... as you said, one had to develop quite a different technique to actually get the dynamics. More like lightly stroking the pads than actually hitting them (although the latter was also lots of fun). Although the new Roland isn't anywhere close to acoustic drums, the pads are a huge improvement (although they are known to have a "dead spot" right at the center which you can actually "tweak" away). I also recall an old Dynacord (German) spacey kit with weird-shaped pads and a futuristic stand. The sound wasn't all that hot, but it's something I contemplated way back when (same problem: living in an apartment surrounded by neighbours). I'm glad I waited all that time for the Roland kit, although they have a virtual monopoly and parts are grossly overpriced. That thing is really damn good, once you learn how to tweak it properly ... and that might take 6 to 12 months (easily). If anyone is interested, check out the relevant posts on vdrums.com ... many fine drummers and engineers can give you the minutest details when it comes to getting the most out of your kit. If you follow their advice and have time to experiment, you can improve sensitivity and dynamics in such a way as to get a kit which sounds a 100% better than when played with factory settings. I've done some serious work with my kit and if recorded properly (sans the cymbals, which just have to be replaced by a real set), the sound is simply stunning. And the (rare) smile you get from the sound engineer when you're done setting up with him in about 15 minutes is a sight to behold. And then show him how you can switch to any one of 50 kits within 2 seconds. I'll shut up now. Cheers!

Thanks! I would be very interested.

That part of it is indeed lots of fun once in a while, but can also be quite demanding. First of all, you need an extremely fast up- and downlink connection (we have access to a satellite one through lines an experimental new media museum nearby is using for similar projects (a while back they coordinated a global concert which was also broadcast live on the Net), you need quite a bit (of sometimes still very buggy) hard- and software (the important element is a clocking device which nails each stream to the "beat", but you also need "receiving" devices such as keyboards or other electronic instruments, at least in the setup we're using). Secondly, you have to approach this stuff differently. There is no way you can "swing" a beat (you need to be right on the click, so to speak, and if you are not, the software will iron things out, at least at present) and interaction between musicians has to take place before and after the session (adding a simultaneous live video stream would be the way to go, but that's too much strain on the often buggy up- or downlink ... and the participants' wallets). Still, once in a while it is amazing what other people come up with. It will have to, for the time being, remain completely experimental, but that is the fun of it. You'll never know what's going to happen next, no matter how detailed the preparation was. Cheers!

Well, I would have loved to stick to my old Sonor Bubinga kit, but I live in an apartment. In order to still be able to play (and practice) regularly at home, I went the electronic way. So, I strung together two expanded Roland V-Drum kits (expanded, TDW-1 with V-Cymbal Control), fiddled around with two racks until I ended up with one plus lots of Sonor Delite hardware (because of crosstalk problems). All of that (plus a CD player) is hooked up to a Mackie 1202 VLZ and I'm pretty much free to play with anyone I like. If I have friends over for some casual jam or practice run, they can plug into the Mackie and the whole session is served up via a bunch of Sennheiser 545s. Not your typical jazz setup, but workable in a situation like that. All of that can never compare to an acoustic kit, but it does offer quite a bit of interesting possibilities, the most interesting of which is simply hooking the thing up to my PC and jamming (in real time) with people on the other side of the globe. Once you get the timing issues worked out, it can be a real blast. Cheers.

A welcome addition to the board. Any member here who plays electronic drums/percussion?

Mea culpa.

We don't want your head. Where does all that paranoia come from? We're just having some good-natured fun. And we're really quite happy with you being the major force around here. As you already said somewhere else, you bring life to the party. I think you're just misreading us altogether, really. I love all the new friendships that develop around here. I think I'll stay around and watch them bloom. Cheers!

Swan song before being banned? Hope so.

Cheers! [80006]

I do have some stuff by Horace Silver, but I'd like to get a more comprehensive view of this fascinating musician. I don't know if the '99 Blue Note 4CD Retrospective is the way to go (also soundwise) or if I should aim for the single CDs widely available? Any suggestions?

No, I was referring to statements such as this one: OK, let me jog out onto the open field so it's easier for all the flak to reach me. Where do I start? I spend quite a bit of time on various message boards - not because I don't have anything better to do and am an online addict far removed from everyday life (as has been suggested by at least one post in this thread in regard to all of us who care about the issue discussed here), but because I'm interested in various things I'd like more information about and because I have profitted from that information in my job. Besides that, like many people on this board, I have to be/am online a lot and can use the distraction once in a while. Now, invariably the same thing happens (and there is a definite pattern here). If one frequents various forums which spend time discussing the same topic, there is always fluctuation between the boards: people who are dissatisfied with one, feel mistreated in one way or another or were simply kicked out for some reason switch over to the other board. The whole thing is usually accompanied by a bunch of flame wars (Another good example are two boards concentrating on electronic percussion, vdrums.com and ddrums.com. It happened there many times). As far as I have read (I'm not a veteran of the Blue Note Forum), people at this forum here have had their experience with this sort of thing. Please read the following lines as an attempt to discuss the basic problem and not as an attack on anyone in particular: What never seizes to amaze me is this: Although many people have known what has been going on elsewhere, have read irritating and downright insulting threads, have maybe even participated in one or two of the threads themselves to try to help settle things a bit, total amnesia strikes the community if one ousted member switches sides. Lots of buddy-backslapping ensues, reinforcement strategies abound ("you're not really THAT bad; everyone should have a second chance; what about free speech; etc. ...") and the central issue is avoided. Instead of reprimanding someone who has misbehaved repeatedly, so much in fact that after quite a bit of discussion he was kicked off a board which is not exactly known for its restrictive policy, the new member is welcomed with hugs & kisses, and a discussion on free speech is started. I couldn't help being reminded of the (by now) tiresome debate if the right to bear arms is an individual or collective right ... a debate which usually breaks out after some kid got its head blown off by his/her father who thought it was a crook sneaking into the house after hours. "Who cares about the kid, let's talk about the underlying principles here." Another way of saying that is simply reminding someone of the existing rules and saying that as long as those aren't broken, there isn't any problem. I would call that turning a blind eye. What kind of meassage does this put out there? That it's alright to trash the house as long as you don't trash OUR room? That it's alright to insult people on other boards as long as it isn't done here? In my eyes that's opening the flood gates which can and often will cause quite a bit of damage. Many of us have seen it on other boards. Worst of all, and this is also a constant, suddenly it's the people who care about the issue and do warn that things might go amiss (and give some solid evidence), who are suddenly the culprits, the idiots and troublemakers. Of course, if I don't like what's going on, I can always leave. Yes, but that's the easy way out. Now, please accept my sincere apologies if I'm way out of line here (I do love this board and hate flame wars ... of which I might be starting one here), but I would not be surprised if there are other people on here who have similar feelings. In fact, I wouldn't mind if they said so. OK people, open fire. Cheers.

Yes, let's hear it for Free Speech. And the Second Amendment, while we're at it. Sorry, couldn't resist.

Hi brownie, received your copies today. Wonderful. "Tusind tak", as they say in Denmark. Add 120 to 130 to that. I owe you one. Cheers!

No, not at all. He didn't. I just read some of the stuff he wrote. Here and elsewhere. I stand by what I said above.

Just to make a point (no offense intended): Does that mean you wouldn't mind if a guest at your place urinates into your living room? I mean, you don't have to go in there. It's your own personal choice. This board is a group effort. I like this board because it doesn't have the usual dunces frequenting other boards. I don't care how much the guy knows about jazz. He doesn't have any manners, and just because he tries to hide that fact behind a weird sense of humour doesn't help a bit. It's your typical playground bully, and that's it. But, yes, I'll try to avoid his threads. The problem is that he has to spread his shite all over the place. Which makes it difficult for other members to stay clear. Kick him out.

I have no idea who this wingy dingy character is, but from all the yelling he's been doing around here, he seems to be suffering from a serious case of attention deficit disorder. Just don't let him have any. And Wingy, ... ... STOP YELLING ALREADY! Jeez. [edit]Oops. I just read on the other board that this wingy dingy thing is a drummer. I take back what I just wrote above and I'll try to rephrase it. Err, hm, err, ... SIT! STOP![/edit]