Dizzy Gillespie

Modern Drummer is the world’s most widely read drum magazine, is dedicated entirely to the art of drumming and caters to the needs of amateur, semi-pro, and professional drummers.

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Bronx/New York Session Drummer Tony Lewis

Talking About Gear, Records, and The Soundtrack To The Innermost Galaxy. Greetings MD people! My name is Tony Lewis and I am a drummer/songwriter from the Bronx, New York, and have been playing now for fifty years. I’ve been fortunate…

Modern Drummer
May 23, 2019

Carl Allen: Learning From the Giants

  By Jeff Potter In the August print issue of Modern Drummer magazine, on sale now, topflight jazz drummer Carl Allen is spotlighted in our “Catching Up With…” series, where he talks about one of his many ensembles, the Art…

Modern Drummer
Jun 30, 2016

VIDEO! Jazz Drummer's Workshop: Syncopation Revisited: Part 5: Afro-Cuban Applications (From the October 2014 Issue)

October 2014 Jazz Drummer’s Workshop Syncopation Revisited Part 5: Afro-Cuban Applications by Steve Fidyk Welcome to part five in our continuing series on ways to interpret the classic Ted Reed book Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer. This…

Modern Drummer
Sep 3, 2014

Presentation on the Evolution of Cuban Music and the Development of Afro-Cuban Jazz

Presentation Evolution Of Cuban Music and the Development of Afro-Cuban Jazz & Concert by the Ignacio Berroa Trio   Noted jazz drumming legend Ignacio Berroa, who performed with Dizzy Gillespie for ten years, will take the audience on a fascinating…

Modern Drummer
Oct 30, 2013

Roy Burns: Swing Star, Clinic Pioneer, Entrepreneur, And Beyond

Roy Burns has done it all—and done it well. He’s held the throne of numerous big bands. He’s established himself as an in-demand studio player, teacher, and clinician. He’s written numerous drum instructionals. And he’s one of the founding members…

Modern Drummer
May 19, 2011
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Jimmy Cobb: Kind Of Blue And Beyond

Jimmy Cobb was one of the most popular drummers of the late 1950s. He began playing at an early age and found his influences among the bop pioneers. “Max Roach was the hippest music going,” remembers Cobb. “I also listened…

Modern Drummer
Apr 18, 2011

John Riley : Master Player/Master Teacher

John Riley, one of the most respected drummer/educators of the past thirty years, was born in 1954, and began playing drums at the age of eight. At twelve Riley began playing in rock bands and was first exposed to jazz…

Modern Drummer
Nov 2, 2010

Kenny "Klook" Clarke

Kenny Clarke emerged from the swing bands of the '30s, but was actually the first important drummer of the bop era. Born in Pittsburgh in 1914, Clarke began his career with Roy Eldridge and around the Midwest with the Jeter-Pillars…

Modern Drummer
Jun 11, 2010

Charli Persip Update

Charli Persip was born in Morristown, New Jersey, in 1929, and began playing on the fertile Newark, New Jersey, jazz scene after graduating high school. Following a number of rough tours on the infamous Chitlin’ Circuit with musicians like blues…

Modern Drummer
May 12, 2010

Sidney “Big Sid" Catlett: Busting Open Doors To The Modern Drumming Age

Though Big Sid Catlett came out of the swing era, he is best remembered for a drumming style that had a marked influence on the bop drummers of the ’40s. Catlett bridged the gap between the two genres, and his…

Modern Drummer
Mar 22, 2010

J.C. Heard: One Of The Busiest, Swingin’-est Drummers Of Classic Jazz

J.C. Heard was born in Detroit in 1917, and started out as a tap dancer. He taught himself drums at age eleven, and two years later he was working with local bands. Heard’s break into the big time came in…

Modern Drummer
Feb 24, 2010

Jojo Mayer: Electro Shaman With Masterful Technique

For years, Jojo Mayer has been regarded as a drumming shaman, a man of mystery, a technical guru existing on the outer reaches of traditional drumming logic. Perhaps best known for his work with Screaming Headless Torsos and as a…

Modern Drummer
Jan 12, 2010
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Jimmy Crawford: Kansas City’s Rock of Gibraltar

One of the most exciting and dynamic groups to come out of Kansas City during the swing era was the Jimmy Lunceford big band. Drummer Jimmy Crawford, a high-spirited, supportive player, was the driving force behind the Lunceford band for…

Modern Drummer
Jan 5, 2010

William "Cozy" Cole: The Father Of Coordinated Independence

Cozy Cole, an incredibly adept player, was strongly rooted in the rudimental style, but he contributed much to jazz drumming. One of the first players to develop his own brand of hand and foot coordination, he mastered the technique thoroughly,…

Modern Drummer
Dec 29, 2009
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