The greatest joy in education comes when the student teaches the teacher. Jake Reed and Ryan Shaw (who is highlighted in Jake’s guest column) both studied with me at USC. They not only do me and the Thornton School of Music proud, but they are paying it forward by spreading the gospel as players, innovators, and educators. Jake is a brilliant drummer and all-around musical force who also happens to be a terrific writer. He was my first choice to pen a guest column on the Jazz Insights pages of Modern Drummer. I learned some new things here, and I promise that you will too. Peter Erskine Q: Is there anything more fun than trading 4s with a fellow drummer? A: Nope. As fun as it can be, sometimes it’s easy to let a friendly conversation at the drums quickly escalate into an athletic, chop-laden shred-fest. When there’s no thesis […]

August 2023 Issue