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.
The Chicago Blues Drummers
The scene is the 1985 Chicago Blues Festival. Grant Park is brimming with people, many of whom are jockeying for seats and blanket space as close to the band shell as possible. Opening night of the city’s annual free festival,…
Kevan McKenzie: Canadian Studio Star
Toward the end of my college years, in 1974, I joined a symphonic band. Between engagements, a master class was scheduled with Ian Bernard, during which he demonstrated the finesse that got him the job with the National Arts Centre…
Aaron Sterling’s Sound of Sterloid, Volume II
“I do almost everything at my place now,” says top L.A.-based session drummer Aaron Sterling. In addition to recording about fifteen songs per week for artists and producers around the world, Sterling has created five online master classes that focus…
Drumming And Electronic Drums
Drummers have different ideas and attitudes toward electronic drums. For example, I have heard drummers say, “The electronic drums are great; I don’t need acoustic drums any longer.” I have also heard the comment, “Those things sound awful. I refuse…
Questlove's latest book and more
RECORDINGS Skyharbor Sunshine Dust Indian progressive metal titans release a gripping new album on the heels of successful tours with Babymetal, the Contortionist, and Deftones. Equal parts ethereal atmospherics, thick and chugging grooves, and soaring vocals, Skyharbor offer some of their…
Bobby Chouinard
The sonic hurricane of the Billy Squier sound and fury swirls with lacerating leads, omnipotent vocals and, in the eye of the storm, the primitive power rendered by drummer Bobby Chouinard. Favoring fire and soul over flash and technique, Chouinard’s…
Chart Reading, Part 1
The drummer has many responsibilities when reading a chart. They become especially evident in a sight-reading situation. This article deals with some basic skills necessary for the beginning drum-chart reader. I shall touch upon some theory behind the drummer’s function,…
Drumming And Self-Discipline
To some people, self-discipline is a term that carries unpleasant connotations. It may mean “forcing” yourself to do something you hate to do. It may also mean suppressing feelings or ideas, because they are not acceptable to someone else. To…
Ron Krasinski
Ron Krasinski is a member of that seemingly endless fraternity of talented but unheralded drummers, without whose skills most of today’s popular recordings and live entertainment could not be produced. Not surprisingly, Ron has a strong and varied musical background,…
Nick Mason
Pink Floyd’s drummer surprises onstage and on record by revisiting the past but keeping an ear to the future.
Bernard "Pretty" Purdie
Your lover did you wrong? It ain’t worth cryin’ over. Put on a Bernard Purdie record. Peelin’ fallin’ from the ceilin’? Don’t worry about it. Get into that Purdie groove. Another gray day? Go out and watch “Pretty”Purdieplaydrums. You’II feel…
Jake Morris
Thirty years after he cofounded the influential and inscrutable indie-rock band Pavement, Stephen Malkmus is among the most confident and compelling bandleader/songwriters of his generation. And in this drummer, he has a musician who only accentuates his greatest assets.
Jay-Z’s Eric “Boots” Greene
He’s developed some of the nastiest funk and fusion chops. And he thinks and plays like a producer. So it’s no wonder that he flourishes on the world’s biggest stages—and in the modern studio environment.
Jan Delay’s Jost Nickel
Just when you think there’s nothing new under the drumming sun, someone like this veteran German player comes along and sheds new light on the craft. The fact that he plays with such blistering technique and sophisticated musicality only makes him that much more compelling.
