Billy Ashbaugh
For this month’s article, I’d like to discuss the concept of practicing creatively or “outside of the box”. I’ll agree there’s certainly nothing wrong with playing through a drum method book as written. However, I’ve discovered that there are many benefits to thinking beyond what’s notated on the page. When …
For this month’s article, I’m going to share some of my personal insights for dealing with the business side of drumming. If you’re lucky enough to be making a living playing drums, then you are already aware of the importance of this topic. Bad decisions in business can either make …
Welcome back for part two! Last month we discussed several important topics that I felt were monumental in my growth as a player. Those were: understanding subdivision, learning to read music, developing your ears, and learning to write charts/roadmaps. Once I was able to understand and utilize these ideas, my …
For this month’s article I’d like to share several different topics that I feel were monumental for my growth as a drummer. I call these “The Game Changers”. There are several topics so this article will be split into two parts. Part 2 will be featured in next month’s Modern Drummer. …
For this month’s article, I’m going to share some of my experiences from over the years while on tour with various artists. I’ve been fortunate enough to have done many different “levels” of tours, everything from stadiums to smaller 200-300 seat venues. They’re all unique and offer their own challenges. …
Last month we talked about the challenges of picking up the drumsticks for the first time, studying, and the process of learning to become a good drummer. This month we take a big jump forward in your drumming journey. My series of Modern Drummer articles is not necessarily chronological. Therefore, …
My name is Mark Griffith, I am a professional musician who happens to play drums. I tour, play locally, record, do clinics, masterclasses, teach, and I write. I started writing for Modern Drummer under Ron Spagnardi’s leadership 25 years ago, I came back to Modern Drummer a year ago to …
This month’s article will focus on some monumental ideas that will help you quicken your growth as a drummer when first starting out. Some of these concepts were taught to me by my drum instructors when I was younger, and some are ideas I simply stumbled across on my own. …
Accepting Creative Input For this article I’d like to talk about a luxury that we don’t always get to experience as a professional drummer, I call it “The Empty Canvas.” This simply refers to the amount of creative input that we have on the music we’re playing. This concept can …
This is a follow up to the March 2021 article I did for MD entitled “Practice Like a Pro.” (You can find it at moderndrummer.com.) In that piece, I shared techniques that can be used to effectively learn songs. Muscle memory, repetitive looping, recording yourself and listening back—as well as …
We have all heard that it’s very beneficial for drummers to learn how to read music. I completely agree. For me, it was one of the many game changers for my drumming. Learning to understand basic notation gave me the ability to explore totally new ideas through various books, videos, …
How to Maximize Your Time Behind the Kit The purpose of the article is to share some helpful practice tips that I’ve picked up over the years. These ideas work amazingly well when you’re learning new material for a gig. One critical lesson I learned years ago: You will perform …
Scott Phillips, Virgil Donati, Simon Phillips, Leon Parker, Danny Carey, Ryan Vikedal, Billy Ashbaugh, Dave Dunseath, Brian Tichy, Adam Pedretti, Matt Abts, Karsh Kale, Jon Wysocki, Gary Novak, John Blackwell, Bobby Rondinelli
Akira Jimbo, Simon Phillips, Airto, Mark Schulman, Billy Ashbaugh, William Bryant, Ivan Hampden, Marvin Hammett, Frank Beard, Joel Rosenblatt, Barry “Frosty” Smith, Bill Stevenson, Dmitri Tsvetkov, Steve Alexander, Russ McKinnon, Mark Zonder
Posted: November 12, 2021
Moody Blues Drummer & Co-Founder Graeme Edge Passes November 11, 2021
Hello to our loyal readers and supporters, I’m Billy Ashbaugh. Yesterday, the world was saddened by the lose of yet another iconic musician, the Moody Blues Graeme Edge. Graeme was the co-founder and last remaining original member of the legendary group. I had the esteemed honor of sharing the stage …
Posted: May 19, 2005
Billy Ashbaugh
‘N Sync, a pop band backed by live musicians, have gained a reputation of spectacle and not-to-be-missed precision. MD Online recently caught up with rising drum star Billy Ashbaugh, the man who keeps it all together….
