July 2022 – Volume 46 • Number 7

Donn Bennett’s Drum Vault: Steve Smith’s 1987 Sonor Lite Vital Information Drum Set

This year marks the 45th anniversary of Steve Smith’s relationship with Sonor drums. Steve bought his first set of Sonor drums in 1977 while touring with jazz-fusion violinist, Jean-Luc Ponty. He played the same Sonor set touring with rock guitarist…

Bob Moses’ Drum Wisdom, Musical Resolution Points

In the last few last months of Modern Drummer we have included the chapters from Bob Moses’ Drum Wisdom book on the 8/8 Concept and the Sixteen Musical Resolution Points. These two concepts work together and can apply to every…

Mapex Drums Announces Promotion to Accompany Drums on Demand Program Now Offering FREE Drum Covers with Purchase

Mapex Marching’s Drums on Demand program, which launched April 1, 2022, is creating an exciting new way to circumvent excessive lead times by offering drums in eight new premium wrap finishes including Blue Ripple, Red Ripple, Purple Ripple, Burgundy Ripple,…

Jonathan Pinson: Asking Questions

With all of the amazing young jazz drummers around these days, it’s got to be tough to set yourself apart. But when you can put names like Seal, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Terrace Martin, and Kamasi Washington on your resume,…

Pearl Debuts the Matt McGuire “Smart Snare,” and Redesigned CX Airframe 2 Carriers and PLUS Size Add-On Assemblies

From millions of YouTube views to sold out concert tours with The Chainsmokers, drummer Matt McGuire knows how to bring the fire. His new Matt McGuire Pearl Signature Snare drum is crafted to not only bring arena-filling sound, but also…

Carmine Appice Ultimate Realistic Rock Sixteenth Note Rhythms

In honor of the 50th Anniversary of Carmine Appice Ultimate Realistic Rock, Modern Drummer is reprinting this classic section of Carmine’s book. In this section Carmine introduces two essential rhythms to rock drumming, and teaches us how to play and…

“Where Am I Going?”

More often than not, I preach precision while espousing specificity when it comes to expressing our ideas on the drumset. In simple terms, that adds up to, “saying what we mean and meaning what we say.” That approach, however, runs…

Joey Kramer’s Aerosmith Nine Lives tour kit

The Drum Workshop Collector’s Series kit shown here was created for Joey Kramer’s use on Aerosmith Nine Lives tour. The tour ran from May 1997 to July 1999, and included dates in North America, Canada, Japan, and 14 European countries.…

Double Bass Drumming Part 2

Continuing from last month’s re-introduction of Joe Franco’s classic book Double Bass Drumming, and his concept called the Single Stroke System. Here is Joe’s chapter on Sixteenth Note Double Bass Patterns. There are many more patterns and beats included in…

July 2022 - Volume 46 • Number 7

Modern Drummer Next Level

Fresh on the heels of our well received Salute to Women in Drumming issue, Modern Drummer is stronger than ever! Whether you are an eager to learn developing drum student, an intermediate drummer playing in a band, a working pro,…

Maysun, Everything is Everything.

I view “creative percussion controllers” as three separate categories. Category 1 is a completely self-contained set of electronic drums that are designed by instrument manufacturers that create all the drum and cymbal samples. We simply plug in great headphones and…

Up-Tempo Jazz Ride Playing

I use a kind of circular motion to achieve my desired sound, as was taught to me by Sam Woodyard. The quarter note is being accented slightly, yet consistently, creating a driving and danceable feel. Digging in is what we…

Gavin Harrison: Context and Contrast

Who is busier than Gavin Harrison? He is tearing it up on two new records that are coming out and is touring with those two bands within the next year. Porcupine Tree’s new recording Closure/Continuation is a welcome surprise to…

The Game Changers Part 1

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.…

ddrum NIO

In today’s musical landscape incorporating electronics has become commonplace, from creating hybrid acoustic/electric setups, to looping and accompaniment, percussion pads have opened up a world of sounds and creative possibility for musicians. Compared to its predecessors, ddrum’s NIO model cuts…

In The Moment, the Art of Active Listening

In The Moment! This is where the magic is. One very important quality every musician requires to really be totally involved in musical expression…is the art of listening. This is a developed skill needed to be inside any song. To…

The Practice Mentality and Increasing Motivation for the Gym

In the drumming community, every so often one can stumble into a discussion about the importance of technique. There is this strange idea that some people argue that technique doesn’t matter much. I see this in forums and the argument…

Josh Harmon: From Comedy to Drums, Shaping His Unique and Timeless Sound

Josh Harmon is the definition of a boundary breaker. Regarded as one of the world’s most creative drummers, his approach is an unconventional as it is successful. His mega-popular series, Rhythms of Comedy, has garnered love from BILLIONS across the…

Michael “Squeak” Melusky, DW Collector’s Series Maple/Mahogany

The kit utilizes a Gibraltar rack system designed to be stealth and easy to pack up. Thankfully, it goes into two road cases with minimal tear down. The bass drums have custom matching bass drum hoops with inlay, and also…