S1E4: Noah Levy

L.A. Buckner - L.A. Buckner & Big Homie

L.A. Buckner represents the next generation of creative, young drummers with global influences that are driving powerful new rhythms and taking music to a whole new level of creative expression. L.A. is a performing musician, composer, teaching artist, and producer from North Minneapolis where the "Minneapolis Sound" was born. He holds a master's degree in Percussion Performance from McNally Smith College of Music. He also serves as the co-host on the PBS music education series on YouTube called Sound Field - a two-time Webby Award-winning production. L.A. is also a featured Artist-In-Residence for the Global Music Initiative at the world-renowned MacPhail Center for Music where he leads ensembles based on rhythms from around the world. In August of 2020, L.A. took i-Tunes by storm with the release of his project Big Homie reaching the #1 Jazz position within 24 hours of its release. L.A.'s artistry is full of energy, excitement, culture, confidence and excellence. A fusion of his musical influence of Gospel, R&B, HipHop, African Rhythm, and Jazz explodes in a fiery journey of syncpation and truth, earning the respect of the most trained musical ear to the everyday music lover that appreciates a deep groove. Collaborating with some of the finest musicians in Minnesota, including a feature by Mint Condition's Stokely Williams, L.A. is definitely a writer, producer, and performer to be reckoned with. Music credits * Intro Music: Dddun, L.A. Buckner & Big Homie with Stokley Williams * Outro Music: Ooowee, L.A. Buckner & Big Homie

S1E7 - Kevin Washington - Mississippi (band), World Drummer

Kevin Washington is one of the most versatile drummers today who doesn't like to be categoried by genres. He takes music to a whole new level incorporating worldly grooves from Afro-Latin to West African to Hip Hop, Funk and R&B. He's the son of saxaphonist Donald Washington and singer/music educator Faye Washington. Kevin grew up in Detroit immersed in learning music and listening to the jazz greats who came before him. His musical carer began at 5 years old with his first performance at the Detroit Jazz Festival. He learned a lot about drums at a young age by hanging and studying with family friends like Max Roach who taught him brushes technique and other nuances of jazz drumming. His drum path took him to Minneapolis and to New York City where he studied drums at the New School. He then taught rhythm section fundamentals at the Harlem School of the Arts. Kevin is currently a drumming instructor at the Walker West Music Academy in St. Paul, MN and leads the student jazz ensembles. He has played with any great artists including Antonio Hart and James Carter. Kevin is currently redfining the directions of the Minneapolis/St. Paul music scene through collaborations with top musicians in the region in a wide variety of projects, inclduding his own modern jazz quartet called Mississippi featuring Kevin's original compositions. In this extended episode, Kevin covers a broad array of drumming topics that include how he has been influenced by rhythms and cultures from around the world, and the importance of being true to those traditional rhythms and cultures when playing drums. Kevin also talks about... * Secrets of how playing rudiments on a pillow is a great way to build techique and touch. * How subdivisions are a foundation thoughout his playing. * How the drummer is a team player and serves as the bus driver to keep everyone in the band on the bus as it drives down th road. * How playing drums is all about "the Pocket' and to make sure that everyone hears the Pocket. * How listening is the most important thing in improvisation. He listens to everything and allows the chord changes to tell him what to do. * Why he describes himself as the Miles Davis of drums. * To be a great drummer, it's important to steep yourself in tradition and learn the language of traditional music. * The method he used to learn how to seperate his limbs to build independence and how that same method is helping his students today. * His immersion in West African rhythms and learning melodies on the drums based on the clave rhythm. * Saying goodbye to the "One" when playing with West Africans and how black music is heavily based on subdivisions. * How you need to have trust with other band members to support improvisation. Help other band members to feel the pulse in your subdivisions. * His uniqueness is playiing the language of each genre and how "the culture is the catch". * How playing with intention is everything. You have to train your body in order to let the spirit move you and not have to think about notes. * Trap Beats and Afro Beat rhythms are capturing his attention today where it's all about the hi-hat. And Funk never gets old. * Typical barriers for drummers often surround not exposing yourself to a diverse array of music. You've got to be innovative and always moving forward. * When learning new rhythms and grooves, some drummers don't want to put in the work at slower tempos to get it right before they play it fast. * How he encourages drummers to go to the woodshed and work on Pocket. The most important thing to bring to the band is the feel of the Pocket in the music. * The #1 goal for drummers is to make people feel the movement and want to dance. * Play along with a metronome and recordings to build your Pocket. Moises [https://moises.ai] is a great app to support building Pocket as it provides the ability to mute the drums in any recording as you play along. * Follow your heart and leave what you're doing if it's not aligning with your desires. Do the research and stick to your beliefs about finding the right band. Meet other musicians and get out to hear what's going on. * Don't play mechanicaly with the same old licks. Keep creating and failing until it's right. * Breathing is important to good drumming. Keep your body loose. Practice good technique, use good body posture and comfortable kit set up to make playing easier. Use a pillow and drum pad to improve technique. * Be humble and admit to self what you don't know. Practice what you don't know and never be satisfied. If you stop learning - quit * Be generous and pass the torch to others to help them advance where you can. Kevin's band - Mississippi, a modern jazz quartet in Minneapolis featuring his original compositions. Follow Kevin on Facebook and Instagram at Kevin E. Washington. Intro/Outro music on this podcast is from Kevin's single - Journey To The Light. If you're interested in studying under Kevin, contact Walker West Music Academy in St. Paul, MN Follow the Drummer's Confluence on Facebook for more great podcasts on advancing your drumcraft for live performance.

S1E6 - Michael Bissonnette - World Drummer & Percussionist

Michael Bissonnette has been studying drum set and percussion since he was 10 years old. He has built a name for himself pursuing his love for world rhythms and currently plays with multiple bands in continual roatation featuring music from West Africa, Ireland, Brazil, India, Italy and other countries around the globe. Current ensembles include Katie McMahon ( of Riverdance), Boiled in Lead, Sarah Groves, Terminal 3, East Side, Louis and Clarke, Laura MacKenzie, Brass Lassie, Dean Magraw, Heart of the City, and The Robert Everest Expedition. Michael is endorsed by Remo and Vic Firth. In this episode, Michael talks about how he got into world rhythms and how he built his expansive collection of world percussion instruments. (The display in his studio is quite impressive!) He discusses his approach of learning traditional rhythms on instruments from each country, then interpreting them on the drum set. Michael is constantly listening to rhythms of other nations and has even created a West African drum curriculum that is now being used in several music education institutions. He talks about how he no longer practices for chops, but focuses on depening the style and culture in his playing. He describes his role as a drummer is to listen to the rest of the band and play with passion and sensitivity to make everyone sound better. He creates a new groove by listening to the other players and placing accents to accentuate the lines from their instruments. Michael talks about the huge influence world percussionist Marc Anderson (https://www.marcanderson.org/bio) [https://www.marcanderson.org/bio)] has had on his playing and his gigging. He advises other drummers to not let old band friendships keep you from moving forward. Get out and seek new relationships to keep you from stagnating. Always be gig-ready for when you get the call for new opportunities. * Intro/Outro music from Louis and Clarke featuring Michael Bissonnette * Follow Michael at https://www.facebook.com/michael.bissonnette [https://www.facebook.com/michael.bissonnette]

S1E5: Bruce Smith - A bass player's perspective of drummers

This episode takes a little different approach with the bass player's point-of-view of drummers playing in a live band. This insightful discussion comes from Bruce Smith - a fantatic bass player with the enviable retirement gig of being in four working bands. He's having the time of his life and playing with lots of drummers across multiple genres. Bruce's current bands include: * High & Mighty - Funk/R&B * Critical Mass - Rock * LXG (League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) - Modern Blues * Janelle Burrell Band - Jazz/Pop/Current Hits Bruce's musicianship started on drums and then moved to bass which he's been playing for 58 years with killer chops. He brings a clear perspective on the special relationship between drummers and bass players., and what it means to the overall sound of the band. Bruce talks about the growth process as a musician and what it's like to understand why you're playing what you're playing. Within this framework, he also discusses... * Why trust is so important between bass and drums. * The perils of overplaying. * Understanding what your job is as a drummer. * Why fills can sometimes kill the groove, and why there's nothing wrong with silence. Music needs space. * Locking in with the bass player is the toughest thing for most drummers to get right. * After training in 16 drummers in his biggest band, Bruce helps drummers understand how to make the process of gelling with the band easier. * Bruce's best advice for drummers - "Don't play so many fills." * Why someone has to take the lead - either bass or drums - on each tune to get locked in.

S1E4: Noah Levy

Noah Levy is the epitome of 'in-demand'. He lives in St. Paul, MN and has toured and recorded with a long list of international artists including Brian Setzer, Five For Fighting, The Honeydogs, Peter Frampton, The Bodeans, Golden Smog, Lowen and Navaro, Mason Jennings, and many more. As a session player, Noah has hundreds of album credits and has performed on stages and in studios around the world. In this episode, Noah talks about... * How he's spending more time on the sounds that he can get from his drums and reveals his secret for the best kick drum sound. * Finding like-minded players who are better than you is key to advancing your skills and your band. * Practice with a metronome to establish your sense of time. * The role of the drummer is to be the quarterback and serve the song - "It's not about you." * Developing a deep pocket and the importance of intentional playing. * Using simple hand-written charts to learn and remember new songs. * How to create a unique groove for new songs. * How to find out what kind of drummer you want to be. * If you're feeling stuck, find other players that listen. * Physical posture and warm-up routines. * How to gel with a new band. * Bonus: The Moises app for playing along with songs. Intro Music: Noah plays with the Honeydogs Outro Music: Noah plays with the Brian Setzer Orchestra Follow Noah Levy on Facebook and Instagram