A podcast all about the rich history of the drums - and how they became what they are today! Join Bart van der Zee as he speaks with experts about the curious journey of the ever-evolving drum set.
Orion P. Howe - The Medal of Honor Drummer Boy ...
Orion was a 14 year old drummer boy in the Civil War when he earned the Medal of Honor for an extremely courageous act in battle. Marlene Shares his amazing story that begins when he enters the war at 12 years old through the rest of his life, and the lives of his musical family. We learn all about drummer boys and the role they played in the war, including Johnny Clem - the youngest noncommisioned officer in army history who began as a drummer.
45 min
152
The Story of Peavey Drums with Rob Cook
Peavey Drums were short lived but the Radial Pro series has become a cult classic to many drummers. Rob shares his experience with the first generation of Peavey Drums that was full of problems from the beginning that never got off the ground and the second generation which is the ultra unique Radial Pro's that were short lived but are a part of drum history. This episode is a lesson in the harsh realities of the music business.
62 min
153
The History of Noble & Cooley with Jay and Nick...
N&C is the oldest drum company in the US, founded 166 years ago in 1854. The company began at a kitchen table with Silas Noble making Toy Drums for Christmas presents, and he then partnered with James Cooley to make drums for the Civil War.
60 min
154
A Look at The Curotto Collection with Mike Curotto
Mike has 650 rare and valuable snare drums in his San Francisco home! He tells us all about the rarest snares that he owns and how he got into this level of collecting. He also shares tips and trick for how to begin your own collection and how to utilize eBay to find great deals on legendary snare drums.
58 min
155
The History of SJC Drums with Mike Ciprari
Mike is the co-founder of SJC and shares the great journey he and the company have been on in its 20 year existence. They erupted on the scene right when boutique drum companies were popping up everywhere, and I think it is safe to say that they came out on top - but it was full of serious ups and downs in the relatively short existence of the company.
67 min
156
Legendary Teachers: Max Abrams with Neal Wilkinson
Max Abrams was THE drum teacher in England in the mid 1900's and taught Stewart Copeland, Simon Phillips and my guest, Neal Wilkinson. He operated like a drill sergeant and didn't give his students much praise, but it created countless professional drummers.
76 min
157
The History of Mapex with Jeff Mulvihill
Mapex was founded in 1989, but its parent company, KHS, goes back 80 years in China and has a very interesting story beginning in after school music programs. Jeff is the brand manager for Mapex and is full of great stories about this relatively young drum brand and goes through the origins of all the iconic lines of drums that Mapex is famous for today.
58 min
158
Dealing and Collecting Celebrity Drums with Don...
Donn Bennett is one of the worlds foremost dealers in celebrity drums that were owned by the top drummers in the world such as Buddy Rich, Gene Krupa, Hal Blaine, Art Blakey, Elvin Jones and MANY more...
68 min
159
Recording Vintage Drums with Dan Bailey
Dan Bailey shares his tips and tricks for recording with vintage drums in his studio including favorite drum brands, head choices, mics and recording gear. Dan and I go off the deep end in this episode and completely nerd out about recording and engineering..and it's great! Learn his entire mic and pre-amp choices he uses in his studio.
73 min
160
The History of Meinl with Norbert Saemann
Norbert takes us through every decade in the history of Meinl and gives a detailed look at the 70 year history of this iconic company. We begin in 1951 when Roland Meinl started out making wind instruments and creating his own cymbals by hand in his home with his wife. He then went head first into distributing Hoshino (Tama) drums in Germany and carried on in that fashion until the company grew into what we know today in a slow and steady rise to the top.
61 min
161
The Role of Percussion Around the World with Co...
We discuss how percussion is used in Ireland, Turkey, Iran, Africa, and other various countries in comparison to the downbeat focused western music that dominates pop culture. It is a big eye opener to learn that drummers are often used to support the melody of the music more commonly than providing a head-bobbing back beat that we are used to in American music.
64 min
162
The History of Vic Firth with Mark Wessels
Vic Firth was a prolific timpanist, drum set performer, and educator all before he started his iconic drum stick company that we all know today. This episode starts as a biography of Vic, but then goes through the origins and rise of his company with great stories like how Vic used to have his employees matching sticks by tapping them on a tombstone he got from a friend in his basement,
68 min
163
The History of Cymbal Making with Nick Margarit...
Nick takes us through an in-depth look at the full history of cymbals, bronze, the iconic brands such as UFIP and Paiste, and all of the processes that are used around the world to create cymbals through time. The episode starts 7000 years ago and works up to the modern revolution of independent cymbal makers like NickyMoon.
70 min
164
A Look at Broadway Drummers with Warren Odze
Learn the history of broadway drummers dating back to the days of Vaudeville, up to the modern times where shows are technical marvels that run Ableton, have screens on all the music stands, and the drummer is often playing remotely in a complete different part of the building!
66 min
165
The History of Pearl Drums with Raymond Massey
We go back to post World War 2 Japan and learn about the origins of Pearl as a music stand manufacturer in 1946. They then entered the world of drums in the 50's and began to rise to the drum company that we know today by creating "stencil drums" for over 30 other brand names, including CB-700 and Apollo, before creating the iconic Pearl "Presidents Series" in 1966.
58 min
166
Legendary Teachers: Moeller and Chapin with Cla...
Claus teaches us all about the Moeller Technique and its origins with Sanford Moeller, and how he passed the technique along to the legendary Jim Chapin who taught Claus and many famous drummers. This episode is full of great history and stories about how this method of playing was passed down through the generations, and also hear all about Claus's passion for rope tension drums, collapsed rudiments, and a number of other topics!
58 min
167
Living A Ludwig Life with Jim Catalano
Jim was the director of marketing at Ludwig for 36 years and was the right hand man to Bill Ludwig II, aka "The Chief". He shares amazing stories about his time he had with the chief, and his four decade career in the drum industry with Ludwig, and also Premier and Slingerland.
75 min
168
The History of North Drums with Roger North
North drums are some of the most unique looking drums ever made. They are horn shaped fiberglass drums that were made between the late 60's through the early 90's and were created by my guest, Roger North.
52 min
169
The Biography of Joe Morello with Steve Fidyk
Joe Morello was one of the most innovative and masterful drummers of the last century, but did you know he was playing Violin with the Boston Symphony at age 9? Learn about how the iconic "Take 5" Drummer made the switch to drums and became the legend we know today.
84 min
170
A Look at The Cymbal Book with Hugo Pinksterboer
Learn the origins of this iconic book that is the most thorough and extensive resource for all things cymbals! Hugo tells us how he gathered all the information for the book and we learn tons of valuable tips and tricks along the way.
59 min
171
For the Love of Slingerland with John Sparrow
John Sparrow is the drummer for the Violent Femmes and a die hard Slingerland enthusiast! This is a fun episode where we talk about Slingerland high points in the history of this great American brand, and also some low points through the decades as the company evolved and tried to keep up with the constantly changing world of music.
66 min
172
The History of GMS Drums with Tony Gallino and ...
Rob and Tony are the founders of the iconic American drum brand, GMS Drum Co. They were one of four custom-shop companies that started in the 1980's, well before the boom of boutique brands in the mid 2000's. It is a great story of an underdog brand exploding in popularity and how they kept up with demand!
47 min
173
The Great British Drum Brands Episode with Geof...
We talk about Ajax, Carlton, Hayman, Beverly, and Premier - just to name a few! We discuss pre and post war drums made in England, and the many similarities and differences between British drums and the classic American brands.
61 min
174
The History of Rudiments with Mark Beecher
Rudimental drumming first appeared in in the Swiss Army in the 1300's to set the tempo and communicate commands during battle, and then spread around Europe where it evolved and was eventually documented in 1588 as the first form of drum notation. It then continued across Europe, and eventually made it to America and evolved into the 26 Rudiments that we have today. This is just scratching the surface of what we learn from Mark Beecher in this episode!
71 min
175
Drum Tuning History with Jeff Davenport
Jeff takes us back to the ice age where drums were made of turtle shells that were flipped over, had skin stretched over them, and then dried in the sun for tension, Learn about this and much more from master drum tuner Jeff Davenport.