L.A. Buckner - L.A. Buckner & Big Homie
Drummers Confluence
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...
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S1E7 - Kevin Washington - Mississippi (band), World Drummer
Drummers Confluence
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...
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S1E6 - Michael Bissonnette - World Drummer & Percussionist
Drummers Confluence
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...
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S1E5: Bruce Smith - A bass player's perspective of drummers
Drummers Confluence
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...
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S1E4: Noah Levy
Drummers Confluence
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...
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S1E3: David Anania - Those Medley Kids
Drummers Confluence
David Anania is a powerful drummer in a band called Those Medley Kids who are currently performing an exciting catalog of classic progressive rock tunes from some of the biggest prog rock bands like Yes, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Genesis, and Rush. He’s also a long-time drummer and Creative Consultant for The Blue Man Group, and has performed on stages around the world with stars like Moby, David Bowie, and Busta Rhymes. He has also performed on major television networks including The Tonight Show, Good Morning America, Rosie O’Donnel, CBS This Morning, and several shows in Europe. In...
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S1E2: Petar Poucki - Zed Leppelin, Part 2
Drummers Confluence
Petar Poucki is the drummer for the nations #1 Led Zeppelin tribute show called Zed Leppelin. He’s been laying down the John Bonham grooves like nobody else for years. In this follow-on episode, Petar reveals how to find the groove in new songs, the role of the drummer in delivering songs to the audience, the process of learning new songs, establishing a deep pocket in a groove, Playing with confidence and authority, and a tip from a jazz giant that changed his life on developing melodic phrasing. He also discusses how to make every note count with intentional playing, and the importance of...
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S1E1: Petar Poucki - Zed Leppelin, Part 1
Drummers Confluence
Petar Poucki is a powerful drummer for the nations #1 Led Zeppelin tribute show called Zed Leppelin. He’s been laying down the John Bonham grooves like nobody else for years. Petar talks about building 4-way independence, the importance of listening to other band members, how bandmates with a good attitude are more important than chops, the basic of productive rehearsals and mutual respect, breaking through obstacles to advancement, soloing, having fun on stage, managing stage volume, and how ghost notes help him keep in time. He also reveals the most important songs that were breakthroughs...
info_outlineDavid Anania is a powerful drummer in a band called Those Medley Kids who are currently performing an exciting catalog of classic progressive rock tunes from some of the biggest prog rock bands like Yes, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Genesis, and Rush. He’s also a long-time drummer and Creative Consultant for The Blue Man Group, and has performed on stages around the world with stars like Moby, David Bowie, and Busta Rhymes. He has also performed on major television networks including The Tonight Show, Good Morning America, Rosie O’Donnel, CBS This Morning, and several shows in Europe.
In this episode, David talks about his journey in becoming an accomplished drummer, and what he likes most about drumming. He also provides a robust list of influences that have shaped his artistry and style along the way. David reveals some of the best ways to find other players who are like-minded with your own musical tastes along with how the role of the drummer is to serve the song. He goes deeper into playing what is necessary and how to lay down the main pulse of the song.
David shares some of his biggest breakthroughs in his own playing along with some specific tunes to challenge yourself to reach higher in your drum-craft. He also provides the process he uses to learn new material, and how to understand phrase lengths. He talks about the importance of intentional drumming and how to make every note count while subtracting unnecessary notes to create space. David then delves into melodic playing and how to maintain a solid meter throughout each song, with or without a click track.
He touches on how to develop your own style and unique voice to a song, along with the importance of body position and kit set-up to support the physicality of drumming. He shares warm-up and practice routines and advises to be patient with yourself and practice healthfully. He encourages practicing with purpose and to experiment with your drum-kit setup to achieve a good flow around the kit.