I made the worst mistake of my music career a few years ago when I was in college. This wasn’t a “musical” mistake or a performance mistake. This was a huge no-no that violated all the rules of Professionalism 101.

I attended a small in-state school, and I was blessed to have lots of scholarship opportunities that paid my way through college. Though small, this school had a fantastic, accredited music program with world-class faculty. We had all the standard ensembles that music schools have, from jazz band to wind ensemble to orchestra, musical theater, marching band, choir...you name it.

Because the school was fairly small and there were only a handful of percussion majors, most of us percussionists were involved in nearly all of the ensembles to some degree. Wind ensemble was the big one, which all scholarship music students had to be a part of. (For those unfamiliar, “wind ensemble” is basically an orchestra without the strings. AKA...

I played a gig a few weeks ago that tested my patience and ability to adapt as a drummer. This was pretty much a logistical nightmare for several reasons. It all started when I rolled into town…

The venue was at a downtown area where there’s a historic city-center square, surrounded by all sorts of hip restaurants, bars, and theaters. As I arrived on the square this Friday night, I was shocked to see a sea of at least 2,000 people on the lawn and flooding the streets. Crosswalks were crawling with folks. Sidewalks were crowded. Parking spaces were filled. Good thing I got here early.

Evidently a big family event was going on downtown, and EVERYONE was there. But the *fun* part was that the venue I was playing at didn’t have any parking (of course). And the valet lots were full. So myself and my bandmates had to take turns unloading each other’s vehicles on the curb in front of the gig location. Somebody would unload then go look for...

I was on a gig recently where I played something completely wrong. This was no small mistake. This was one of those scenarios where the drummer just launches into something else and the band’s left staring and wondering. BUT…there was still a silver lining, which is why this story is worth telling. ;)

This was the second show I’d played with this particular band, and we were covering numerous pop songs and even a hiphop tune or two. One such hiphop track was “Poison.” If you were ever into old-school 90s hiphop you probably remember this one. It’s one of those drum-machine-style tracks where the intro or the turn is a drum loop. Songs like this likely inspired Bruno Mars’ “Finesse,” where the song kicks off with a solo drum beat.

Rarely on gigs like this are there opportunities for drum solos. It really just depends on the band and whether they like to put their drummer on the spot and hope he can throw...

What is your default? What’s the one thing you rely on that you can gravitate toward and lean on in a tough musical situation? In other words - What are you so comfortable doing that you can excel at it while chaos ensues around you? A recent gig made me think about this…

A drummer friend in town asked me to sub for him on a cover gig. I eagerly accepted, mainly because I like the challenge of learning new songs in a less familiar genre. Sometimes I get so into the groove (no pun intended?) on my regular gigs that it’s easy to stop growing as a musician. When the opportunity came to play with people I’d never met at a venue I’d never played at…playing a lot of unfamiliar songs…I jumped at the chance.

My friend sent me a setlist of the tunes they most commonly played at this particular club, so I got to work charting about 30 songs. I enjoy gig prep, and I love being forced to listen to stuff I don’t hear everyday in order...

One time I was playing at a special event early one Monday morning. This was sort of like a “corporate breakfast” kind of thing, where the band would play a little and someone would speak. All the musicians arrived at our bright-and-early call time around 7am, and we prepared for soundcheck. The schedule allowed for a quick soundcheck, followed by about an hour of rehearsal. Should be easy enough since we were only playing three songs. Or so we thought…

This was one of those times where from a technical standpoint….EVERYTHING started going wrong.

The keyboard player couldn’t get any signal out of his keyboard to front of house. The singer’s in-ears weren’t working at all. There was a horrible buzz in everyone’s in-ears that couldn’t be found or explained. No one was able to hear the click and tracks since signal wasn’t making it from the MD’s laptop either. The planned schedule came to a screeching halt, and before...

Article no. 4 in the Gig Contract:

“Stage must include an 8’x8’ level, stable riser on which to set up drums.”

So many bands include something like this in their contracts, but I laugh when I think about how many gigs I’ve played on non-level surfaces. I remember a gig in particular where I had to set up on mulch. Not good...

When I was in college a few years ago, I played a wedding gig with a local brass band. I remember this being one of the highest paid gigs I’d had so far, which was a big deal for me as a college student. Needless to say, I knew it would be a fun gig. This was a five-piece brass band plus drumset, and we were playing all sorts of New Orleans-style and swing standards. However, this wedding wasn’t just any wedding...not because of who was getting married, but because of where it was taking place.

This couple had met at this big university where they both graduated, so it made sense to literally have...

When I first started playing drums with other people early in high school, one thing terrified me most and caused a great deal of anxiety every time I had to do it.

The count off.

Whether this was a “pshhh pshhh pshhh pshhh” on the hihats or a “ting ting ting ting” on the ride, nailing the count off for a song was an important necessity. (After all, you screw this up and the whole band’s gonna fall apart, right?)

I first started playing drums with the high school worship band at my church when I had just begun my junior year. This was the first time I’d ever really played drums with people, and this was especially the first time I’d played in front of a crowd. I’d been playing piano recitals and concerts as a kid since 3rd grade, but playing drums was an entirely different beast. It was way out of my comfort zone when I first started.

One Sunday morning, probably just a month or two into my drumming-in-public debut, I had to count...

This is one of those short, simple, yet catastrophic stories I bet many of you can relate to. I was on a gig one time where soundcheck went smoothly, rehearsal went great…then the unthinkable happened just before showtime. The "psychological trauma" (spoken mostly in jest!) reminded me of something really important we always need to remember as drummers.

I was playing this particular night with some folks I always enjoyed playing with. We were set up in a fairly large venue on a big stage, and we were all using in-ear monitors. The front of the drum set was covered by the typical clear, heavy drum shield that prevents cymbal bleed into vocal mics. We were fairly spread out across the stage, and guitar amps were in iso-boxes offstage on either wing. Bass was running direct to the house, as were keys and all vocals. Maybe you can guess why I’m telling you all of this…

Rehearsal was a blast, and we played through all the songs for the night. We even...

Imagine you’re in the heat of the moment. You’re faced with a split-second seemingly "life-or-death" decision, and about 1500 people are watching you. Something’s gone wrong, and it’s suddenly up to you to solve the problem. However, there’s a huge risk involved, and you have no idea what might result from the action you’re about to take. You’ll either be a hero…or you’ll mess everything up and there will be no fixing it.

Yes, I know that sounds overly dramatic. But that’s the situation I was in on a gig one time, and that’s exactly how I felt.

I was playing one Sunday morning at a large church. The structure of the service that day was unique, and the band was just playing an opening song. After that, we were done for the service. This was a typical "rock" setup with drums, bass, guitars, keys, and lots of vocalists. There was also a large choir behind us, and there were backing tracks. LOTS of tracks. Our...

A few years ago I played a gig that was really non glamorous. This also might be the strangest gig I’ve ever played, and it’s provided countless funny stories and inside jokes among those of us involved. Here’s what happened…

A friend and fellow musician in college called me one day and said “Hey, a friend of mine is playing a show of covers and a few originals at this charity event Saturday. Would you like to join us and play cajon?” I knew this gig wouldn’t pay (it was for charity), and I knew we’d be playing with someone I’d never met. But the event was happening in a nearby town I could get to within 20 minutes of where I was living at the time. So I said “sure,” not knowing at all what I was signing up for.

You know when you look up an address for somebody’s house and you have to keep zooming in and zooming in on Google Maps to see what the place actually is...and then sometimes you’re still lost...