DRUMMING
-
1984 - 1990 : The “Band Years”, during which I played 1st Hard Rock & Heavy Metal, then Progressive Rock & Fusion/Experimental Jazz
-
2003 - 2008 : The “Reformative Years” when I picked the drums again, this time double bass, I worked to rebuilt strength and responses: Foundation101
-
2013 - 2019 : The “Voyager Years”, drumming on my own I essentially let myself travel …
I first laid eyes on a drum set when I was 12. It belonged to a classmate of mine, Pascal Giannettini, a friend who also introduced me to Iron Maiden and incidentally to Metal (music genre I could relate to because of its points of similarity with Classical Music and on behalf of which I advocated for during many years...)
Obviously there are countless drummers much more skilled and talented than I am, and besides I don’t think I have anything to contribute in this domain. I simply drum for myself for to me it is a manner to experience time in a totally different way…
At first glance the instrument looked like command central of an Admiral vessel set to travel to unknown worlds and I instantly desired becoming the pilot. Sitting behind the kit felt more like being inside - like enveloped by the set. A space where I felt both safe, invincible, and ready to travel…
I was inspired by watching French “Drummer Hero” Richard Kolinka and Steward Copeland of The Police before beginning to learn the basics with Laurent Yva - a percussionist - when I was 14. Pretty much at the same time I started my own band. We mainly played Classics Hard & Heavy covers and it was a lot of Fun… After that I played a few years in various bands with different styles, mostly progressive forms of Rock or Heavy and also Jazz-Fusion. Every now and then I would contribute in the writing process and that’s when I started to pick up other instruments skills…
Although I basically taught myself during the “Band years” I listened and watched many drummers, from Carmine Appice to Nicko Mcbrain, John Bonham, Mickey Dee… Steven B Smith, Reggie Washington, Dennis Chambers, Virgil Donati… Derek Roddy, George Kollias for double bass drumming…It’s a long list… Also, when I went back to drumming after 14 years of interruption I looked at Thomas Lang ways for strength building. An absolute requirement if you want to play fast.
Talking about the discipline of steel drumming requires to obtain results gives me the opportunity to tell that as an emerging composer, I have had to deal for a few years now with a certain category of people who act as gatekeepers and without even knowing anything about my work simply dismiss me by saying: “He is not trained” which is institutional talk for: “He doesn’t know what he’s doing” or “What he claims is not possible”… Well this chapter on drumming is among other things part of my answer to them.
… something maybe close to the notion Stephen Hawkins develops in his “imaginary time” concept. When he says it is like another direction in space it totally speaks to me as Dimensions. Some see the drummer as some sort of metronome with arms and legs but drumming at a certain level? You are not a passenger on a seat, you have a real grasp on time, you can be a voyager if you want but you can also be the vessel.
I started to record my Double-Bass drumming sessions in 2015-16 just for the purpose observing what happens when I play. I never thought I would put some of these footages on display so I hope you will excuse the poor video quality… These are artisanal shots recorded with a webcam via Photo Booth on a Mac mini. The takes were done with the output mic of the Mac and my TD-30 is plugged in small speakers…
A word about the choice of an Electronic Instrument, I had always played acoustic drums in the past and E-Drums were a choice playing in apartments dictated… I successively owned a basic Yamaha DTXplorer, then a Roland TD-9, and eventually the TD-30KV, an amazing instrument I was heartbroken to have to leave behind when I left China… If I ever play again I’d be really interested in being sponsored by Roland actually, I could do their awesome new generation VAD demos for example haha…
A selection of shots taken from an electrifying 4 hours long session. Captured one afternoon in the Fall 2018.
