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Drummers on DrummingAuthor: Ben Hilzinger Language: en Genres: Music, Music Commentary, Music Interviews Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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The Drum Panel: Chick Corea's cheap but good advice for playing music in a group PART TWO
Episode 219
Wednesday, 3 June, 2026
Welcome back to Drummers on Drumming, powered by Big Fat Snare Drum. This episode is a new installment of The Drum Panel, and it’s Part TWO of TWO of diving into Chick Corea’s Cheap But Good Advice For Playing Music in a Group. I’m joined by good friend of mine Rafa Vidal, who also plays with the band Almost Monday, who are currently killing it, and of course Eric Somers-Urrea is back on the panel. In Part One, we covered numbers 1 through 6. Today, we’re finishing the list with numbers 7 through 16, which get into some really good stuff: balance, intention, taste, space, relaxation, ego, and what it actually means to serve the music. As always with The Drum Panel, we’re not pretending to have all the answers. We’re just using these ideas as a jumping-off point to talk about playing music, being in bands, staying creative, and trying to become better musicians without losing our minds. ——— Chick Corea's Cheap But Good Advice For Playing Music in a Group. Play only what you hear. If you don’t hear anything, don’t play anything. Don’t let your fingers and limbs wander. Place them intentionally. Don’t improvise on endlessly. Play something with intention, develop it or not, then end off and take a break. Leave space. Create space. Intentionally create places where you don’t play. Make your sound blend. Listen to your sound and adjust it to the rest of the band and the room. If you play more than one instrument at a time, like a drum kit or multiple keyboards, make sure they are balanced with one another. Don’t make any of your music mechanically or just through patterns of habit. Create each sound, phrase, and piece with choice, deliberately. Guide your choice of what to play by what you like, not by what someone else will think. Use contrast and balance the elements: high/low, fast/slow, loud/soft, tense/relaxed, dense/sparse. Play to make the other musicians sound good. Play things that will make the overall music sound good. Play with a relaxed body. Always release whatever tension you create. Create space. Begin, develop, and end phrases with intention. Never beat or pound your instrument. Play it easily and gracefully. Create space, then place something in it. Use mimicry sparsely. Mostly create phrases that contrast with and develop the phrases of the other players. We also get into a Rafa's new endeavor called Touch Grooves. Check out more information on that HERE --- Get Your Copy of the Drummers on Drumming Book Today 🎯 Click here to order now! Drummers on Drumming (the book) takes you inside the stories, records, and moments that shaped some of the world’s greatest drummers. Built on the Big Fat Five format of digging into top influences, it’s packed with candid interviews and personal insights. Whether you’re just starting out or have been playing for years, this book is here to inspire you to sharpen your skills and find your own voice behind the kit. For more information on Big Fat Snare Drum, check out www.bigfatsnaredrum.com and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
