A lot of people really don't realize that a drum set is a musical instrument and is a very important part of any band, if not the most important. The groove of any song is a result of the rhythm that occurs, and if the rhythm is steady the song is good. Rhythm must be played by all musicians in the band but of course the key component of the rhythm part is the drummer. Along with the rest of the band and having a strong involvement with the bass guitar the drums must hold the rhythm and keep the band together. A drummer is actually the conductor of a band and also sets the path to a good sounding band and a bad one. This might sound like an incorrect statement from the listener and/or musicians point of view but once realized, this is actually a very true statement! This is where the fun starts because rhythm has something called a groove that gets followed and if you don't follow the groove then you are out of the rhythm. The groove has something else called pockets. Think of it as rhythm meaning 4 counts and the groove being the pattern played within the 4 counts and the pocket being how ahead, ontime or behind the count you play your groove.
What I'll be doing here is laying down some tracks that I perform to illustrate various beats and grooves. I do the recording on a 24bit recording system with quality mics so the sound should be acceptable to most.
I now have, live and studio, 33 years of Drumming experience...& counting :) My name is Dan Zalac and I began to play on pots and pans, pretty much as soon as I could hold anything in my hands but I'm not counting my experience from then, I begin counting from the age of 7. I had a taste of a real drum set at two years old when we had rented the basement to a band that my father knew ...red sparkle Ludwigs, what I didn't know was about to be what I did, D..R..U..M..S..!! I loved them right away! As time went on we moved from downtown to the suburbs and those drums where gone. Soon my desire to have some drums increased and at seven I was making them out of card board boxes and TV-dinner trays! Then, a set of STAR drums came my way. I had these until I got my first set of Ludwigs at the age of 10. When I got them I was like ..Whoa, rockin' ...had 4 single headed concert toms with a 24 incher ...pumpin'! I took the set to all of our talent shows at school and quickly made friends all over the place. These where my drums until I sold them for a double bass set of TAMAS at around the age of twenty. I remained content with this set for all these years until the arrival of my new 2001 Ludwigs equiping me with a 26" bass drum this time, yeeeeehaaa, time to let 'er howl! I have been in many bands in the past but my travels now have me focusing on teaching the feel and groove I have aquired through the years to aspiring drummers who are in search of this style of playing.
Here are the details of my primary kit:
2001 Ludwig Classic Maple Custom Drums:
Bass Drum: 26"x14" Snare Drum: Floor Tom: 18"x16" Supraphonic 14"x6.5" Floor Tom: 16"x16" Chrome over aluminum (LM402) Tom Tom: 14"x12"PAISTE Cymbals: 20" 2002 Power Ride 18" 2002 China 18" 2002 Crash 18" Sound Formula Full Crash 14" Sound Formula Heavy Hi HatsREMO Drum Heads: Batter Heads: Coated Emperors Bottom Heads: Clear Ambassadors Snare: Coated Ambassador & Clear Diplomat Bass Drum: Coated Remo Ambassador, Outer: Ludwig single ply heavy
This is a list of influences on my drumming.
