On this Independence Day

I was raised to be a proud, grateful American.
Proud of an experiment in freedom that gave the world a new way to think about self-determination. Grateful that my ancestors, escaping anti-Semitic pogroms in Eastern Europe, had a shining, golden place to come to and in which to rebuild their lives. Growing up, I celebrated every Independence Day with delight, with light and noise. 
Independence Day is the ultimate extrovert's celebration.

Then, over time, corners of the rug started getting pulled back, to reveal all the bad things about how our country was created and founded. Over the last decade or so I have learned that slavery was more than a horrible idea, that it in fact was a key pillar of our nation's founding. I have learned that we haven't come as far as we thought we had on issues of racial, gender and social justice, that there are still so many white people who insist on hating those who differ from them and insist on raising their kids and grandkids to feel the same way. I have learned that there are a lot of white Americans who are itching to fight another Civil War, who cannot wait to blow black and brown people and their allies back to the Stone Age and dance on their bodies.
The bloodlust and bigotry in our nation has not gone away.

I have loved rudimental drumming since I first learned of it as a schoolgirl. 
Something about it grabbed me by the collar and fired up my musical ears and inspired me to become a musical mathematician myself, to join the long line of rudimental drummers and keep the tradition alive.
Never mind that the long line of rudimental drummers was almost entirely male and nearly all white; I ignored that (or wasn't taught to notice it, or maybe I did notice it and wanted to be a drummer so badly that I didn't care -- I don't really know) and was all in.

Today, while my arthritic hands are not contest material by any means, I can more than hold my own in a community band drum line and I play well enough to really enjoy myself. I play almost every day now, partly as a way to deal with my shpilkes (Yiddish - restlessness) and partly because I still love the artform.

But the artform has its roots in a tradition of war and conquest, and I cannot deny that either.

This is where I have to sit in my ambivalence and stew on it.
Because while I still love the artform, while I still love the feel of picking up a pair of sticks and playing rolls, paradiddles and ruffs, I feel weird about the other messages that my drumming sends, the stories it reinforces.
And I wonder what my part is in reinforcing those old messages, that old history which so desperately needs to be corrected (since it cannot be undone).
Drums were present on the battlefield in every major Civil War battle. They drummed out a throbbing, painful pulse at "America First" rallies during the first and second World Wars; KKK gatherings and even some lynchings. And they continue to bring up vestiges of American colonialism and American exceptionalism that lately have made me sit less comfortably with the artform.

How can I turn my talent and skill into something for good? How do I take something rooted in the art of war and conquest, and turn it into a call for real justice?

I don't have the answer. This is probably the deepest I've ever gone in asking questions about the roots of my chosen artform and instrument, and these questions are uncomfortable.
I think they're supposed to be.

I'll still play on my pad every day -- it's therapeutic -- but I honestly don't know what I'll do about Independence Day this year.

when drum companies don't deliver

After sharing my initial testing of the Drumslinger pad, friends on various FB groups warned me that the company had been plagued by delivery issues to the point where people had been waiting over a year for pads they'd ordered and paid for. They warned me that if I were considering buying a pad from the company, my money would be better spent elsewhere.

Similar compaints have been voiced for several years about Xymox, another company whose pads I generally like and which are represented in my collection.
So far, I've found that kindness and good manners go a long way with Xymox. I'm still waiting on a pad I ordered last winter, but I knew that production issues would delay the pad before I placed my order and I was willing to wait. The COVID-19 shutdown has obviously thrown further wrenches into the works, further delaying my pad. I'll post about that pad later.

With Drumslinger, I decided to do a little investigating.

I went to their web site, noted that it hadn't been updated since before Christmas 2019, and emailed them to inquire. I got an email response within an hour, explaining why the web site hadn't been updated ("most pads are now ordered through apps, and the web site is the last to be updated," said a respondent name Bill). I was given a one-time discount code and encouraged to place an order.

The next evening, I decided to go further. I sent another email asking for specifics about differences between a couple of pad models. So far, there has been no response.

At the same time, I sent an email to Rudimental Drumming, a company based in the Netherlands that makes pads of a similar design and price range to Drumslinger. I asked questions about specific differences between pad models and also asked about production time. The very next morning, I received an informative and helpful reply.

Based on ths limited experience, I would be more inclined to order a pad from Rudimental Drumming and wait for the several weeks' turnaround.
Add to this the fact that one of Drumslinger's biggest endorsers publicly ended his relationship with the company and soon became an endorser of RD, and my hunch was confirmed.

So I'll keep the used Drumslinger pad for awhile, and plan to purchase an RD pad for my collection sometime later this summer. I'll compare the two pads and report back.

One Drummer Chopping: Offworld Percussion Shuttle pad

Offworld Percussion has in many ways become the n'est plus ultra of marching practice pads, simply by dint of their consistency, quality control and overall lack of drama. They just make a good, reliable product and that's why so many drummers -- including me -- own an Offworld pad.

I recently scored one of the first generation Shuttle pads from Offworld's warehouse. They had five of them still in the bag and blew them out on Instagram. Right place at the right time, basically.

The "Dark Matter" playing surface is thinner than what's used on the flagship Invader series pads, and it feels harder and brighter as a result.
Still, I can see why this little pad was so popular. It feels and plays well (especially if you play on Kevlar), and it travels well. If I had to choose between this and my Invader for longer workouts, I'd stick with the Invader as the thicker rubber is more forgiving and less fatiguing. But on the fly, the Shuttle is a nice pad to take to the park or on a road trip. The thick rubber bottom gives it a non-skid surface for tabletop playing, or even a short stint on your lap.

I think they discontinued it in favor of their Outlander series, which uses the same thickness of rubber in a circular design.

I might end up keeping this for the collection. I kind of like it.

UPDATE: Offworld is currently producing prototypes for a second generation shuttle pad; one will be made with a rubber surface only, and the other will be made to take their snare drum cartridge insert (like the Aurora and BYOSphere pads).
I think I'll hang onto my 1st gen Shuttle and call it good, as I was unimpressed with the Aurora pad and cartridge and sold them. Offworld needs to utilize much stronger magnets so the snare cartridges doesn't pop out on an accented note before I'll consider buying one again.

Well, THAT was quick.

Curfew was extended only two nights, and then ended when subsequent protests turned out to be peaceful. Considering that the park was filled with more people the second night I went there, it's jsut as well. Tonight we got news of a spike in COVID-19 cases here in Oregon that are likely the result of all the vacationing and partying over Memorial Day weekend (two weeks ago).
We're told to expect another spike in a couple weeks from all the protests.
This may be how it goes for awhile.
..::sigh::..
So for the time being, I'm home and drumming.
This time, a return to a song I wrote for my most recent album, The Watchman's Chair.
On the album I played it with brushes; but today I wanted to see how it would feel with sticks and a Xymox pad. So here you go. Enjoy.
(Lyrics can be found at www.beth-hamon-music.com. Click on "Stuff I Make", then in the drop down click on "Words" and then on "The Watchman's Chair" and that will take you to all the lyrics for the album.)

Vintage corner: the best leg rest ever made

When I marched in my high school band in the fall of 1977, I was first introduced to this leg rest when I was assigned to carry a single tenor drum. The drum came outfitted with a pair of hard felt beaters, a cotton webbed sling, and a leg rest which allowed you to carry the drum more comfortably. The best part of the design was that included a heavy elstic band so you could strap the leg rest to your thigh for a more stable connection while you marched with the drum.

I learned to quickly love this leg rest. When the section leader tried to take it off my tenor so he could have it on his snare drum, I quickly moved to put the drum on so he couldn't take it. He had to settle for the narrower -- and less comfortable -- bolt-on leg rest that didn't come with a strap.
Fearing that he might try and swap them between rehearsals, I took to removing the leg rest and hiding it in my locker, reattaching it before each rehearsal. He stopped paying attention to me and "my" leg rest when the cymbal player began flirting with him.

I kept that leg rest in my locker for three years, until I was promoted to tritoms my senior ywear and didn't need it anymore.

Since then I've tried to find another like it. They've very occasionally turned up on eBay for more money than I could afford -- until last week I came into a couple of them through a drum corps alum network on Facebook. I need to find a heavy elastic band and some rectangular rings to complete it, but between the two I purchased I was able to build up a very fine, usable leg rest for my new-to-me 15-inch snare drum.

I found the original patent from 1961 online. Curiously, the original patent expired around the time I began high school. Likely because the first mass-produced rigid harnesses ("vests") were just coming into use by then, the patent was not renewed. But it's still a great design, and remains the most comfortable leg rest ever.

As I said, these are harder to find, perhaps because their years of production were more limited than the standard bolt-on design that can still be bought new today.

But the designer knew what he wanted, and he figure out how to make it more comfortable by expanding the platform that sat against the thigh, and using spring steel to allow for easy attachment and removal.

One note: if you find one of these today, you may discover (as I did) that the thigh cup is a little narrow. (I fit me perfect when I was fourteen!)
It's a simple fix to place one side wrapped in shop rags in a bench vise and gently pull the other side wider, a little at a time so you don't crack the metal. Keep trying it on until it fits. (If your legs are too wide for this one, get the other kind instead, as it tends to fit winder legs.)

As soon as I find the heavy elastic band I'm looking for, I'll set this up on my Ludwig and start walking around with it.
I can't wait. It' going to be basically perfect for the kind of drumming I want to do.

Vintage corner: In praise of flat pads

A number of practice pads have been made over the decades that were designed to lay on top of a snare drum. Playing the pad this way would bring out a little of the snare sound while reducing the overall volume, making them an ideal practice aid for home and travel use.

I currently own three of these "flat" pads:

1. Ludwig "Gladstone" style pad, circa 1950s. Stage and studio drummer Billy Gladstone originally designed this practice pad in the 1940s while working with Gretsch Drums as an endorsee. The rubber pad was molded in one piece of rubber with two different thicknesses, giving the player a thicker, solid rubber playing surface in the center and a much thinner, more flexible rubber surface around the outside that helped to dampen the drum.When the patent ran out on this design, many other companies copied it and sold it under their brand. The pad is still manufactured today, though modern versions don't seem to feel as flexible; my guess is that more nylon was added to the rubber mixture and that has altered the feel and sound.

2. Camco practice pad circa 1960s. Similar in design to the Gladstone pad, but with a solid rubber disc glued to the center of a thin, wooden fiber platform. This more rigid design blocked out much more of the snare drum sound and further dampened the drum.

3. A. Stubbs Percussion drum mute, circa 1980s (?). This was a product designed and made in small batches by Amy Stubbs, who is currently on faculty at the University of Pittsburgh and performs with orchestras and small ensembles around the country. Stubbs designed this pad for concert use, less as a practice tool and more as a snare drum mute. Due to the specialized nature of the pad and its marketing limited primarily to college and professional percussionists, my guess is that there are likely no more than a couple hundred of these out there now. This is of similar construction as the Camco pad, but the hard platform is made of a fiberglass/plastic composition and the underside is covered with a layer of fake lamb's wool.


Here's a little demonstration of each pad, beginning with the newest and progressing to the oldest.

The finished really big drum: a video

As promised, here's a short video of the finished drum.
This was quick and dirty, shot in a hurry and played at mezzo-forte so I wouldn't disturb the neighbors too much. Just for fun, I grabbed an old pair of 3S sticks from my high school days (re-taped many years later) to play this video. Not my best playing, but you get an idea of this drum's potential.

I hope to take it to the park later this week, so I can explore more volume levels playing into the huge Mylar head, the way we all used to play before the advent of Kevlar.