DIY Drummer: Timpani practice pads

Since getting back into concert percussoion, I've been noticing timpani practice pads.
Commercially-made, these highly specialized pads start at around $40 and go up to over $150.

I decided to see if I could make a set for use at home.

All it took was some scrap wood, closed-cell ensolite camper pad material, and some Super-Glue gel. Et voila! One is small enough to fit in my mallet bag; two are perfect for practicing tricky passages at home. The feel is close to that of a tuned kettledrum, and if used ONLY with felt-covered mallets should last awhile.

After hanging out with these a little while, I decided to preserve the edges by wrapping them in gaffing tape. Once the tape sets, I’m hoping it will protect the edges from scuffs and snags, that step, plus playing ONLY with felt-covered mallets, should be enough to preserve the useful life of these pads for quite awhile.

Happy drumming.

Review: John Crocken’s “Moeller Perfect” sticks

Earlier this year, Craft stick maker John Crocken came up with a stick based on what famous drummer and instructor Sanford A. Moeller determined was the “perfect” stick for Rudimental drumming.

Using details from earlier sticks made by craft stick maker Charles “Buck” Soistman, with whom Crocken had apprenticed, and Moeller’s own notes, John Crocken has introduced what he calls the Moeller “Perfect” sticks. He offers them in persimmon, purple heart and Brazilian cherry.

A friend recently took delivery on a pair of these in purple heart, which weighed in at 80 grams per stick — on the heavy side of my favored weight range. So when I came into some extra scratch, I decided to order a pair in lighter persimmon, perhaps my favorite wood for craft-made sticks. John. Assured me he could make me a pair closer to 70 grams each. When they arrived in the mail a few days ago, I was happy to unwrap a pair of beautiful persimmon sticks weighing in at exactly 70 grams each. 

They’re longer than most of the sticks I play, 17.5” — but I knew Moeller was a big, tall man so that would make some sense. The sticks themselves are not matched in terms of thickness — one is a little thicker than the other, perhaps a millimeter or more, and I could tell that right away. Does this make them. “Seconds”? I decided to test for pitch and see. They are pitched matched, and weigh the same. So,  while I wish they w matched for thickness, the difference is not so glaring that I’d send them back at this point.

I’m not sure what to do with that, or whether it’s a reasonable thing to expect with craft-made sticks; and may ask John before I make a final decision.

They play effortlessly for their size and length. I find that I enjoy playing them with either matched or traditional grip. I do like these sticks a lot, and they play especially nicely on both drums and tunable practice pads. 

If you can scrape up the Pennie’s, investing in a pair or three of craft-made drumsticks is a great idea, and can make you appreciate your drumming from a new perspective. Try some.

Happy drumming.

Review: Jon’s 3rd Floor Bazaar concert sticks

Jon Singer, proprietor of the Third Floor Percussion Bazaar in New York, is now working with various independent makers of pads, sticks, cymbals and other drummer’s tools. At this time, the individual makers are not being identified, but the items are being offered as “prototype” or “new” items at his FB site.

I recently purchased two pairs of 3rd Floor concert snare sticks, in Jatoba and purpleheart.

The Jatoba sticks measure 16 1/4” long and just over 5/8” thick, with a short taper and a tip measuring a little more than 7/16” wide. Each stick weighs around 80 grams. These are robust concert sticks that would do well for heavy orchestral works, or for Rudimental practice.

The purpleheart sticks are a bit small all around, 16” long by a little over 9/16” thick, with a nice medium taper to a round tip that’s a hair over 1/2” wide. It weighs roughly 63 grams per stick, and is a really nice concert stick, especially for standard wind band use. I’d happily play a Sousa March on a 14” x 6” concert snare anytime, yet I could also control them easily enough to get a nice mezzopiano press roll. They feel very nicely balanced in my hands and play beautifully. I found one of these sticks a tiny bit warped, but not enough to make it hard to use. With wood, warpage feels like a given, and with handcrafted small-batch sticks, it feels like some slack is in order; as long as the warpage is super- mild and infrequent, give the maker a break and play the sticks. If, on the other hand, the warpage is obvious, send them back for a refund or exchange. Most small-batch makers will be glad to make a swap and take back your warped sticks to learn from.

I think I need to search the landscape for more from Jon’s Third Floor collective, and also look at other sticks in purpleheart. (Photos really show the beautiful purple glow of the purpleheart, which has stolen my heart big-time.)

Right now these sticks are sold in short batches of three to five pairs, so keep your eyes peeled at the site.

Pivot, updates and a cool place to buy gear

Since deciding to pivot to concert band music, I’ve found a band and will check out their rehearsal next week; and suddenly the universe is raining down crazy deals on used mallets. 

So perhaps I’ve made the right choice.

In other news, if you’re on Facebook, check out a group called Jon’s Third Floor Percussion Bazaar, hosted by a percussionist and teacher who also offers crazy deals on used gear. He’s also a real mensch and simply great to deal with. 

In addition to deals on used gear, Jon and some friends are also developing new cymbals, sticks and other items that they’ll be selling alongside the used stuff.

I just scored a prototype of what may well be their new practice pad, and I really like it. It is NOT a just a copy of a Vater/Meinl/Gretsch/Zildjian pad! Smaller in size, and with whitish rubber that feels drier and is more appropriate for concert than for marching use. I’m taking mine on the road this winter.

 

I also scored their first offering of sticks in Jatoba. They’re a little heavy but nicely balanced.

I’m waiting to take delivery on another pair in Purple Heart which I hope will be a little lighter.

Photos below:

  

If they turn out to be super-heavy, I’ll probably turn to John Crocken and order the Moeller sticks I’d planned on in persimmon. He just got in the last of his old-growth persimmon stocks (so I’d better place that order before I can’t).

I admit to being a little nervous about checking out the community band next week. It’s been a long time since I played in a wind ensemble, and that wasn’t very much fun (professional-level, Eastman-styled wind ensemble, with a music director whose ego poured all over every moment and soured a lot of folks. I lasted one quarter, just ten weeks and one concert, before bailing. (I learned much later that almost a third of the band quit before the board finally fired him and changed the name of the ensemble.)

I am hopeful things will be kinder and gentler with this group. Stay tuned.

Pivot.

So it looks like I’m going to have to give up on marching band, for awhile if not for good.

After marching with UBB art Last Thursday on Alberta Street last week, I had to admit that I didn’t have much fun. I struggled to keep a straight line and bumped into people multiple times. I got dizzy and stumbled a few times, almost falling once. I had trouble maintaining anything more than the simplest of rhythms, a real challenge since I was the only snare drummer. I had to ask the wind players to take more reasonably-sized steps, and hope that each “let’s keep going to the next lit intersection” would be the last before turning around and going back to the starting point.

When the band wanted to keep playing at the end, I quietly said my good nights and walked to the bus stop. All I wanted to do was go home and rest. My self-perception about my physical health and stamina — and just how serious Long Covid can be — took a beating and has had to undergo a serious adjustment.

I fell into bed that night, and had great trouble waking up the next day.

So I’ve officially quit the UBB as a marching member, with apologies to the leader and a promise to lend other kinds of non-marching support as needed and able going forward. I simply cannot march any more, even when staying in step doesn’t matter.

I think I’d like to look around for an adult concert band and consider the possibility of playing with one. It’s been so long since my head was in that space that I don’t even know what’s out there anymore.
Minimal costs, dress code and time commitment (3 to 4 concerts a year and a weekly rehearsal) would be ideal.