Drum Pad History: FM Dynamic Practice Pad.

 Some lovely pad history:

I decided to do some research on the FM Dynamics practice pad, which many of us have seen listed on various websites. It’s a very simple pad that comes in a variety of color combinations and either tilted or flat. When I first saw these, I wondered what the fuss was about, and why the prices were rather high for what they were. But I loved some of the color combinations! They were a breath of fresh air in the world of practice pads.

I reached out to the seller of the pads on Reverb, Stan Fornaszewski, who was happy to tell me more:

“These were made by my father, John Fornaszewski around early 2014. He passed in late 2014. I think 75 were made, and each was made in a unique color. They have a woodblock-type tone. Which gives the player ability to hear and develop dynamics. Also, the rubber-pad is designed to be less-bouncy, to develop strike/rebound control. The idea was that the older drummers had better hand control and finesse with strength, because they developed using pillows and towels on tables (before rubber pads became really bouncy). Not high-tech hype by today’s standards, but that was the idea.”

Stan has a few of his father’s pads left, each one made BY HAND by John, and they can be found on Reverb, currently on sale through February 24. When they’re gone, they’re gone.

Of course, I had to buy one.

At the same time, an older version of the pad (with a slightly larger playing area) was being offered on eBay. I thought it would be cool to have both generations of the pad, so I made an offer, which was accepted.

Both pads should arrive by next week.

I LOVE historical rabbit holes like this one! 

The pads themselves may not be technically exciting, but the history — and the low production number — makes them really cool.

I’ll make a demo vid when they arrive.

(Photos — Top: FMD practice pad, older version. Bottom: FMD practice, newer version, 2014.)