Looking further a field

This week has continued with its usual regime both inside and outside of college. My jazz studies came to an end this week in first study class as now that I have gathered the basics of the style my tutor told me that I can develop my technique in my own time. Already though I can see that my jazz playing has became more confident and independent however with my only source of playing in a band situation beingthrough electronic resources I do feel quite limited.
Through the last few weeks looking into jazz I have began to look further a field into such genres as big band. In the past I have played in relatively similar situations such as concert bands and it has always been one genre which I found to be most fascinating just in terms of the incredible acoustic sound and tone that is produced and the complete different approach that a drummer has to take for they are no longer driving the tempo as the conductor is.
I have managed to get a hold of a book called “chart reading for drummers” which explains the techniques needed for following charts, supporting figures and keeping time as well in a big band situation. Although I can read music to a fairly good standard I find chart reading a different kettle of fish altogether for there is a lot more independence needed and creativity compared to reading what is just written. It is skill that I find to be vital in becoming a session musician, especially if I want to further my career as a musician on the cruise ships with bigger bands.
Session skills this week consisted of a detailed look at contracts that are set up between the producer and musician in a session and the going rates that should be paid per 3-hour session. Although this is a long way away for me its good to see specific details of the contract and how as a musician I can come across in as professional manner as possible when it comes to payment. This week we were also put into our session bands for the up and coming motown theme. As my band has two drummers I hope to get my trombone out to add some brass to the tracks we are given and also to actually brush up on my playing as in the last year I haven’t been practiced enough to make any steady progress. I also hope that since Gavin is our tutor for this class he could give me a few tips on my playing and help me conquer some bad habits.
Also this week I was back in the studio to lay down the drum track to some new material that my band is putting together. In the past I have recorded to click with a live band however this time I tried recording with the click on its own and the result was a much tighter drum track. I felt this was due to the fact that I didn’t have as much distraction through the headphones and could focus on keeping it at a solid tempo. In terms of playing along to a click though I feel that it still is a slight weakness so it definitely one thing to look into.
This week yet again has inspired me significantly and showed me what I need to look into for improvement. I look forward to what the future brings with exploring new styles and seeing how I develop as a musician.