SOME IDEAS ABOUT CREATING A MORE MULTI-FUNCTIONAL DRUM KIT

Many working drummers play several styles of music and work several kinds of venues to broaden, not only their performance experiences, but their income earning potential as well.  Some....like me..... enjoy the variety of a club gig one night; a big band gig on another night; a pop/rock date still another night; and maybe show band and/or pit work.  Drummers, who do work in several genres, know that sometimes you need a different drum and cymbal set-up.

FIRST LET’S TALK ABOUT THE DRUMS

Seasoned professionals realize that some engagements require them to modify their “regular” kit configuration.  For example Steve Jordan might perform on a six piece kit with a 24” bass drum and 18”  hi hat cymbals……or he may need to perform on his famous “Club Jordan” cocktail type kit.  Rick Marrotta is another drummer who may opt for his “Hip Gig” kit rather than his larger kit.  Other drummers like Keith Carlock and even Billy Cobham might also make kit modifications/size reductions for smaller venues.

Well, not everyone can afford several drum kits, so maybe this blog will stimulate some ideas that will be useful to you.  Obviously, the ability to “strip” your current kit down to a four-piece kit is simple enough.  If that does it for your needs then you already understand one of the concepts I am discussing……a versatile kit.  If that still doesn’t allow you to have what you really need then here are some more ideas.

Let’s create a scenario:  You are called to play acoustic jazz at a small supper club on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday nights for a four-week run with a piano trio.  You can still rock with your week-end cover band, but this opportunity pays great and gives you an opportunity to break into another genre.  

However, say your “rock the house” kit has a 24” bass drum; 16” and 18” floor toms,  10”, 12”, and 14” rack toms, and a killer 7” x 14” snare drum?  Just the look of that set-up might scare the jazz club manager.  So….what if you used a “bass drum lift” and used the 18” floor tom as a smaller and quieter bass drum?  What if you clamped the 10” tom and the 14” to cymbal stands?  What if you used a smaller and more sensitive snare drum?  Maybe you already have a smaller “side snare”.  I know that you can buy new auxiliary type snare drums pretty cheap today on-line.  And maybe there are some used bargains at the drum shop too. Anyway, by doing something similar to what I described above, you can create a smaller four-piece kit.

MIX AND MATCH

Modern Drummer Editor Rick Van Horn does something that a lot of professional drummers do.  He buys drums with the same finish so he can mix and match a lot of different configurations.  Now before someone says it…..I know all the drum finishes don’t have to match in order to sound good.    But I still think it’s still a really cool idea for guys who work in several musical genres.

If you buy a kit with ….say a 22” bass drum; 10” 12”, 14” 16” toms, then you have your base configuration.  Add in the snare drums you prefer and add on an 18” bass drum......okay...now with all of those drums in your stash, you should be able to pick and choose to create suitable configurations for most gigs.  The kinds of drum heads and sticks you use also affects the sound of the drums, but these can be modified quickly. 

Now as far as bargain ideas….here’s one for you.  Lot’s of times you can find an odd drum cheap.  Sometimes at a pawn shop or maybe a garage sale…whatever, but the point is that you can buy it cheap because it’s an odd piece they want to get rid of.  I have friends who have bought such drums just for spare parts!  Anyway, some patience and some time checking out the right places can result in acquiring some mismatched drums in the sizes you want.

EXAMPLE:   I have a friend who bought and old 18” Gretstch bass drum; then a 12” Slingerland rack tom; and finally an old 10” x 14” Ludwig marching tenor drum.   He found them all at garage sales and had a grand total of $55 invested.  He removed the wrap covering and finished them in a walnut stain.  Then he put new heads on them and guess what?........they look and sound great for his low volume gigs……and as his practice kit. 

Another friend wanted a second bass drum for his “drum stash”.  He had purchased an old drum that had been in an automobile accident with lugs like the ones on his kit.  The shell and the rims were trashed, but all of the other hardware was fine.  He gave the guy $10 for the trashed drum.  He then ordered a pre-drilled drum shell with the edges already done; covering to match his other drums and some new drum heads.  For less than $300, he put together a great looking bass drum and saved himself about $500.  How cool is that? 

Well, there are other examples and ideas…..but I think if you are this far into this blog that you now have some ideas of your own.

CYMBALS

Cymbals are what they are, but they too may be multi-functional.  That 18” Rock crash that you use for high volume gigs might be cool as a ride for a quieter gig when played with a smaller stick.   That 14” medium-thin crash you use for a fast crash on certain tunes may be useful as a main crash for a jazz gig.  As you experiment with such alternatives you’ll find that smaller sticks can often bring out other possible uses for your current cymbals.

It never hurts to find some you extra cymbals either.  Like finding bargain drums, some patience and serious looking can often result finding in a cymbal bargain too.  Whether it’s hi hats or mounted cymbals there are some good used ones out there in the drum shops and pawn shops.  Additionally, some of the lower priced cymbals in the major manufacturer’s lines can be used in effectively low volume situations.   Lot’s of times you will find these available in drum shops as drummers “trade up” to other models. 

FINAL THOUGHTS

I did talk about sticks and drum heads a little bit, but your bass drum beaters, as well as the actual drum tunings have a big impact of the sound of your drums too. 

As I said, not everyone can afford to own several drum kits.  However, maybe these ideas will help you think of ways you can modify or augment the drums you have to give you greater versatility in your drumming work. 

Until next time…

Cheers,

KEN SANDERS

IBJAMN in Nashville

Tags: Drum Kits