I have added some new cymbals to my stash and wanted to share my impressions with any of you who might find that of interest.

Let’s first talk about the “vintage jazz cymbal sound” for a moment.  For many acoustic jazz drummers the "ultimate find" is vintage K’s that have the sound characteristics that we’ve heard on recordings of many famous jazz drummers of the 40’s, 50’s era.

However, the reality is that those old K’s had a lot of variation from one cymbal to another.....in other words, each one was a rather unique instrument.  Therefore, an old 20” K with a sound that YOU like…… might not be anything like a 20” K that some other drummer might have. 

Listen to the sounds of a ride or crash on an Elvin Jones recording; then a Mel Lewis recording; then an Art Blakey recording, etc.  You will hear that just as these Jazz Greats had THEIR own snare drum sound; they also had THEIR own CYMBAL sounds.  Part of their "signature styles" were their strokes and touch.  And part (with cymbals being so important in traditional jazz) were the variations in their "K" sounds.

I went through the above explanation to talk about the Paiste Traditional Series cymbals that I recently picked out.  I am happy to say that there are several models that should allow jazz drummers to select something they really like. 

This Paiste series really does credibly recreate those vintage sounds that some of us really drool about.  Now, these cymbals are not focused on cut and high volume.  They are made to respond to your own tone extractions and expressions........ in a smokey, moody, slightly dirty sounding way.  They have that giving feel that responds instantly.  You can play on the various spots of the cymbal surface and find a lot of variations. 

I wanted to go after that darker, shimmering sound for my acoustic jazz work….but I did not want to really zero in on mimicking the sound of any particular drummer from the sacred jazz past.

It was hard to narrow it down, because I wanted them all!

Well, back to reality.....I chose a 20” Medium Ride, a 16” Extra Thin Crash, an 18” Thin Crash, 13” Medium-Thin Hi Hat Top/ Heavy Bottom, and finally an 20” Medium-Light Swish.

 In some of the other Paiste Cymbal series, consistency in models of the same size and weight is a characteristic that Paiste markets with great pride.  For some styles of music that is a great selling point.

 However, with the Paiste Traditionals series that is NOT the case at all.  Like the old K’s you have to go through several of the same model cymbals to find the special ones for your touch.  They do vary from cymbal to cymbal...... enough for each cymbal have a unique sound personality and feel.  That is what they are really all about....that special combination of sound and feel.

For me, that was part of the fun……actually picking out what I wanted to be my unique sound from these cymbals

 Well, like I said….this piece was to share my impressions of these cymbals.  I do use some of the other Paiste lines in my work (Signature, New Signature, 2002) and enjoy them for the sounds they produce.  However, the exploration into the Traditional Series was a fun and rewarding indulgence.

 I don't imagine that I'll use these cymbals for arena venue dates  , but on the traditional jazz dates they have been an absolute blast.

Until next time,

Cheers!

Ken Sanders

IBJAMN in Nashville