Gavin Harrison here!

Hi, I've enjoyed reading the feature article in the January MD and the transcriptions are great to read and follow while listening. Gavin, we love the new project with 05Ric at our house - Brilliant!

I would love to get some insight into the verse section (beginning groove right after intro) for unsettled. The hi-hat work is escaping me. Perhaps it's straight forward but elusive for me with what's going on underneath. It's so crisp and really moves the music along I would love to work it up.

Any suggestions how to get at this? Thanks for your time.
 
Hello Sir,
Okay now iv got this 16" crash that i want to cut to a 6" gavin splash bell....but i wana try something else with the remaining material on the cymbal.

Iv thought of cutting the rest of the cymbal (with the 6" splash cut out) into three equal parts
that would basically leave me with something like 3 pie slices with a portion of the tapering ends cut out.

Now with these three pieces aligned one on top of the other...i wana drill a hole in the center so i can mount it on a normal cymbal stand. Also i wana drill about 4 holes for rivets.

Hopefully if all goes well il get a new hybrid cymbal that will have the clank of a stack and the shimmer of the rivets added to it.

Now i was wondering if you have ever tried something like this.
Awaiting a quick reply...iv kept the cymbalsmith on hold :p.

thanks
 
Hi kheddar

What is, in your opinion, the most effective strategy for developing good timing? Is playing a single drumbeat to a click for an hour straight a waste of time, i.e. could it be spent more effectively? What is the role of practising basic rudiments in developing good overall timing in drumset playing?

It's more about the quality than the quantity. You could play to a click for an hour but if you're not VERY in time with the click in the first place it's not really going to do much good.
Really concentrating on being accurate with the click is the key thing. I use to record myself playing with a click and then slow down the playback to half speed. Then the errors are much more obvious. You need to develop your ears so they get good at recognising when things don't feel good - and that takes years.

Hi Trip McNealy

what is the rest of your typical KC setup along with the Opus 88 mics... snares, kick, overheads, etc.

I think I had Beyer 201's as overheads, snare bottom, hi hat and ride mics. Audix i5 on the snare top and a Shure SM91 in the bass drum.

Hi Gus

Are your new -and famous- 'crash bells' similar in sound to those old 8" EFX 1, that Zildjian had long time ago?. I think you had one in your 'Horizons' DVD.

No not really - they are much more splashy and crashy than the EFX (which I still have and like).

Hi jimmyC

I would love to get some insight into the verse section (beginning groove right after intro) for unsettled. The hi-hat work is escaping me. Perhaps it's straight forward but elusive for me with what's going on underneath. It's so crisp and really moves the music along I would love to work it up.

Yes - it's a groove I stole from Phil Gould (the first drummer of Level 42). Basically you play the first 3 16ths of every quarter note on the hi hat - but you pedal the hi hat so that just the second of those 3 hits are with an open hi hat. Easier to do than explain.

Hi drumbumhamza

Okay now iv got this 16" crash that i want to cut to a 6" gavin splash bell....but i wana try something else with the remaining material on the cymbal. Iv thought of cutting the rest of the cymbal (with the 6" splash cut out) into three equal parts that would basically leave me with something like 3 pie slices with a portion of the tapering ends cut out.
Hopefully if all goes well il get a new hybrid cymbal that will have the clank of a stack and the shimmer of the rivets added to it.Now i was wondering if you have ever tried something like this.

I have never tried that - good luck with it and please make a sample for us to hear the results.

cheers
Gavin
 
Gavin Harrison said:
Hi Alex P,
I would say the first one - but I think of the opening section of that song in 6/8. After the stop I think of it in 3/4.

good luck
Gavin
Click to expand...

Ok, thanks!

And "BRAVO" for your drumming on Insurgentes, you did a great job!!
I think I will try to transcribe some drumparts of this album... but I have to finish "Nil Recurring" first !

Just one question:
I'd really like to see you at a clinic or masterclass (or something else). Do you do these kind of things in France?... or even in London, i would do the trip.

Thanks very much for your answer and for your time!

Alex P.
 
hi gavin, i wanna ask you a little thing.
do you remember if when you played with claudio baglioni in live tour, your setup had 2 splashes?
Because i find a older photo, with you on the pearl set, and left to your gavin bells, there's a crash and a little splash...was that a 6" splash?
 
Gavin Harrison said:
Hi kheddar

What is, in your opinion, the most effective strategy for developing good timing? Is playing a single drumbeat to a click for an hour straight a waste of time, i.e. could it be spent more effectively? What is the role of practising basic rudiments in developing good overall timing in drumset playing?

It's more about the quality than the quantity. You could play to a click for an hour but if you're not VERY in time with the click in the first place it's not really going to do much good.
Really concentrating on being accurate with the click is the key thing. I use to record myself playing with a click and then slow down the playback to half speed. Then the errors are much more obvious. You need to develop your ears so they get good at recognising when things don't feel good - and that takes years.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply! Slowing down a recording is actually what I've been doing myself :)

What do you think about setting the tempo to one click per 2 bars or so, or various kinds of click displacement (upbeats, the 'e' and 'a', etc)? Are those useful?

I used to be big into learning to play complex stuff, but lately I'm all about trying to perfect my time.
 
Just put up "Halo" - Transcription from the new book "Progressive Rock" by Rich Lakowski...and thanks Gavin for the Samples...!!!

http://www.drummerworld.com/Drumclinic/gavinharrisonhalo.html

This excerpt is a perfect demonstration of how Harrison can drive a complex odd-time rhythm with a fluent, relaxed feel. In fact, most listeners contentedly nod along to this groove without even noticing that it alternates between 9/8 and 4/4 time signatures. A steady accent played on every other hi-hat hit is a key aspect that helps this beat flow very smoothly and glues these alternating time signatures together nicely.

Bernhard
 
Last edited:
Bernhard said:
Just put up "Halo" - Transcription from the new book "Progressive Rock" by Rich Lakowski...and thanks Gavin for the Samples...!!!

http://www.drummerworld.com/Drumclinic/gavinharrisonhalo.html

This excerpt is a perfect demonstration of how Harrison can drive a complex odd-time rhythm with a fluent, relaxed feel. In fact, most listeners contentedly nod along to this groove without even noticing that it alternates between 9/8 and 4/4 time signatures. A steady accent played on every other hi-hat hit is a key aspect that helps this beat flow very smoothly and glues these alternating time signatures together nicely.

Bernhard
Click to expand...

:) Great Work...nice alternate way of seeing this pattern because i always saw it as 4/4 and 17/16. Never noticed you could break the pattern into 9/8 and a perfect 4/4.
Any idea of which tool song is on that compilation ?
 
drumbumhamza said:
:) Great Work...nice alternate way of seeing this pattern because i always saw it as 4/4 and 17/16. Never noticed you could break the pattern into 9/8 and a perfect 4/4.
Any idea of which tool song is on that compilation ?
Click to expand...

Vicarious - Ticks & Leeches - Eulogy

B.
 
kheddar said:
Thanks for the reply! Slowing down a recording is actually what I've been doing myself :)

What do you think about setting the tempo to one click per 2 bars or so, or various kinds of click displacement (upbeats, the 'e' and 'a', etc)? Are those useful?

I used to be big into learning to play complex stuff, but lately I'm all about trying to perfect my time.
Click to expand...
I'm feeling the same way :). For me that click idea worked and works wonderfully!! But don't have TOO few clicks, because I feel it's important to know when and where you're going out of time (i.e. a certain fill or movement), and if too much happens between two "milestones" of the metronome, you're probably not sure what caused the unaccuracy once you notice you're not with the click anymore. I hope you know what I'm trying to say.
 
Hi Alex P

Just one question:
I'd really like to see you at a clinic or masterclass (or something else). Do you do these kind of things in France?... or even in London, i would do the trip.

I have never made a drum clinic in France - and I haven't made one in the UK for 10 years - but I'm hoping something is happening next year in the UK. I'll let you know if and when it's confirmed.

Hi ItalianRicky

do you remember if when you played with claudio baglioni in live tour, your setup had 2 splashes? Because i find a older photo, with you on the pearl set, and left to your gavin bells, there's a crash and a little splash...was that a 6" splash?

That is correct...and here it is from the CB 2000 tour (and you can see how far back I'm holding the sticks there!!!!).
Cla tour 3 small.jpg

Some interview and performance stuff on the VF site that I did at the PAS convention a few weeks ago:

http://www.vicfirth.com/artists/harrison.html

cheers

Gavin
 
I just have to say that the new Vic Firth videos from the PASIC event are stunning. Very solid performance, and really interesting interviews.
 
Wow! What a long strange trip it's been! I've gone from not knowing who Gavin Harrison is, or who or what PT are, to actually being able to drop a line to the new main man of the skinz game, for me anyway...and all in just under two years!

I'm a late 40's, long time listener of RUSH and when they hit the road for the S&N tour in '07, I was there for the tour opener in Atlanta. I was also fortunate enough to see seven other shows after that in the Eastern and Southwestern U.S., including what was supposed to be the tour closer, also in Atlanta. Except for the New Orleans and Houston shows, which as result of late rescheduling of the shows interfered with my travel plans, I rode my motorcycle to all the shows, logging thirty-two days on the backroads of America. I even travelled as far north as Boston to catch the Father's Day show with my daughter, who flew up from Atlanta to be with me.

So what, you may be asking, does this have to do with Gavin Harrsion? It all ties together, I assure you. You see, I have Neil Peart to thank for giving rise to my intense interest in percussion, and all things percussive. And it was during the S&N tour, thanks to Neil that I first became exposed to PT. He assembles the playlist of pre-show music that is on the PA before every RUSH show, and PT was generously featured on that list throughout the tour. I became curious about the music I was hearing, asked around, did some research, and by process of elimination, figured out that it was PT.

Since then, I have set about discovering and consuming all things PT, which is to say EVERYTHING! That consumption, I'm happy to say, has led me here to share this little tale with all of you.

Besides being a new admirer of PT, I am, coincidentally, an old admirer of King Crimson, and still hold that 'In the Court of the Crimson King' is the greatest headphones album ever (particularly side two). And I do mean ALBUM, as in vinyl, which I still listen to through my AKG K340 (I think I keep these phones just for this album and for 'Riders On The Storm' by the Doors). So, it should go without saying that I am thrilled to see that Gavin is drumming for KC.

Fripp made a wise choice when he gave Gavin the call-up for the job. There is definitely something similar in the touch and sensitivity of Michael Giles playing to that of Gavin's. Not saying that Fripp was thinking that, or that KC is even covering any of that era of their catalog. Just saying that in my mind's eye, for that reason, it's a great choice. I only wish I'd known about this when KC was over here, I would definitely have made the Nashville show, and would even have flown up to NYC for the Nokia Theater gig.

But, ya snooze, ya lose...as they say. And I've been caught snoozin'. So, thanks Gavin, for the great moments and the highly professional and creative manner with which you approach your music. I'm looking forward to many more hours of listening pleasure, many more hours of frustration trying to play along, and many more years of consuming your work.
 
hi gavin

i've a question about nil recurring...the section which starts at 3:20 right before the 7/8 overriding part...what's the timesignature?...i think 9/8 but does it change during this part or is it all in 9/8?

by the way...steve's new album is fantastic particularly because you are drumming on it...the 5th song in 21/8 or 21/4 sounds like a really cool jam...did you just jammed along to it and recorded it?...anyway great stuff..there's not one track on this album i don't like

ciao
 
Ok, i have an interesting question...

I've come across some money recently and i'm thinking of buying an electronic drum set...
I would use it mostly for house practicing, because i don't have conditions for an acoustic drum set...

So i guess my question is what is your opinion on electronic drum set's? How will it influence dynamic of my playing? Will samples bore me after playing for some time?
 
Hi Gavin,
I am writing to heap some praise on you. After spotting your MD cover/interview, I went on a bit of a GH-binge, buying PT and Drop, as well as the Rhythmic Visions and Horizons combination DVD-set. After taking these in, I have to say that your technical ability is phenomenal, and your willingness and commitment to field questions on this forum is unheard of in drumming circles. Plus you seem to be a genuinely nice guy. As one of my mentors used to say, the three A's that make a good surgeon:
1. Availability
2. Affability
3. Ability

I daresay you are an example of all three.
Sincerely,
Yoav
 
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