The Development of New Electronic Percussion Instruments in Popular
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The Development of New Electronic Percussion Instruments in Popular Music of the 1980s: A Technical Study Michael Carlucci Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies In partial fulfilment of the requirements For the MA degree in Music School of Music Faculty of Arts University of Ottawa © Michael Carlucci, Ottawa, Canada, 2014 i Abstract The influence of electronic percussion (in particular, the Simmons Drum Company’s innovations) on the compositions and evolution of 1980s Pop music can be examined through technological advancements as well as stylistic characteristics of drum partitions of the decade. Archived company catalogues in collaboration with Matt Dean’s historical timeline provide a clear understanding of the advancements during the time of the company’s tenure at the top of the electronic percussion industry. Definitions of the terms “style” and “genre” in both the primary and secondary approaches -by Allan Moore and other theorists- are used. The stylistic properties which create a genre are key in understanding the political, social, and cultural effects on the music. Ultimately, stylistic traits provide sufficient evidence in order to examine similar compositions which were sub-categorized differently on Billboard’s hit charts. Dave Carlton’s Hook Theory is a major resource in selecting pieces of music which share similarities. The differences in sub-categorization identified in this study are shown to derive from the transition to and the use of electronic percussion. ii Contents Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 Literature Review ......................................................................................................... 4 Chapter One: History of Electronic Percussion ................................................................... 9 Intro .................................................................................................................................. 9 Section One: The History of Electronic Drums ............................................................. 12 Primitive Models ........................................................................................................ 12 Simmons Drum Company .......................................................................................... 15 External Hard Drives .................................................................................................. 18 Demise of Simmons: Roland and Yamaha Rivalry ....................................................... 20 Demise of Simmons .................................................................................................... 20 Rise and Rivalry ......................................................................................................... 21 Section Two: History of Sampling Pads and Drum Machines ...................................... 27 Section Three: History of Self-Containing Drums ........................................................ 35 Section Four: The Artists and Drummers ...................................................................... 44 The Performers and Artists who Benefited ................................................................ 44 Other Genres Incorporating Electronic Percussion .................................................... 50 Chapter Two: Genre, Style, and Innovation ...................................................................... 53 Section One: Style and Genre: A Definition .................................................................. 54 Primary Approach ...................................................................................................... 54 Secondary Approach .................................................................................................. 64 Popular Culture .............................................................................................................. 66 Political ....................................................................................................................... 66 Societal ....................................................................................................................... 68 Cultural ....................................................................................................................... 69 Section Two: The Innovations ....................................................................................... 71 Technology ................................................................................................................. 71 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 78 Chapter Three: The Theory and the Studies ...................................................................... 80 Pop Drumming and Influential Patterns ........................................................................ 83 iii Acoustic Percussion ....................................................................................................... 88 Classification Theory and Guidelines ............................................................................ 99 Selecting Songs ........................................................................................................ 101 First Half of Theory (Selection Process) .................................................................. 102 Second half of theory (Comparison Process) ........................................................... 115 Case Studies ................................................................................................................. 126 Case Study #1 ........................................................................................................... 126 Selection Process ...................................................................................................... 126 Comparison Process ................................................................................................. 130 Case Study #2 ........................................................................................................... 136 Case Study #3 ........................................................................................................... 147 Def Leppard .............................................................................................................. 148 Albums and Hit Singles pre 1984 ............................................................................ 148 1984 .......................................................................................................................... 150 Hysteria and the Result of its Success ..................................................................... 152 The Power Ballad ..................................................................................................... 154 Rick Allen and Simmons Drums .............................................................................. 155 Drum Partitions ........................................................................................................ 158 Results and Conclusions .............................................................................................. 158 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................... 161 Concluding Methodology (Drummer or Listener?) ..................................................... 162 Final Words .................................................................................................................. 164 Appendix ......................................................................................................................... 168 Electronic drums and their modules ............................................................................ 168 Drum machines and samplers ...................................................................................... 178 Electronic Percussion and Self Contained Drums ....................................................... 186 Bibliography .................................................................................................................... 191 iv List of Tables Table 1: Definitions and Effects ........................................................................................ 17 Table 2: Features of the SPD-S ......................................................................................... 33 Table 3: Features of the HPD-15 ....................................................................................... 39 Table 4:Features of the HPD-10 ........................................................................................ 41 Table 5: Features of the HPD-20 ....................................................................................... 43 Table 6: Genres, Artists, Percussionsts ............................................................................. 50 Table 7: Technological Advancements ............................................................................. 72 Table 8: Percussive Elements ............................................................................................ 84 Table 9 Evans Drum Skins ................................................................................................ 93 Table 10 Cymbals .............................................................................................................. 95 Table 11: Selection