Vol. 2, No. 1, February 2015 SNARKY PUPPY’S NATE WERTH AND ROBERT ‘SPUT’ SEARIGHT IMPROVISING A LIFE IN MUSIC INTRO TO FRAME DRUMS Five Essential Tools for Great Practice • Alan Abel 85th Birthday Concert Patrick Fulford: The Music Advocate • Summer Workshops • Product Showcase • R!Solo FEBRUARY 2015 2 RHYTHM! SCENE RHYTHM! SCENE THE NEWSLETTER OF THE PAS The Percussive Arts Society (PAS) is a music service organization promoting percussion education, research, performance and appreciation throughout the world. Rhythm! Scene is published six times a year: February, April, June, August, October and December by the Percussive Arts Society. IN THIS ISSUE R!S STAFF Society Update Megan Arns, Rhythm! Scene Editor An Interview with Robert “Sput” Searight Rick Mattingly, Senior Editor and Nate Werth of Snarky Puppy Hillary Henry, Publications Production Manager Improvising a Life in Music Marianella Moreno, Publishing and Digital Media Operations Product Showcase R!S ADVERTISING Alan Abel 85th Birthday Concert Staci Stokes-Waites [email protected] People and Places An Introduction to Frame Drums PAS EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Summer Workshops Dr. Julie Hill, President Committee Spotlight: PAS New Music/ Dr. Brian Zator, President-Elect Research Committee George Barrett, First Vice President Patrick Fulford: The Music Advocate Dr. Paul Buyer, Second Vice President Scholarships & Assistantships Dr. Chris Hanning Secretary John R. Beck, Immediate Past President Ensemble and Recital Programs Jeff Hartsough, Executive Director R!Solo: Pachyderm for concert snare drum CONTACT PAS Industry News 110 W. Washington Street, Suite A, Indianapolis, IN 46204 Five Essential Tools for Great Practice Telephone: (317) 974-4488 • Fax (317) 974-4499 Social Beats E-mail: [email protected] • Web: www.pas.org HotLicks: Controlling the Independent Roll Upcoming Events BECOME A PAS SUBSCRIBER Committee Spotlight: The PAS Drumset Committee COPYRIGHT © 2015 by the Percussive Arts Society. Reproduction of any part From the Rhythm! Discovery Collection: of this publication without permission from PAS is prohibited by law. Deagan Model 30 Vibraharp 2015: TRANSITION AND NEW DIRECTION BY JEFF HARTSOUGH, PAS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR s PAS moves full steam ahead into each pass offers different levels of ac- Pass will come included with a PAS A2015, we have begun rolling out cess to website content, contests and membership. several of the new initiatives that we scholarships, videos and streaming, Another new benefit we are of- have been announcing over the past PASIC, Rhythm! Discovery Center, and fering is a monthly auto-pay option, six months, the most significant of much more. specifically designed for the VIP and which is the new Subscription model. What does this mean to you? All Access subscription levels. Just like If you are a current ePAS member Netflix, Hulu, and many other ser- NEW SUBSCRIPTION (student or professional), you will vices, you will now be able to arrange MEMBERSHIP MODEL automatically be converted to our to have your credit card automatically Starting this February, we will new “VIP Pass” subscription. If you drafted each month in 12, low, equal transition away from our traditional are a Hard Copy member (student or payments for your yearly subscrip- Membership format and move to a professional), you will be converted tion—a “set it and forget it” option— new Subscription format. Instead of to the “All Access Pass” level. These making it easier and more affordable offering Student or Professional ePAS levels are the most equivalent to your than ever to be a PAS member. and Hard Copy Membership options, current membership access and ben- we will now offer four Subscription efits. Once your renewal date comes BOARD OF DIRECTORS UPDATE Tiers that are set up at different price around, you will have the option to This past January, the new PAS points regardless of Student or Profes- rejoin at one of the four levels that Board of Directors and Officers met sional status. The tiers are presented fits your budget and needs. The Back- for a two-day summit in Indianapo- as a “backstage pass laminate” theme; stage Pass, VIP Pass, and All Access lis to discuss the future of PAS and VIP Guest All Access PASS PASS Backstage PASS PASS $15 $55 $30 $105 FEBRUARY 2015 4 RHYTHM! SCENE Rhythm! Discovery Center. It was a an appearance during PASIC to discuss very productive meeting with topics the making of his piece and screening ranging from updating the Mission clips of the full documentary. and Vision Statements to the future growth of PASIC, as well as the im- PARTNERSHIPS AND BENEFITS portance and expanding role of the In a continual effort to bring PAS chapters, committees, and Board of members content and resources, I am Advisors. happy to announce our new collabo- ration with Maraca2 Duo from the UK. PASIC 15 This new initiative, “World Percussion It’s nice to hear an early buzz and Group,” is an exciting and ambitious excitement circulating about PASIC’s project to bring together some of the 40th Anniversary in San Antonio and world’s top student percussionists to everyone looking forward to returning form an ensemble who will tour, per- to Texas this year. We are very close to form, and present clinics throughout launching general registration, releas- 2016. This is an incredible opportu- ing the Exhibitor and Contest packets, nity for serious students who want to drummers and percussionists of the and up hotel registration. So keep learn first hand what it takes to be in a world to provide you with the best re- an eye open for the big PASIC 15 an- professional touring ensemble and all sources, publications, and experiences nouncement so that you can be one that comes with that responsibility of that you will find anywhere. In 2015, of the first to register! balancing business and performance. we will be working hard to make the Here’s a sneak preview of events For details and audition information transitions to improve everything PAS. that we are working on: San Antonio please visit our website at http:// So find out WHY you should be Symphony Orchestra featuring Dal- www.worldpercussiongroup.com/ involved. las percussion ensemble D’Drum data/M2-WPG-2016-BROCHURE.pdf. performing Stewart Copeland’s work All of us here at Percussive Arts “Gamelan D’Drum.” And, rumor has it Society and Rhythm! Discovery Cen- that Stewart himself may be making ter look forward to serving all of the Jeff Hartsough Executive Director Percussive Arts Society International Convention RHYTHM! SCENE 5 FEBRUARY 2015 ROBERT “SPUT” SEARIGHT AND NATE WERTH OF SNARKY PUPPY BY MEGAN ARNS narky Puppy is one of the funkiest, Sgrooviest, most talented bands on the scene right now. They are a quasi-collective of musicians based in Brooklyn, New York who play an infectious mixture of jazz, funk, and world music. Led by bassist/guitarist/ composer/arranger Michael League, Snarky Puppy won a 2014 Grammy Award for their rendition of Brenda Russell’s song “Something” from their live studio album Family Dinner – Vol- ume 1. The group’s two core percussion- ists, Robert “Sput” Searight and Nate Werth, are accomplished, versatile musicians with a true passion for what they do. After seeing them live a few months ago, I was impressed not only by their technical prowess, but also by their ability to communicate in such an effective way through rhythm, while still blending with the rest of the band. I was able to catch Sput and Nate while they were in between NAMM and a rehearsal for their new- est side project, Ghost-Note, to chat about the genesis of Snarky Puppy, what it was like to win a Grammy, their dedication to the next genera- tion of musicians, the excitement of live studio recordings, and more. FEBRUARY 2015 6 RHYTHM! SCENE Rhythm! Scene: The story goes that and fusion of genres. He ar- side of drumming until high Michael League started Snarky ranged the tunes, gathered the school when I went to a school Puppy about ten years ago with musicians, and set up some local in Dallas called Arts Magnet. several members of the One performances. So Snarky Puppy From there I went to junior col- O’Clock Lab Band at the Univer- basically started out as a reading lege in music and then Univer- sity of North Texas (UNT). Were band and has just snowballed sity of North Texas. Since school, both of you in the band from the over the years. I’ve been freelancing in Dallas beginning? playing with a lot of people and Nate: I’ve been in the band since R!S: What about you, Sput? What is doing sessions, which is where I the beginning. I met Mike when your background and how did met Mike. I met the rest of the I was a sophomore in college you come to be involved with guys through my friendship with playing in the basketball pep Snarky Puppy? Mike around ten years ago. band at UNT. My brother Nick Sput: I was born and raised in the was playing drums, I was play- Dallas area. I grew up in church R!S: And where did you get your nick- ing percussion, Mike was playing and have played the drums name? Does everyone call you bass, and one of the current for as long as I can remember. “Sput”? Snarky Puppy guitarists was My parents are musicians, so I Sput: [laughs] Yeah. My nickname playing guitar. Around the same was exposed to a lot of drums came from my Auntie. Ap- time, Mike wanted to start a and percussion just from being parently I was a big fan of the band where jazz wasn’t the fo- around them and listening to a Russian spaceship Sputnik, so cal point, but the music was a whole bunch of records.