The Interview (Interview)
My Thoughts:
Well, I
interviewed a man named Amir Ziv, who is a professional drummer and actually
the uncle of our very own, Daniel Chester-Ziv. I am very happy with this
interview and thought it went very well. I have learned a lot about how to go
about my practice sessions, and more importantly, how to be myself in the
drumming world. When I asked Amir for the best tip he could give me as I was
entering the drumming world, he told me, "Keep
fine tuning your practicing so that it becomes more and more focused and productive.
Learn from the greats but BE YOURSELF." It is awesome to learn
from the greats but more important to develop my own style. He couldn't stress
enough the importance of being your own drummer and not mimicking anyone
else. I will definitely make sure not to adopt anyone else’s style and create
my own, but Amir also offered be another great tip. In his answer to the same
question Amir said, “don't know what your skill level is, so in more general
terms, make sure to keep it fun or else the passion for it might leave for
something else.” Amir stressed the importance of having fun while playing.
Sometimes, I stress too much while playing, and make it too serious. I
definitely need to begin to have some more jam sessions, where I just release
stress and play what I want, and play along to songs I like. This will help me
keep my love for the drums beyond the Genius project. My favorite tip, or the one
I found the most helpful, was when I asked Amir about coordination. Here is his
answer from the interview:
Q3:
What is the easiest way to strengthen coordination while drumming?
"I don't think there is one easiest way. Being
able to vocally articulate, or sing what you are trying to learn how to play,
is one of the best tools I have found for strengthening coordination.
Practicing at very slow tempos enables you to really learn what is happening in
between the notes which in many ways is even more important as playing the
notes themselves, as the space between them is the glue that binds them
together and determines so much of the overall feel."
I took a lot out of this answer. It helped me to
understand that it is good to say what you are playing and sing along to the music.
The more familiar I am with the music the better I will be able to play. He
also stressed slowing down my playing, which I have heard before. I need to definitely
practice hitting the drum softer, which goes along with slowing down my playing
All in all, Amir really helped me to improve the
way I practice. Since the interview I have begun to make practice more fun, and
create an environment where I am excited to play. I have begun singing along
with the songs I play, and have attempted to take it more slowly, instead of
going too fast and stressing out my brain. I have also begun to listen to some
of the greats, in order to get a sense of the variety of styles of drumming,
and how I will work my own style into that mix. I am excited to keep drumming
with Amir’s tips in mind.
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