This is an interesting topic. We all like to debate whether open-handed drumming is a good idea, a bad idea, helpful, harmful, more convenient, less convenient, a fad, the way of the future, etc. etc. etc. In fact, I've taken part in numerous such discussions on this forum myself. But here's the thing - regardless of the conclusions we draw in these discussions, the fact is that open-handed drumming has greatly spread over the past few years, and it certainly doesn't seem to be slowing down!
When I started playing many years ago, nobody talked about open-handed drumming. Yes, Billy, Lenny, and Simon played that way. Yes, Jim Chapin and Gary Chester both recommended it in their landmark books. But it was not something that you normally saw when you watched a concert. It was not something that drummers debated on a regular basis. Personally, I don't even remember us using the term "open-handed drumming."
All of this has changed now. If I watch random drumming videos on YouTube, I always stumble upon a few drummers who play open-handed. A few years ago, I played in a bar band competition. At the event, I played open-handed (I can play both ways), and the drummer in the band right after me played open-handed as well. I recently went and saw a show with 3 bands. Out of the 3 drummers, 2 of them played open-handed. Every few weeks, somebody on this forum brings up "open-handed drumming." Modern Drummer magazine has been running articles about "open-handed drumming." And so on, and so on, and so on...
The point is that "open-handed drumming" is here in a big way now. It's almost not even worth debating about it anymore. It is here, and it is only growing. This seems obvious to me. In my opinion, the thing to do at this point is simply accept that it is here, accept that it works, and embrace it as part of the drumming world. Doing anything else will likely just make us look foolish in the long run. It's like the old quote "Those who say it can't be done are usually interrupted by others doing it." hahaha! It doesn't mean that we all need to play this way, but it's kinda silly at this point to pretend that it doesn't work or that it's only something for a tiny handful of drumming geniuses like Simon Phillips.
I guess I'm seriously dating myself here when I say this, but I remember when the same basic scenario occurred with matched grip and with double bass. There was a period when matched grip was viewed suspiciously by many people. Yes, a lot of great ROCK drummers played that way, but it was somewhat blasphemous to suggest that a drummer could play ultra-technical nuances with matched grip. Well, maybe Billy Cobham could do that, but he was obviously "an exception." And what happened? Little by little, while certain segments of the drum population scoffed and warned us that it couldn't be done, others in the drum world simply moved forward with it, and matched grip has become a dominant part of drumming...regardless of the technical level of the music. Max Roach switched to matched grip later in life. Jack DeJohnette has recently done the same. Bill Stewart, Ari Hoenig, Eric Harland, and countless others are now establishing a new norm for jazz with matched grip.
Double bass was largely considered a "gimmick" by many "serious" drummers just 20 ago. I remember it being called "cheating." I remember many drummers almost looking down on a person who had a double pedal on their kit. Well, I guess we all know what happened there! The double pedal and double bass playing in general has not only become accepted, but it has reached a level of popularity that nobody could have predicted. As a teacher, at this point, I honestly feel that I need to stay up on double bass or find a different career! Living in New York, I've had the good fortune of seeing Steve Gadd play numerous times recently. And guess what...Steve is now using a double pedal. Yep, he likes to do fills and big finishes with it. Oh, and by the way, he is also playing almost exclusively matched grip now. So...things change, and drumming techniques evolve. The greats are rarely the ones who fight this. What would be the point? By fighting it, we only limit ourselves and then often end up eating our words 15 years later. I propose that we acknowledge the growing popularity of open-handed drumming, acknowledge that it does open up some nice possibilities, acknowledge that it probably isn't going away at this point, and embrace and practice it to whatever degree we think it can add to our personal drumming vocabulary.
