Gavin Harrison here!

Hey Gavin!, thanks for the response!!!

one more question here :)

I know there are drummers that only hear the bass, or the guitars in their in-ear mix. What do you listen in your in ear mix? all the band? or some of them? Personaly I like to listen to everybody but I have had some problems where the bass doesn't let me hear anything at all because of the acoustics of the venue, and I'm not comfortable with that, obviously, no in-ear here, yet :)

Cheers!!
 
Hey Gavin!, thanks for the response!!!

one more question here :)

I know there are drummers that only hear the bass, or the guitars in their in-ear mix. What do you listen in your in ear mix? all the band? or some of them? Personaly I like to listen to everybody but I have had some problems where the bass doesn't let me hear anything at all because of the acoustics of the venue, and I'm not comfortable with that, obviously, no in-ear here, yet :)

Cheers!!

I'm pretty sure he answered this question already! =)
You could also search askgavinharrison.com

All the best and good luck!
 
Hi Gavin,

just a little question:

I'll be in studio soon and the producer wants to clean my cymbals to get more overtones of them... I'm a bit scepitcal to clean my K-Custom Dark Cymbals because everytime I clean them, they seem to become much harder in sound..

Do you clean your cymbals before recording to get more overtones out of them?



Thanks!
 
Kalma!

If you don't want to clean your cymbals because of the reasons you mentioned, then don't! It's your stuff, your music, your sound! It has to be your decision!

What the producer says should be considered as an advice only! You can think about it, but the decision is yours! In my opinion, the final word should be yours every time. I would never allow anyone to force me to do something I'm not comfortable with, but If what he/she says sounds reasonable/logical/etc, you can change your mind. But "just because" the producer wants you to, because he wants more overtones, my answer would be: sorry, but no!

And regarding your question: I think Gavin wrote once that he never cleans his cymbals.
 
What the producer says should be considered as an advice only! You can think about it, but the decision is yours! In my opinion, the final word should be yours every time. I would never allow anyone to force me to do something I'm not comfortable with, but If what he/she says sounds reasonable/logical/etc, you can change your mind. But "just because" the producer wants you to, because he wants more overtones, my answer would be: sorry, but no!

Hey! Thanks for the answer!
Yes, I'm off to say "no - give me other cymbals then"..
But I'm playing for a guy.. So the song is not for me. But in my opinion: If he doesn't like my sound or my cymbals he can give me other cymbals or take another drummer :D

btw: I wanted to know if gavin cleans his cymbals in purpose to get more overtones, not because they look better then..


Thanks anyway!
 
Damn, gotta get the word out then! I know how to get the attention of local venues in possibly getting bands to play there, but I have no idea how to do a similar thing for a drum clinic tour.

Any ideas?

Perhaps start a thread asking people to bombard the corporate offices of Sam Ash & Guitar Center with emails requesting a Clinic Tour by Gavin Harrison?? Anyone else?
 
Hello Gavin,
I made a chime like yours about a month ago, but it cracked a few days ago.
photo1pym.jpg

Any ideas on how to prevent it from happening again.
 
Hi Gavin, I have some question about pocket drumming....Can you tell me what it is? Some friends tell me about it, but I want some more info from a PRO....Are you playing in pocket (In Porcupine Tree you are not playing in pocket because of rhytmic illusions right?)

And one more question. I heard about a machine for practise that makes a click with a bass line and it´s recommended for practicing odd times...I think you mentioned it on your workshop in Germany...do you know something like that? How to practise odd times to make them feel naturally to the drummer?


Thanks :)
 
thanks swissmathias, i think i'll buy the books when payed my drumkit back :)
another question gavin:
how did you make your snaredrum sound so dampened and low on the modern drummer festival gig? i understood you played a 14x5,5 or 14x5, which usually dont produce such a a sound.
 
Hi szokematyi

Is this the one that cracked during one of the recording sessions last year? Or a few years back? (OSI maybe?) The one you've bought from your former teacher I think?

Unfortunately yes.

A question: Have you ever had the chance to see/use/etc. the Roland RMP-5 Rhythm Coach? Anyways, If you know this product, would you recommend it?


I have a Beatnik RA1200 - which does a similar kind of rhythmic and accuracy training. I don't know the Roland one.

Hi janplaysonor

What Shell Material are your toms and bassdrum and how thick are they?!


They are Maple - and the toms are "thin" floor toms are "medium" and the bass drum is "heavy" shell.

Hi sonorplayer

I'll be at the clinic in Dublin. Looking forward to that. Any idea what songs you might be playing?


yes I have a good idea of what songs I'm going to play :)

Also, I see on the poster it says 'plus full support'. What does that mean? You're gonna have an act on before you?

yes I believe someone is playing before me - but I don't know who it is right now.

Hi K_HiHats

"In Absentia" (although I found somewhere that you used 12 inch Remix hats?),
"

yes I think I did.

Deadwing," "Fear of a Blank Planet" and "Nil Recurring" (should be the same for both right?), plus the song 'Normal' because the hats differ from the rest of Nil Recurring (at least it seems), and "The Incident." Oh! Wait! The 05Ric albums "Drop" and "Circles" too. (I hope that's not too much to ask !?!)

If I remember right they were all 13" K Zildian hi hats.

Also, did you use something else for filming in Tilburg because the sound is different from your normal 13 inch K's on tour (which I have and love thanks to your influence) but the lighting makes it look the same as the K's you normally use on tour (In America).

I have a few pairs of 13" Ks - but they were definitely on all of the shows. Lighting and eq may differ from show to show of course.

Hi Swiss Matthias

I love both kinds of music (groove-oriented, louder playing versus more open, swinging,
abstract, ride cymbal centered playing), but it's so hard to bring it together, so to speak.
Did or do you have similar experience (maybe even now, while on tour say with Porcupine Tree, and playing a jazz gig somewhere in the middle)? If so, how did or do you cope with it?


I love playing both - although I do much less jazz playing these days - and I can feel rusty if I don't keep it up. Basically my thought process is the same for both. I want to find the groove and make the music feel good - and try to play as musical as I can. Some nights are better than others of course - it depends on your mood and amount of concentration.

Hi Metronome

My question: I've played for 13 years, I'm in my late 20's and I don't feel like I've developed enough dexterity in my feet or hands; separating feet from hands, etc. Is there a proven method for accelerating this process? By now I feel like I should be able to play different tempos simultaneously with either limbs.. not the case. Any suggestions?


We're all in the same boat - just at different stages of development. I don't think there's any "accelerated' - short cut method - you just need to practise and listen.

Hi Kalma

Do you clean your cymbals before recording to get more overtones out of them?


No - and I don't think you'll get more overtones out of them by cleaning them - unless they really are incredibly dirty.

Hi HauntedSnare

I made a chime like yours about a month ago, but it cracked a few days ago. Any ideas on how to prevent it from happening again.

yep - don't hit it so hard on the edge. There's so many dents there - it looks like you have really been smashing it like it was a crash cymbal. Also it doesn't look round to start with - so probably it was always going to have some weak areas in it.

Hi mamut

I have some question about pocket drumming....Can you tell me what it is?

it's a confusing term - but what I've always believed it to mean is when someone is playing on the back of the beat and making it feel very relaxed.

Are you playing in pocket (In Porcupine Tree you are not playing in pocket because of rhytmic illusions right?)

sorry I don't understand that question.

I heard about a machine for practise that makes a click with a bass line and it´s recommended for practicing odd times...I think you mentioned it on your workshop in Germany...do you know something like that? How to practise odd times to make them feel naturally to the drummer?

the machine that I had 30 years ago was a Roland TB303 bassline. I managed to program in some odd time bass riffs so I could just jam over it. It didn't have a click. You could make this kind of thing with Logic or Cubase or something similar. Just playing over a riff in an odd time for 30 minutes can make you begin to feel comfortable with that time signature.

Hi LuukMeijwaard

can you maybe break down the little filly things that you do in the beat on the GH05 song "crisis"?

you might like to see the book that I made with Terry Branam called "Rhythmic Designs" it is detailed transcriptions of every song of the first two albums that I made with 05Ric (and of course Crisis is in there).

Hi LuukMeijwaard

how did you make your snaredrum sound so dampened and low on the modern drummer festival gig? i understood you played a 14x5,5 or 14x5, which usually dont produce such a a sound.

it's a 12x5 snare drum.

cheers
Gavin
 
Hello Gavin
Have recently discovered you and your work, and eagerly await your Manchester clinic in June.
Is there any advice regarding practice routines and in particular bass drum/snare syncopation you could give to myself and maybe others who have returned to the throne after a few years?
Many thanks
John

Ps. You are a credit to your profession and an inspiration to us all.

Cheers
 
Hey Gavin! Before I had wrote the question, I considered the fact it might have been just one pair of hats with different mics on each album. What caused me to think they were different was from a pic on google showing you from one of your first 2 DVDs, and the hats looked different from your normal K's. Plus, he album "Deadwing" just sounded so different from the normal sound of the K's Oh well. At least I have a pair of 13 inch K's, hence my username. I have another question coming, but I feel that if I put it in this box, it'll feel too cluttered. Thanks and Cheers --Peter
 
And so I reappear over an hour later. I guess you can see that I'm obsessed with the hi hats of a kit. In my opinion, if your hats suck, they're not worth playing, although that seems a bit extremist then again. But the point is: I LOVE HI HATS! So, my next question is about your technique with your hats...

First off, how did you decide to play your ride patterns with some open hi hat in between the hits of the ride? When did you start doing this? Let me say, that was one of the main reasons I got interested with your drumming, however, that list of reasons has further expanded now.

And for slower songs on the ride such as 'Glass Arm Shattering' (my favorite Deadwing track) and 'My Ashes', how did you decide to play those kinds of songs with a hi hat chick on the eighth note before the snare hit, and then later hitting the hi hat while open on the last eighth note of a measure and letting it sustain until the next snare hit? (I hope my description is understandable! This is the best I can describe this stuff.) Plus, is that sort of technique common with other drummers? (Here in the U.S., I've never heard it anywhere else besides from you) Also, when did you start using this technique, although it seems that you started using it somewhere between "In Absentia" and "Deadwing."

Finally, in an unrelated topic, I would like to know what time signature the "odd bell pattern" section of 'What Happens Now' is in? (It's around 5:13 into the song)

Thanks for putting up with my "multi-question posts." I'll try to tone it down from here on.

Cheers --Peter

By the way, just got your book, "Rhythmic Illusions." I'm through page 16 so far and loving it. It feels so good to see your logic behind all of it and to learn about it. 5 Stars!
 
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Hi Gavin,

i have a question about your rack/micing setup:

I see that you have most of your mics mounted on your rack. Im always bothered with the mic stand forest you get when you closemic everything using mic stands, so i consider it a great idea to mount the mics on the rack. i'm now trying to figure out how to do that the smartest way... how exactly do you mount the mics on the rack? (clamps/stand parts)

Also, do you ever run into problems with unwanted solid-bourne sound travelling through the rack into your mics, and if you use some kind of acoustic decoupling in the way you mount the mics. If im correct, your overheads are mounted on ordinary mic stands, perhaps because of the before mentioned problem?

thanks a lot!
 
What caused me to think they were different was from a pic on google showing you from one of your first 2 DVDs, and the hats looked different from your normal K's. Plus, he album "Deadwing" just sounded so different from the normal sound of the K's

Quite odd that I'm quoting myself, as I discovered that the picture I was talking about had your 12 inch remix hats in it, as well as any videos from your first two DVDs. Thus, I'm having an "Ah ha!" moment as well as "You idiot." Cheers --Peter
 
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