Why is the drumset considered a generic instrument?

I sort of get why it's done, but that doesn't mean I have to like it.

What drives me crazy is that while it's frowned upon to change out a drum set, guitar players drag and set up full stacks and bass players bring up 8x10 cabinets and no one bats an eye.
 
I know so many pianists who insist on bringing in their 9-foot Steinways sometimes.

So true! Same with those pesky B3 players!

Many places provide pianos or amps to string players for the same reason; it cuts down on loading time. They are trying to make it easier for you, and minimize the downtime that the audience has to experience.

Maybe I'm used to it because in music school you just use school kits that just need cymbals and a snare, but this has never bothered me. I always bring my own snare, cymbals, and stick bag... It would be nice to have my own kit, but the cymbals and snare are the most important to me, and to my sound. I saw someone mentioned bass pedal, and that may be the case, but I really don't use the bass drum very much, so it doesn't really matter to me what pedal is there.

Most concert halls I've played at have a nice(ish) drum kit, you just have to bring a snare, cymbals, and some sticks/brushes. Other than concert halls, I've seen this at fesitvals, and it's more convenient for everyone to bring minimal gear, as it would take forever to setup entirely new amps and drum kits every 45 minutes (or whatever the duration is).
 
I disagree with the thread title and immature rant.
 
As much as I would like to swap out the house kit when I play I realize that time is an issue. So if I can I'll contact the place and get in early I'll either setup my own kit, or make damned sure the house kit is playable.

At the very least I'll swap out all the cymbals, snare, kick pedals, throne and setup my own cymbal stands if there isn't enough for what I want.

In the past when I've swapped out the house kit, I'll let others play on it for the night. I do it because I'm well aware of how it feels to play on a kit that looks like it was in a hurricane after being dropped off the back of a truck. Often the heads are trash, the kick pedal is sloppy, the toms are at weird angles and someone thought it was wise to put duct tape all over the heads.
 
Time to re-tune, put your cymbals/pedals/snare in place, deal with missing items/deal with bad carpet or none at all, deal with stands that don't securely tighten and slowly drop > setting up your own gear.
 
I always prefer playing my own kit, but can always get by relatively ok as long as the kit provided doesn't have power toms. There's 3 bands on the bill for my band's next gig and one of them asked if they could use my kit - I'm ok with that as long as they bring their own snare/BD pedal/cymbals, but I did have to give them a heads up that I like to keep a small footprint with this particular band as we have lots of members and many acoustic instruments, so all I'll be bringing is BD/SD/FT and just hi-hats and a crash/ride. I checked out the other band's Facebook page and looks like their drummer plays a 4 or 5 piece kit, with a couple of crashes and a ride. I get that the convenience of not humping their kit to the venue may be attractive, but if it was me I'd want my usual drum set-up rather than making do with a spartan set up like mine.
 
Time to re-tune, put your cymbals/pedals/snare in place, deal with missing items/deal with bad carpet or none at all, deal with stands that don't securely tighten and slowly drop > setting up your own gear.

I guess it depends on the venue; I played a concert hall in Boston the other day, and they had a decent Cannopus set that was in good condition. It had a snare stand, HH stand and two cymbal stands, which was more than enough for me. The bass drum was tuned a little higher than I like, but it was fine. Took me about 5 minutes to setup and break down.
 
I think its the one nightmare situation that flavors your future.

Never eat fish tacos from a road side stand...

Never loan money...

Never rely on the house/common kit....
 
Once thing I've noticed is working pro's don't get too wrapped up into this.

If a big name drummer is doing a clinic, they play the stores kit (with some rare exceptions).

Fly out gig? Rented gear.

Crossing an ocean? Rented or supplied gear.

Going into the studio? The drums are often the producers choice.

Subbing for someone on a tour? You're using the gear that's already on the truck.

Land a tour with an established artist? OK, you can bring your own drums, but they have to fit the image of established band, which may mean more or less drums than you're used to.

I love my drums, and I love a good drum sound, but over all, they're all round pieces of wood with a plastic membrane stretched over it. You hit them, they make a noise.
 
I love playing my own kit. I certainly think over the last 20 years of playing I have fine tuned the sound and style I like. However, I have a crappy kit in our practice space that I use so I don't have to load and unload at every practice. At home I have a Frankenstein kit for banging on.

My babies are for gigging but no complaints when we play the Casino circuit with backline provided. Show up 30 min before show time, on the road back home 15 min after the show is over. Those are the easiest gigs to play!
 
Because most drummers are generic, sorry couldn't resist a good poke at the average Joe, but it if you happen to be less interchangeable due to some real physical differences, it is particularly annoying. Of corse most people wear ill fitting XL clothes with tasteless over priced brand logos, so nothing to fear there.
 
Along the topic of the OP - It always blows my mind when someone will walk over and sit down and play my drums or percussion gear - of course without even asking. As though they are provided for public use. The vast majority of people seem oblivious that someone else actually owns that gear. I'm sure they would love if just I walked over, picked up their car keys and took their vehicle out for a little spin!
 
The vast majority of people seem oblivious that someone else actually owns that gear. ...

Or that it has intrinsic value, or that someone might have to pay money to repair it if abused.

I often tell the story of an older gentleman who played drums at a church I attended some years ago. He had a very well-maintained set of Pearl Exports, and he played with the most graceful touch you've ever heard. Sure, just Exports, but this is when they started doing those really nice lacquer finishes on them. The set this fellow had was the Ocean Blue lacquer with the grain showing, and he'd polished them so that they shone. Obviously he took great pride in these tubs and there wasn't a speck of dust on them.

One Saturday there was a wedding in our church, and so the staff took his drums, put them in the choir room behind the stage, and then shoved a whole bunch of the black metal Manhasset music stands up against them. A few fell onto the drums.

When he found his drums, they were all scratched up, including one gouge through the finish on one of his rack toms, and his front batter head was torn. He packed up his drums and took them home, and never came back to that church.

Same church, the youth drumset had to have every head replaced because the kids beat on it with plunger and broom handles until they had broken every drumhead. As if drumheads fall off trees or something.

I don't know where this mentality comes from, but I'm amazed how the rank and file see drums in general as expendable toys somehow.
 
That's funny I've noted that people do abuse the drum kit-that someone privately owns-left at church too. I think they believe they have to "beat the hell out of it". LOL. I've always taken special care playing others drums and I expect them to treat mine the same, which is generally the case. However when you leave a kit somewhere that kids can get to it expect some damage, which is odd since if they did the same to the church's organ or piano they would have a cow. It use to bother me having kids bang on my kit-now I encourage them too just to plant the seed of a new generation of drummers-given away a couple of older inexpensive kits to encourage drumming too. I think many drummers are ambassadors of drumming-I see many post on here.
 
I don't know where this mentality comes from, but I'm amazed how the rank and file see drums in general as expendable toys somehow.

I'd suspect it's in part due to how many drummers in the late 60's and 70's took the bottom heads of their drums, lost the hoops, and just stacked the drums inside each other between gigs. A big reason why 1960's vintage drums are so highly prized is so many were destroyed by their owners who didn't see their drums as something to take care of, lost 1/2 the parts, and chucked what was left.

4180459_orig.jpg


And of course, then there is this:
https://youtu.be/sACe54Y_lFE?t=92

and

https://youtu.be/9X-LWzFmZnA


And then, in the 90's:
https://youtu.be/tcuVeVkGAek?t=240
 
I think there is an opportunity here that might be missed.

If you come across a situation where this attitude is diplayed, run. Run away. Far away. Dont look back. Don't return.

I treat this attitude like a geiger counter. Never hang out someplace that sends it clicking like mad....all it will cause is hair loss and nausea.
 
Same church, the youth drumset had to have every head replaced because the kids beat on it with plunger and broom handles until they had broken every drumhead. As if drumheads fall off trees or something.

I don't know where this mentality comes from, but I'm amazed how the rank and file see drums in general as expendable toys somehow.

Children around drums is a dangerous thing... yes I said it, or rather unschooled, sugared up kids are rude to drums.

We have kids over visiting etc... and I have to repeatedly tell my family that the drums are OFF LIMITS. Furthermore I don't mind those same visitors playing the hand drums... with their hands. Someone will grab a mallet "oh", sez SWMBO" it's not a stick it is padded" Nope honey bunny to the unwashed it is a stick, pick up a "stick" and the next thing you know - broom sticks, coat hangers, slippers... whatever gets used to whack a drum head.

Rule number one: The curtain climbers only play the hand drums with their precious little hands. I'm sorry if it hurts to smack a drum with their hands, but maybe they will have to take a rest because, yes hand drums do sting (at first).

Rule number two: Unschooled kids will not play the drum set, cymbals or anything under the blanket, will not sit on the throne... verboten, NO, again NO and if those rules are broken I will take immediate verbal action on the kids and those who "allowed" the kid access to the off limits stuff.

Rule number three: if they want to play the drums with sticks. I will teach them starting with sticks and a pad. It will be formal and if they don't like it... seeya.

Amazingly everyone really only needs to be told once.
 
I think part of the reason it's regarded as "generic" is precisely because we DO use other kits, and generally make a good job of it.

No-one respects this as an additional skill. I wish they did, but they don't. It's just part of what we do.
 
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