David Valdés

Carmina Burana revealed (part 2)

“Carmina Burana” revealed (part 2). On June 24, my second article on “Carmina Burana” (this time dealing with the snare drum, tambourine and triangle parts) was published on the GROVER PRO website. You can read it HERE.   I hope you enjoy it. Please stay tuned for the next articles in the series.    … Continue reading Carmina Burana revealed (part 2)

“Rapsodie Espagnole”, by Ravel

“Rapsodie Espagnole”, by Ravel. “Rapsodie Espagnole“, by Ravel, is not only an important work in the symphonic repertoire; it also features wonderfully written percussion parts. Sadly, both the score and the particelle are plaged with numerous mistakes and missprints that the first edition has perpetuated in many performances and recordings. Because I played this work… Continue reading “Rapsodie Espagnole”, by Ravel

“Scheherezade”, roll or articulate?

“Scheherezade”, roll or articulate? Despite being one of the milestones in the symphonic repertoire, “Scheherezade” features, believe or not, many mistakes and misprints. Belaieff (I have already mentioned him in previous articles) published the score and parts in 1899 in Leipzig. Since then, we have played using the exact same edition: 135 years perpetuating the… Continue reading “Scheherezade”, roll or articulate?

Mahler No. 3. Snare drum in the distance.

Mahler No. 3. Snare drum in the distance. Celebrating the 25th anniversary of the “Príncipe Felipe” auditorium in Oviedo, the Oviedo Filarmonía and the Orquesta Sinfónica del Principado de Asturias join forces to play one of the most monumental works in the repertoire: Mahler´s Symphony No. 3.   This time, I am in charge of… Continue reading Mahler No. 3. Snare drum in the distance.

Bowings and stickings: “Polovtsian Dances”

Bowings and stickings: “Polovtsian Dances” Last June 3, GROVER PRO published a video on which I explain the relationship between the bow strokes on string instruments and the stickings on the snare drum. It is a continuation of the one that I already published using Falla´s “The Miller´s Dance” as an example , which you… Continue reading Bowings and stickings: “Polovtsian Dances”

Converting a tom into a snare drum.

Converting a tom into a snare drum. This project starts with a phone call by my colleague Adrián, owner of a 10″x7″ Tama Silverstar tom that he wanted to convert into a snare drum. The original tom. I disassembled all the parts so I could make the snare beds, a necessary structure so the snares… Continue reading Converting a tom into a snare drum.

Bowings and stickings: “The Miller´s Dance”.

Bowings and stickings: “The Miller´s Dance” Last November 16, Grover PRO published a video on which I stablish a relationship between the bow strokes on the string instruments and the stickings on the snare drum.   I am using Falla´s “The Miller´s Dance” (from “The Three Cornered Hat”) to show what I do to phrase… Continue reading Bowings and stickings: “The Miller´s Dance”.

A solution for Premier 632 strainers and similar ones

©Musikk-miljo.no

A solution for Premier 632 strainers and similar ones. I bet that many of you, like me, own Premier snare drums featuring the classic #632 snare strainer. ©Musikk-miljo.no Other brands feature this kind of holed plate too (like Ludwig), and I can see why you may end up hating this piece of gear, as attaching… Continue reading A solution for Premier 632 strainers and similar ones

A curiosity: on the anatomical and physical conditions required to play a drum

Dominio público.

A curiosity: on the anatomical and physical conditions to play a drum. As you already may know, I have a keen interest in everything related to the history and tradition of drums. Searching for information in the Biblioteca Virtual del Ministerio de Defensa (“Virtual Library of the Ministry of Defense”), I found a book entitled… Continue reading A curiosity: on the anatomical and physical conditions required to play a drum

The New Year’s concert, the “Österreichische locke” and tradition on snare drum

The New Year’s concert, the “Österreichische locke” and tradition on snare drum With the New Year´s Concert still fresh, today I´d like to write about something we all like: the snare drum “solo” preceding the traditional “Radetzky March”. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhEGMSOIptw Here you have the snare drum part. Apart from some misprints here and there, which can… Continue reading The New Year’s concert, the “Österreichische locke” and tradition on snare drum