Playing along with records is key. And as far as equipment goes it has gotten so much more affordable and the drum sets are of great quality. I play Pearl; their Export Series is great for a beginner.
Meaning of the quote
Playing along with music you listen to is very important for learning the drums. Drum equipment has also become much more affordable these days, and the quality of beginner drum sets is really good. The musician Chad Smith prefers to use Pearl's Export Series drums, which he thinks are great for people just starting to learn the drums.
About Chad Smith
Chad Smith is the longtime drummer for the legendary rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. He’s also played with a variety of other artists and has been involved in charity work, especially supporting music education in public schools. Chad Smith is renowned for his skills as a drummer and his diverse musical collaborations.
More quotes from Chad Smith
Playing well with others is important – not being too flashy, just keeping good time and of course coming up with cool beats. A good snare drum, kick drum, high hat. Just getting good at the hand feet coordination.
American drummer
Playing along with records is key. And as far as equipment goes it has gotten so much more affordable and the drum sets are of great quality. I play Pearl; their Export Series is great for a beginner.
American drummer
I had sort of exhausted all the avenues playing in Detroit. So again, through the stewardship of my brother, I ended up in California and went to the Musicians Institute in L.A. I wanted to get better as a player.
American drummer
For live you need a microphone for the snare and the high hat, the kick drum, a nice stereo overhead and one for the toms – you can get away with using four mikes.
American drummer
Its very sort of spontaneous and organic, not a preconceived sort of jamming. Now we record everything, cause sometimes you’ll forget, you know, ‘what was that thing again?’ So we record everything.
American drummer
Flea and Anthony are into funk, like old school Meters and stuff like that.
American drummer
I met the guys through a friend of a friend, and their former drummer had quit. I wasn’t too familiar with the Chili Peppers before that, so I joined at the end of 88′ and we finished recording Mother’s Milk at the end of 89′, next thing I know I’m in Spin with a sock.
American drummer
Sometimes one of us will have a riff or a bass line from home but it really gels when we come together. We really have a strong special chemistry that we take advantage of when we get together.
American drummer
I took a private lesson, but it didn’t really work out, so I went back to playing along with records. That’s really the thing that got me into playing a lot – getting excited about playing along with my favorite bands like Zeppelin and Black Sabbath.
American drummer
We always feel pretty creative as far as writing songs. We write them together; we just get in a room, or on occasion in Flea’s garage. We just sort of improvise, like jazz musicians.
American drummer
I was in every band class I could get in, like after school jazz band and marching band, and that’s where I really learned to read music from elementary all the way through junior high and high school.
American drummer
Drums all have their own particulars – each drum has a place where they sound the best – where they ring out and resonate the best, and the head surface isn’t too loose or too tight, mainly so you get a good rebound off of the head.
American drummer