Developing Your Own Voice: Style, Technique, and Expression

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Saturday, June 15, 2013

Written by Nicholas Schlesinger

On the road to growing as a drummer, I think it’s important to develop a style — or voice — of our own as part of our method of musical self-expression. I have noticed that the development of style tends to be traced to the drummers one is influenced by. As Ralph Peterson puts it, one must imitate and assimilate what we absorb in order to innovate and arrive at our own style.

With this in mind, I also believe it’s not just other drummers that influence our playing — it’s also our wider environment and other factors. I would like to bring the development of style and expressive voice into focus by breaking down the elements that constitute it in order to facilitate the process. My aim here is to offer an alternative perspective on the subject.

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