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RE: Cool...

Mark, look man, I'm not raggin' on ya. I'm just saying that the snare drum doesn't set the volume level for a band, unless it's a really bad drummer who doesn't have a clue (in which case, I'd go work for a different band!). Actually, now that I've said that, I remember back about 6 years ago when I played in a jazz big band. Our drummer sucked. He played too loud and he played too much. Not surprisingly, he also played in a rock band. A couple of times, he couldn't make a gig and we'd get this other guy, Paul, who was really good. Man, I wish he'd been our regular drummer!

Anyway, now that you've said that you used a 3' - 5' riser, that makes some sense regarding getting the cymbals out of other players' ears. I'da never thought that. Did he have to keep his head down so as not to hit the ceiling? Heck, the late great Buddy Rich only used a 1' riser (6' x 6', no carpet). And then there's the excellent Steve Gadd, who can play as soft or as loud as the bandleader wants. I first heard him at the MENC convention in 1972(?) in Atlanta with the Eastman Studio Orchestra under the direction of Chuck Mangione. He's gone on to give many many many great performances since then! Have you seen him on Eric Clapton's 2001 "One More Car, One More Rider" DVD? Ditto for my good acquaintance Stockton Helbing, who for the past couple of years, has been Doc Severinsen's drummer (and formerly was Maynard Ferguson's drummer and music director). Following in the footsteps of Louis Bellson and Ed Shaughnessy, those be some big shoes to fill.

So, my point is simply, if you're setting the sound as dictated by the snare drum, that's not a good thing.

When I ran sound for a rock band, the snare wasn't ever an issue. "Boom" was an issue. "Bleed" was an issue. But not the snare drum or the cymbals. (Note to rock band sound guys: Use the 80 Hz roll-off switch on the mics.)

With regard to book recommendations, start with Harry Olson's "Music, Physics and Engineering". It pretty much establishes the foundation upon which you can explore further. Some of the examples are dated, but, fortunately, physics hasn't changed.

:)



Edits: 11/11/14

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