Exciting Dixieland: Drum Book

Hot and spirited, with the loose, celebratory energy of New Orleans street music mixed with the precision of big band swing. These tunes have snap and personality; they demand a drummer who listens, responds, and knows when to sit back and serve the ensemble.

Drummers in high school or college jazz ensembles who are ready to move beyond basic rock and funk into the language of swing and Dixieland. This book works equally well for community jazz bands or rehearsal groups serious about building a solid repertoire foundation.

• Listen closely to the bass and piano during ensemble passages; your job is locking the time while laying back slightly behind the beat, not pushing forward.
• When trading solos, leave space for phrasing and breathing, especially on ballads like 'Lazy Daddy' and 'When You're Smiling'.
• Study the original recordings of these tunes to understand how swing drummers of that era approached ride cymbal texture and hi-hat articulation.
• Practice the basic brush patterns that frame Dixieland style; they're lighter and more conversational than straight-ahead swing brush work.

Build a full Dixieland or New Orleans jazz concert around this collection, pairing it with compatible horn and rhythm arrangements. You might also select individual tunes to anchor a "jazz standards through the decades" unit, using them as teaching pieces for studying era-specific comping and soloing approaches.

• Swing ride cymbal patterns and comping over changes
• Brush techniques specific to Dixieland and early jazz styles
• Trading solos within a jazz ensemble context
• Listening and locking the time with bass and piano
• Playing behind the beat while maintaining forward motion