Drums Clinic

NOTE: This article was originally published on the DAMES of Pa website.

Jeremiah’s at The Bullfrog Brewery in downtown Williamsport will play host to Four On The Floor: A Drum Symposium on Sunday, November 15th, at 5:00PM. Covering topics ranging from technique to performance and musicianship to the music business, the clinic will feature solo performances and percussive philosophies from four of Pennsylvania’s finest drummers, with a collective musical background spanning four decades across the globe – but all four of whom have roots in the area.

The drum clinicians will be Keith Bashnick (John Oliver & The Distinguished, The Red Rocket All-Stars, Tony Levin, Chuck Mangione), Shaun Gilmour (Grimace, The New Alcindors, The Dirty Nickels, Gary Burton, The Happy Accidents), Joel B Vincent (The Blind Chitlin Kahunas, Bo Diddley, Tino Gonzales, Joan Osborne, Rubber Soul) and Grammy-winner Steve Mitchell (Vince Guaraldi, Phil Lesh, Van Morrison, Leon Russell, Mose Allison, Lou Rawls). Friends all, each drummer will first offer individual segments to perform and discuss various topics, as well as to share stories from their experiences in the music industry, and the evening will culminate with a four-man drum solo that will surely rattle the rafters of The Bullfrog Brewery. With excellent acoustics and an intimate atmosphere, Jeremiah’s Listening Room above The Bullfrog Brewery is the perfect venue for this intimate evening of percussive passions shared.

Keith Bashnick, originally from Williamsport but now residing in Rochester, NY, currently performs with the original rock act John Oliver & The Distinguished. Shaun Gilmour, now a Williamsport resident, can be found performing in the region with The Dirty Nickels, The Lynn & Farley 4, jazz trio Blue Magnolia and his own fusion/drum-n-bass/breakbeat project, MonoRail. Joel B Vincent, a resident of Williamsport and also the creator and editor of BilltownLIVE.com currently performs with The Blind Chitlin Kahunas and The Doug McMinn Jazz Quartet. The Doug McMinn Jazz Quartet can be found on the first Wednesday of every month at The Bullfrog Brewery in Williamsport (7-10PM). Steve Mitchell can be heard these days with jazz trio Burgess, Mitchell & Seal, who perform regular weekly shows at several area venues, including Sundays at The Bullfrog Brewery in Williamsport (12-4PM), Wednesdays at Puirseil’s irish Pub in Lewisburg (6-9PM) and Thursdays at La Fontana in Bloomsburg (6-9PM). Steve also performs often with Ann Rabson, Ann Kerstetter, Steve Adams, EG Kight, Sascha Feinstein, The Mid-Life Cowboys, Averie Clark and many others, as well as offering personal drum instruction to a handful of fortunate students.

Admission to the drum clinic is $5 (or $2 for students), and seating is first-come, first-serve. Dinner reservations before or after the clinic can be made at The Bullfrog Brewery by calling (570) 326-4700. The Bullfrog Brewery (and Jeremiah’s Listening Room) is located at 229 West Fourth Street in downtown Williamsport. More information at The Bullfrog Brewery website.

Of worthwhile note, prior to the drum clinic (and every Sunday) from 12-4PM, the Bullfrog hosts the Sunday Jazz Brunch Workshop, which features the incredibly talented jazz trio Burgess, Mitchell & Seal (which includes “Four On The Floor” clinician Steve Mitchell) … and guest musicians are always abound. Make it a full day of music and “hop” into the Bullfrog early. The Jazz Brunch Workshop is a free show.

Four On The Floor : A Drum Symposium is graciously sponsored by Robert M. Sides Family Music Center, Billtown LIVE and Yoas Services.

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By Brenda