Well I am the girl in the video approximately 30 years ago. An old friend of mine saw this and told me about it, I had NEVER seen it. So happy for new technology! I love the 1980's hair! I really only slightly remember this day, but I just happened to be in Alex Music as was Sam. I always saw him around New York so we were friends, Sam was truly a classic!
Sam was an awesome human being!! I remember walking into Alex Music around 1980 and having a conversation much like this with him. I was 14 and He invited me to come up and sit in with his Big band!! I never took him up on the offer though. I said I wanted a leather stick bag but i couldn’t spend a lot he said “how much ya got?” I said $20 he screamed “Sold!” It was definitely a much more expensive bag but that’s the kind of man he was!! I did study with a drummer who was studying with him but sadly I never got the chance to study with Sam.
A great teacher who also told me to have an exercise routine, never get in credit card debt,and DON'T TAKE DRUGS. Aside form a great teacher he was a great man . I would call him a mensch. He taught me more than drums. Oh and his dog Satin Doll was a real trip at my lessons at his 42st St studio. May G-d rest his kind soul!
Well Sam was my teacher , but I studied also with Henry Adler and Jim Chapin I spent a lot of time with Sam in his studio , He made by hand and sold practice pads I helped him build the pads with gum rubber , blue masking tape and wood .We would cut the wood to size and gum rubber to size , using nails and tape we would assemble the parts together and sold the pads to students for $5.00 outsiders $10.00 well worth the pads were 14'x14" After work Sam always treated me to dinner at a nice NYC restaurant , then to watch him play a gig usually with Sol Yaggart at the Gaslight club . I argued with him all the time , he had some strange ideas and kind of knocked other teaches , who stressed technique and hand study . Sam stressed reading , but I said yes reading is important , but if your hands are not coordinated and strong how can you play the notes if the tempo of the piece of music is very fast .Your hands have to be in shape , you might be able to mentally read the part , but because you have weak hands you can't physically play the part on the drums . My point was you need to learn how to read , plus have good hands I studies Moeller method with Jim Chapin and learned to play faster , stronger , louder , using the least amount of effort with the whip motion Moeller taught . Sam was more then a teacher I called him the biggest BS artist in the business ,Your right he stress schooling using your brains , .Sam stress being a good person , integrity , being trustworthy and dependability Sam was a born teacher , not just drum , but about life , work ethic , family friends he was more then a teacher he was my friend and mentor . I started with him in 1966 I did the Mr. Rhythm show with Sam throughout the NYC public school system I did that through the 90's I did a few drum clinic Sam sponsored I remember one with Sam ,Roy Burns , Elvin Jones and Myself We each did a spot alone then Sam , Roy and Myself we then did a little battle Roy was an amazing drummer .It was a great experience as Sam student to be features on a program for drummer with maybe 1,000 people in the audience , mostly drummer and musicians watching. Sam was a character a genuine piece of work , to know him is to love him for sure RIP my friend
Never met Sam, but knew of him because of several New York drummers; his Drum Reader books are great. Practicing with copper tubes is a great tip - Don't know why I didn't start doing it decades ago. But anybody here who could suggest a practice pad that can withstand the pain? What did Sam use? My RealFeel pad is already beginning to show serious signs of wear after only a year!
@@musopaul5407 In Sam's studio I helped Sam make those practice pads, gum rubber , wood , glue, nails blue masking tape. We would lay out rolls of rubber, we bought a master roll of rubber 48" x 240" rolls We lay the rubber flat and cut 16" x16" pieces , At first we cut the wood to size in the studio , but saw dust was all over the studio , so we started buying the wood cut to size One bottom piece One brace piece And One piece for the playing surface that we glued the rubber , on the bottom we glued a black round thin piece of rubber , you would use to practice brush work and technique . back in 1966 he sold the pad ,To students for $5.00 in Frank Wolf music store down on the ground level from his studio they cost $10.00 and metal sticks which were very heavy $5.00 .. We also build a few Table pad with four legs , that did not sell very well . Sam also came up with the idea of the square stick I thought they were very cool , but the did not sell very well either , but Sam's brain was always working I remember we were sitting in his studio , we grabbed a pair of old fashion practice or marching sticks , and trimmed them square . We went to a machine shop and they used a lathe machine to cut the sticks to a square shape . I never used the conduit stick he is using in this video I imagine the metal stick were hard to get and expensive , Sam improvised . I started taking lessons and being friends with Sam in 1965 The first lesson I bought the pad which I still have , the metal sticks I still have and three book all written by Sam ABC Of Drumming , Bass Bops and The Buzz Roll I was working with a band playing six nights a week Metropole Cafe around the corner from Sam's studio . Like i said Sam was a great friend and mentor ,besides being my drum teacher Like in this video Sam is putting down Stick Control , a book just about every drummer when through , but not with Sam. He say to this young girl , something like not to put down other literature , playing LR LR is basically not the way to learn . I wanted another approach , So I went to Henry Adler directly across 47th Street from Sam , Sam was very upset , but one day he came to watch me play at The Metropole and I did some Mr. Rhythm show in The NYC public school system Sam was also a great salesman , as you could tell by this video , tell this young girl , everything your doing is wrong . Sam did not realize he was developing his hands all day At one time he was teaching 10 one hour lessons which usually went way over an hour . Sam was playing the lesson alone with his student . He was not necessarily playing 5 stroke roll rudiments , but it did not matter he was playing all day on a practice , then 9:00 or 10:00PM he do a gig with his band or with Sol Yagart band . After 20 years of doing gigs I started having hand pain and stiffness while playing . I heard Jim Chapin would be able to help . Sam did not believe in developing hands , in this video he tell the girl , there is no such thing as warm up which is ridiculous thing to say , but Jim taught about relaxation , body and hand movement and strokes . Moeller Method , which helped me play faster , louder and with the least amount of effort , with no stiffness or pain . So I believe you limit yourself by studying with one teacher , even Sam who has a definite approach and does not change from that approach .
To be honest I studied with Sam over 6 years and he was my friend and mentor for over 30 years. In 1966 Sam sold me metal stick , he did not use the conduit he is using in this video . I guess the metal stick were hard to find and expensive , or that music store he was working in did not have a distributorship for real metal stick , so Sam improvised .using metal sticks to practice is not very good idea , it does not make you faster , actually if you use a metal stick for a few hours, a wood stick seems foreign, the stick feels like nothing in your hand, you have no control of the stick , its too light , you can't feel the drum. Sam would say like a baseball player , used a heavy weighted bat before using his regular bat , now that logic is correct a regular bat certainly feels lighter , but that is because you usually just swing the weighted bad 4 or 5 times . Like in this demonstration Sam shows this young lady , a minute or so with the metal stick , then go to the regular wood stick , of course the wood stick feels like you could play all day , that feeling only lasts for maybe 5 minutes and the stick feels normal again nothing really accomplished . If your a beginner the metal stick might help develop hand strength then after a few years , just use a wood stick you feel comfortable with . I used metal sticks for 6 years , but was told its a old fashion idea . Back in the day drummers had practice sticks, heavy marching sticks , but nobody uses that method any longer , so to practice was heavy sticks proved to not be as effective as once believed .
@@franksaladino3938 Hello Frank. Thanks for your reply. I have two of those practice pads and still use them everyday! I also have the metal sticks from Bill Rotella as well as some lighting conduit, which is really well balanced and great fun to play with. Of course, you're right that Sam was playing all day, every day, and that certainly makes a difference, but I think his basic message is right; it's the brain that plays the drums, not the hands, yet most drummers spend most of their time developing the physical aspect of drumming. Of course, there is a physical component, that's why Sam wrote books like Chopbuilders and why he played with metal sticks. Another aspect of the work was body conditioning. This was a guy who used hand-weights everyday into his 90s! You spoke nothing less than the truth when you said Sam's brain was always working, and that's why I trust his view more than Henry Adler's or Chapin's. Chapin wrote two books, Adler wrote 3 1/2, and neither were very good players. I never studied with Adler but I did take a couple of lessons with Jim, and he had ONE thing, which was a nifty left-hand, but he couldn't swing a band to save his life. At his death, Sam had written over 3,000 books and was playing three nights a week into his late 80's. Sam thought more deeply about the drums and drum teaching than anyone I have ever met, and I've studied with a lot of teachers, including Gary Chaffee. Of course, you're right, no teacher has everything, and in the end I was studying with someone else on the side, because he taught something Sam didn't, but the foundation I got from Sam meant everything, and if I'd got it 20 years earlier, I'd be twice the drummer I am now (and I'm not bad as it is!) I completely agree with him about Rudiments; they are a total waste of time, have nothing to do with playing the set and, most importantly, they are not the RUDIMENTS of drum set playing! Again, Stick Control is nonsense, not because there is no technical benefit to be had from it, but because it doesn't teach you anything about music, any more than playing Hanon on the piano does. If you can already play and you know what you're supposed to be doing, then books like Stick Control and Wilcoxon can help improve your control, but if you do them from the beginning, they're a disaster because they get you thinking about drumming in a mechanical way. Sam's method teaches you about time, subdivision and it expands your musical vocabulary, just like reading a lot of books expands your spoken vocabulary. And, of course, it makes you a great reader. As to warming up, I never do and it doesn't bother me.
Mechanics are unimportant is the dumbest thing Sam always said ( like to this young lady ) Tell that to some of the greatest well respected teachers in the world Freddy Gruber , Jim Chapin , Tommy Igoe Drummer like Thomas Lang , Dave Weckl , Vinnie Colaiuta , Tony Royster , Billy Cobbham spent years learning mechanics , Freddy teaches body movement and , hand movement , the whip method or Moeller . Reading like Sam taught is very important if you want to do Broadway shows , TV , Movies studio work . or just to be a well rounded drummer is important , but like Sam is saying if you can't read your not playing the instrument , tell that to Buddy Rich or a bunch of other great drummer would could not read a note , but studied mechanics and play very well, Drumming is feeling not like Sam preaches mathematics . My only point is I learned how to be a good person a networking drummer , with integrity , honesty and confidence during my years with Sam , but learning with one teacher limits your view of becoming a opened minded musician
Sam is the biggest BS artist in the business .Stick Control by Ted Reed is one of the best books ever written for learning drums. Stick Control is praised by all the great drummer of our day , but I guess not Sam , remember he did not write it . Yes Sam is a smart guy and can make his BS sound right and interesting ( It is always interesting to hear Sam's opinion ) , by asking questions like ,What is a verse ? , or what is a rudiment? Its meaning less to know or not know the answer to any of his many elementary musical questions most people never bothered to learn , like the meaning of the word Rhythm ( his favorite question to ask ) I know some blind drummers that play drums with feeling , so you don't have to know how to read to play drums or any music . I rather play the rudiments , smoking fast and clean and have steady timing and great sounding drums then know the meaning of a certain word. Sam has some stock questions he uses to make people feel like he is the best teacher on earth and should start taking lessons from him today. . I studied with Sam for five years starting in 1966 .He starts his students with the metal stick ( I still use the ones he sold me $5.00 in 1966 ) a rubber pad , ( Still have the one he sold me $5.00 1966 ) he builds the pads in his studio with wood , blue masking tape and gum rubber he bought in big rolls .Three books all written and published by Sam Ulano ABC"s of Drumming , Bass Bops , and The Buss Roll . ( still have the books he sold me $1.00 each 1966 ) I did a clinic for him at The Palm Gardens NYC along with Roy Burns and Elvin Jones. So I could say I knew Sam very well I was also a good friend . I also studied with Henry Adler who had his studio on the same block as Sam 47Th Street they had Manny's and Frank Wolff on that street ( Sam was very upset I switched to Henry ) I also studies with Jim Chapin , all with completely different approaches to drumming teaching . Some of the best players like Thomas Lang , Dave Weckl , Tony Royster Jr. , Mike Mangini , I could make a list of a few hundred long who all studied the physical part of drumming for years . The Moeller method is the study of hand , wrist and arm motion , once learned could make your playing faster , louder, longer and with no stress on your body .The physical part of drumming is just as important then reading , especially if your playing for the love of just playing music with a bunch of friends , If you want to make a living playing music I would suggest besides having good chops you learn to read , sight read .You can't do TV , movie or most studio work without reading music , without a mistake , In the studio time is money so you have to get the part down in one or MAYBE two takes, if not you get fired and never hired again for studio work. Its really funny to me I heard Sam play hundreds of times , for years he played at The Gas Light Club in NYC with Sol Yaggart band , he did a 30 minute drum solo using every rudiment in the book , he did his singing and soloing , but make no mistake Sam used the rudiments , his own physical playing was awesome and he studied it for years . , he taught for 60 some years always with sticks in his hands , sometimes playing along with the students eight hours a day that is the physical part of drummer he claims is not important .Most teachers mine include , to get students interested in taking lessons , never ever mention , the only thing a drummer needs to understand is how to play a beat, steady timing and having great sounding drums is more important then reading or rudiments , but you can't learn timing or how to tune your drums without with other musicians , you have to go out and play music . if you want steady work , Sam was a fun guy to work with , to know Sam is to love Sam. I knew Sam's weakness I had a few fights with Sam having a different opinion and calling him out for some of his crazy ideas , but always have great love and respect for my friend The great Sam Ulano
I studied with Sam for 17 years. I didn't agree with everything he said and we often argued, but he was the deepest thinker about drums, drumming and drum teaching I ever came across, and that was after studying with some of the alleged "greats" like Gary Chaffee, Tommy Campbell, Bob Armstrong and Ed uribe. I learned from all of them, but if I'd met Sam 30 years earlier, I'd be twice the player I am now, and I'm quite good as it is. To say he was a bullshitter is just stupid. He had his schtick for sure, but he was one of the most sincere and dedicated teachers I've ever come across, and he could really play. I think he's quite right about the rudiments, and I think you have misunderstood what he was saying. I use stick control, I use Chapin, Ted Reed is ok if you understand how to use it, but they are not "great" books, they were just around before anyone knew better. You want to know a BS'er? Read what Dom Famularo has to say about those books....
I studied with Sam He was great and he had me learn Stick Control by the way it's by George L Stone and Ted Reed wrote Syncopation which Sam also used. Perhaps learn who wrote what Great books my brother. His and the others he used besides those two Buddy Rich Snare Drum Rudiments was another Sam taught me! I consider Stick Control my drummers Bible and the other two just as good. Plus Jim Chapin's books are so classic.
I had the Stick Control and Syncopation books, as does every drummer who bothers to study. Sam’s point with that was not that those things have no value, but that you can get the same control by practicing reading… and be learning to read as you do. Like everyone else I had my disagreements with Sam. And Alex Carozza would have been quite angry if Sam sold leather stick bags under cost! But Sam’s fundamentals in his method were solid, so solid that guys like Marvin Smitty Smith studied with him. Every teacher brings something different. But no other drum teacher on the planet has written a book called How To Lose Weight - and Fit Behind Your Steering Wheel lol
@@Gk2003m I guarantee I knew Sam way better then you , he was not just my teacher , but a good friend . I did about 100 Mr. Rhythm shows in the NYC public school system with Sam , I was featured on several drum clinic's hosted by Sam . One with Roy Burns , Elvin Jones Sam and Myself , the shows were at Palm Gardens , Westbury Music Fair . I helped Sam build practice in his studio out of gum rubber ,and wood , we bought by the 4' x 100' rolls 1/4" thick , Lumber , blue masking tape and glue , We cut the wood , rubber to size I must have assembled over 200 pads , one was build like a table. He did that in 1967 So I know Sam very well > He put down Ted Reed in this meeting with this young lady . The metal stick theory is a terrible approach . He sold metal sticks to his students back in 1966 not cut down metal pipe , I still have the practice and metal stick I bought with my first lesson along with the books ABC of Drumming, Bass Bops , and The Buzz Roll If you use the metal stick for two minutes , of course the regular stick seem very light , but if your practice for three / four hours and go use a regular say 5B stick , you'll find you have no control of the stick , it feel like nothing in your hand , after 20 minutes you certainly don't get faster . Sam is so wrong in a lot of this principals , reading is important , but you can't build your hands without doing rudiment , they don't have to be anything fancy just singles and doubles and maybe triplets , that is the rudiment that's all you need to know , every rudiment is just a combination . Sam use question " what is a rudiment " or What is Rhythm or What is a Chorus , or Bridge " All basic question you know what they are , but not the exact definition , but Sam does He uses that questions as a way to make you look dumb and him smart and decide to take lessons from him . The dictionary say rudiment The first principles of a subject . Drummer use the term to describe the first thing you do just single strokes RLRLRLRL and you learn RRLLRRLLRRLL and so on . You can't play a drum chart if your hands are not developed , every sax , piano , trumpet , schooled players of any instrument could read with their mind any drum chart , but because their hands are not developed they can't physically play what their mind is reading on the drums. You really can't develop your hand just by just practicing reading , it helps , but I bet Thomas Lang sat for hours doing doubles until it hurt . Sam is wrong again you could certainly play a gig without reading a note , but even if you could read any drum chart , but your hands are not developed you can't play a gig . So just because you could ready , like I said every musician that studied his instrument could read any drum chart , its the same thing as a regular piano chart , but without musical notes Sam knows that his hands are fully developed and yes his teaching all day playing along with his students did help him , but he had the basics down . Sam was great soloist , he sang his solo and played on the drum set what he was singing , very musical . I heard him at the Gaslight more then several times , plus I did the show with him . If Sam would have ask me to do doubles I would have been doing the doubles while Sam was going home the young lady was tired out in a few minutes . I know Marvin fairly never heard he studied with Sam Marvin grew up in Illinois and after high school went to Berklee What years did Marvin study with Sam ?? I say that is BS Although Sam was well liked a lot of people disagreed with him , but to know Sam is to love him . Besides his basic BS Sam is a smart guy , he taught me good life lessons , Sam has a big heart , stressed education go to school , he was right you can't learn anything with working hard and focus on self improvement
@@franksaladino3938 You seem pretty conflicted. If he was such a bullshitter, why did you study and work with him for so long? Sam asked questions to get you to think more deeply about what you were doing. The world is full of people who never develop because they never question what they've been taught. Sam questioned everything and encouraged me to do the same. You say you worked with him for 30 years? I say you missed the point and you also seem to have some axe to grind against him. Well, maybe that's fair enough; he could be difficult (and God knows we used to argue) and of course he had his limitations and is blind spots, as we all do, but I think you have completely misunderstood his point about rudiments and reading. The way Sam's playing flows in this video is astonishing. He's playing in 7, counting out loud, playing with metal stick, AND IT SWINGS! Jim Chapin couldn't do that to save his life.
Well I am the girl in the video approximately 30 years ago. An old friend of mine saw this and told me about it, I had NEVER seen it. So happy for new technology! I love the 1980's hair! I really only slightly remember this day, but I just happened to be in Alex Music as was Sam. I always saw him around New York so we were friends, Sam was truly a classic!
Wow. What an amazing moment!
So fun!!!! back in the old days in New York!
Wow, that must have been a really great surprise seeing yourself with Mr. Ulano 30 years ago. :-) Greetings....
Pam Jacobs Are you still playing?
That is so totally cool seeing you take the lesson back in the day!
Sam was an awesome human being!! I remember walking into Alex Music around 1980 and having a conversation much like this with him. I was 14 and He invited me to come up and sit in with his Big band!! I never took him up on the offer though. I said I wanted a leather stick bag but i couldn’t spend a lot he said “how much ya got?” I said $20 he screamed “Sold!” It was definitely a much more expensive bag but that’s the kind of man he was!! I did study with a drummer who was studying with him but sadly I never got the chance to study with Sam.
A great teacher who also told me to have an exercise routine, never get in credit card debt,and DON'T TAKE DRUGS. Aside form a great teacher he was a great man . I would call him a mensch. He taught me more than drums. Oh and his dog Satin Doll was a real trip at my lessons at his 42st St studio. May G-d rest his kind soul!
Well Sam was my teacher , but I studied also with Henry Adler and Jim Chapin I spent a lot of time with Sam in his studio , He made by hand and sold practice pads I helped him build the pads with gum rubber , blue masking tape and wood .We would cut the wood to size and gum rubber to size , using nails and tape we would assemble the parts together and sold the pads to students for $5.00 outsiders $10.00 well worth the pads were 14'x14" After work Sam always treated me to dinner at a nice NYC restaurant , then to watch him play a gig usually with Sol Yaggart at the Gaslight club . I argued with him all the time , he had some strange ideas and kind of knocked other teaches , who stressed technique and hand study . Sam stressed reading , but I said yes reading is important , but if your hands are not coordinated and strong how can you play the notes if the tempo of the piece of music is very fast .Your hands have to be in shape , you might be able to mentally read the part , but because you have weak hands you can't physically play the part on the drums . My point was you need to learn how to read , plus have good hands I studies Moeller method with Jim Chapin and learned to play faster , stronger , louder , using the least amount of effort with the whip motion Moeller taught . Sam was more then a teacher I called him the biggest BS artist in the business ,Your right he stress schooling using your brains , .Sam stress being a good person , integrity , being trustworthy and dependability Sam was a born teacher , not just drum , but about life , work ethic , family friends he was more then a teacher he was my friend and mentor . I started with him in 1966 I did the Mr. Rhythm show with Sam throughout the NYC public school system I did that through the 90's I did a few drum clinic Sam sponsored I remember one with Sam ,Roy Burns , Elvin Jones and Myself We each did a spot alone then Sam , Roy and Myself we then did a little battle Roy was an amazing drummer .It was a great experience as Sam student to be features on a program for drummer with maybe 1,000 people in the audience , mostly drummer and musicians watching. Sam was a character a genuine piece of work , to know him is to love him for sure RIP my friend
I new Sam Worked with him at Alex Music
This is almost exactly how Sam roped me into lessons :). One of the best drum gurus I ever had.
Yup. When you heard him play so effortlessly with a couple of bits of metal pipe while counting out loud, it was difficult to argue with!
Never met Sam, but knew of him because of several New York drummers; his Drum Reader books are great. Practicing with copper tubes is a great tip - Don't know why I didn't start doing it decades ago. But anybody here who could suggest a practice pad that can withstand the pain? What did Sam use? My RealFeel pad is already beginning to show serious signs of wear after only a year!
Sam made his own pads, thick rubber gaffa taped to a heavy block of wood. Mine has lasted 25 years and still going!
@@musopaul5407 Thank you!
@@musopaul5407 In Sam's studio I helped Sam make those practice pads, gum rubber , wood , glue, nails blue masking tape. We would lay out rolls of rubber, we bought a master roll of rubber 48" x 240" rolls We lay the rubber flat and cut 16" x16" pieces , At first we cut the wood to size in the studio , but saw dust was all over the studio , so we started buying the wood cut to size One bottom piece One brace piece And One piece for the playing surface that we glued the rubber , on the bottom we glued a black round thin piece of rubber , you would use to practice brush work and technique . back in 1966 he sold the pad ,To students for $5.00 in Frank Wolf music store down on the ground level from his studio they cost $10.00 and metal sticks which were very heavy $5.00 .. We also build a few Table pad with four legs , that did not sell very well . Sam also came up with the idea of the square stick I thought they were very cool , but the did not sell very well either , but Sam's brain was always working I remember we were sitting in his studio , we grabbed a pair of old fashion practice or marching sticks , and trimmed them square . We went to a machine shop and they used a lathe machine to cut the sticks to a square shape . I never used the conduit stick he is using in this video I imagine the metal stick were hard to get and expensive , Sam improvised . I started taking lessons and being friends with Sam in 1965 The first lesson I bought the pad which I still have , the metal sticks I still have and three book all written by Sam ABC Of Drumming , Bass Bops and The Buzz Roll I was working with a band playing six nights a week Metropole Cafe around the corner from Sam's studio . Like i said Sam was a great friend and mentor ,besides being my drum teacher Like in this video Sam is putting down Stick Control , a book just about every drummer when through , but not with Sam. He say to this young girl , something like not to put down other literature , playing LR LR is basically not the way to learn . I wanted another approach , So I went to Henry Adler directly across 47th Street from Sam , Sam was very upset , but one day he came to watch me play at The Metropole and I did some Mr. Rhythm show in The NYC public school system Sam was also a great salesman , as you could tell by this video , tell this young girl , everything your doing is wrong . Sam did not realize he was developing his hands all day At one time he was teaching 10 one hour lessons which usually went way over an hour . Sam was playing the lesson alone with his student . He was not necessarily playing 5 stroke roll rudiments , but it did not matter he was playing all day on a practice , then 9:00 or 10:00PM he do a gig with his band or with Sol Yagart band . After 20 years of doing gigs I started having hand pain and stiffness while playing . I heard Jim Chapin would be able to help . Sam did not believe in developing hands , in this video he tell the girl , there is no such thing as warm up which is ridiculous thing to say , but Jim taught about relaxation , body and hand movement and strokes . Moeller Method , which helped me play faster , louder and with the least amount of effort , with no stiffness or pain . So I believe you limit yourself by studying with one teacher , even Sam who has a definite approach and does not change from that approach .
To be honest I studied with Sam over 6 years and he was my friend and mentor for over 30 years. In 1966 Sam sold me metal stick , he did not use the conduit he is using in this video . I guess the metal stick were hard to find and expensive , or that music store he was working in did not have a distributorship for real metal stick , so Sam improvised .using metal sticks to practice is not very good idea , it does not make you faster , actually if you use a metal stick for a few hours, a wood stick seems foreign, the stick feels like nothing in your hand, you have no control of the stick , its too light , you can't feel the drum. Sam would say like a baseball player , used a heavy weighted bat before using his regular bat , now that logic is correct a regular bat certainly feels lighter , but that is because you usually just swing the weighted bad 4 or 5 times . Like in this demonstration Sam shows this young lady , a minute or so with the metal stick , then go to the regular wood stick , of course the wood stick feels like you could play all day , that feeling only lasts for maybe 5 minutes and the stick feels normal again nothing really accomplished . If your a beginner the metal stick might help develop hand strength then after a few years , just use a wood stick you feel comfortable with . I used metal sticks for 6 years , but was told its a old fashion idea . Back in the day drummers had practice sticks, heavy marching sticks , but nobody uses that method any longer , so to practice was heavy sticks proved to not be as effective as once believed .
@@franksaladino3938 Hello Frank. Thanks for your reply. I have two of those practice pads and still use them everyday! I also have the metal sticks from Bill Rotella as well as some lighting conduit, which is really well balanced and great fun to play with.
Of course, you're right that Sam was playing all day, every day, and that certainly makes a difference, but I think his basic message is right; it's the brain that plays the drums, not the hands, yet most drummers spend most of their time developing the physical aspect of drumming. Of course, there is a physical component, that's why Sam wrote books like Chopbuilders and why he played with metal sticks. Another aspect of the work was body conditioning. This was a guy who used hand-weights everyday into his 90s!
You spoke nothing less than the truth when you said Sam's brain was always working, and that's why I trust his view more than Henry Adler's or Chapin's. Chapin wrote two books, Adler wrote 3 1/2, and neither were very good players. I never studied with Adler but I did take a couple of lessons with Jim, and he had ONE thing, which was a nifty left-hand, but he couldn't swing a band to save his life. At his death, Sam had written over 3,000 books and was playing three nights a week into his late 80's. Sam thought more deeply about the drums and drum teaching than anyone I have ever met, and I've studied with a lot of teachers, including Gary Chaffee.
Of course, you're right, no teacher has everything, and in the end I was studying with someone else on the side, because he taught something Sam didn't, but the foundation I got from Sam meant everything, and if I'd got it 20 years earlier, I'd be twice the drummer I am now (and I'm not bad as it is!)
I completely agree with him about Rudiments; they are a total waste of time, have nothing to do with playing the set and, most importantly, they are not the RUDIMENTS of drum set playing! Again, Stick Control is nonsense, not because there is no technical benefit to be had from it, but because it doesn't teach you anything about music, any more than playing Hanon on the piano does. If you can already play and you know what you're supposed to be doing, then books like Stick Control and Wilcoxon can help improve your control, but if you do them from the beginning, they're a disaster because they get you thinking about drumming in a mechanical way. Sam's method teaches you about time, subdivision and it expands your musical vocabulary, just like reading a lot of books expands your spoken vocabulary. And, of course, it makes you a great reader.
As to warming up, I never do and it doesn't bother me.
Mechanics are unimportant is the dumbest thing Sam always said ( like to this young lady ) Tell that to some of the greatest well respected teachers in the world Freddy Gruber , Jim Chapin , Tommy Igoe Drummer like Thomas Lang , Dave Weckl , Vinnie Colaiuta , Tony Royster , Billy Cobbham spent years learning mechanics , Freddy teaches body movement and , hand movement , the whip method or Moeller . Reading like Sam taught is very important if you want to do Broadway shows , TV , Movies studio work . or just to be a well rounded drummer is important , but like Sam is saying if you can't read your not playing the instrument , tell that to Buddy Rich or a bunch of other great drummer would could not read a note , but studied mechanics and play very well, Drumming is feeling not like Sam preaches mathematics . My only point is I learned how to be a good person a networking drummer , with integrity , honesty and confidence during my years with Sam , but learning with one teacher limits your view of becoming a opened minded musician
Is it just a pair of metal tubes he uses as drumsticks?
emt conduit. For electrical wires
Sam used those.... he also had sticks made from aluminum and from steel. I still have the steel ones, somewhere. I’ll have to find them.
@@Gk2003m Also, from titanium and brass. The brass ones were too heavy for me but the titanium ones were great!
Hello BSGE
...nice lady:-)
Sam is the biggest BS artist in the business .Stick Control by Ted Reed is one of the best books ever written for learning drums. Stick Control is praised by all the great drummer of our day , but I guess not Sam , remember he did not write it . Yes Sam is a smart guy and can make his BS sound right and interesting ( It is always interesting to hear Sam's opinion ) , by asking questions like ,What is a verse ? , or what is a rudiment? Its meaning less to know or not know the answer to any of his many elementary musical questions most people never bothered to learn , like the meaning of the word Rhythm ( his favorite question to ask ) I know some blind drummers that play drums with feeling , so you don't have to know how to read to play drums or any music . I rather play the rudiments , smoking fast and clean and have steady timing and great sounding drums then know the meaning of a certain word. Sam has some stock questions he uses to make people feel like he is the best teacher on earth and should start taking lessons from him today. . I studied with Sam for five years starting in 1966 .He starts his students with the metal stick ( I still use the ones he sold me $5.00 in 1966 ) a rubber pad , ( Still have the one he sold me $5.00 1966 ) he builds the pads in his studio with wood , blue masking tape and gum rubber he bought in big rolls .Three books all written and published by Sam Ulano ABC"s of Drumming , Bass Bops , and The Buss Roll . ( still have the books he sold me $1.00 each 1966 ) I did a clinic for him at The Palm Gardens NYC along with Roy Burns and Elvin Jones. So I could say I knew Sam very well I was also a good friend . I also studied with Henry Adler who had his studio on the same block as Sam 47Th Street they had Manny's and Frank Wolff on that street ( Sam was very upset I switched to Henry ) I also studies with Jim Chapin , all with completely different approaches to drumming teaching . Some of the best players like Thomas Lang , Dave Weckl , Tony Royster Jr. , Mike Mangini , I could make a list of a few hundred long who all studied the physical part of drumming for years . The Moeller method is the study of hand , wrist and arm motion , once learned could make your playing faster , louder, longer and with no stress on your body .The physical part of drumming is just as important then reading , especially if your playing for the love of just playing music with a bunch of friends , If you want to make a living playing music I would suggest besides having good chops you learn to read , sight read .You can't do TV , movie or most studio work without reading music , without a mistake , In the studio time is money so you have to get the part down in one or MAYBE two takes, if not you get fired and never hired again for studio work. Its really funny to me I heard Sam play hundreds of times , for years he played at The Gas Light Club in NYC with Sol Yaggart band , he did a 30 minute drum solo using every rudiment in the book , he did his singing and soloing , but make no mistake Sam used the rudiments , his own physical playing was awesome and he studied it for years . , he taught for 60 some years always with sticks in his hands , sometimes playing along with the students eight hours a day that is the physical part of drummer he claims is not important .Most teachers mine include , to get students interested in taking lessons , never ever mention , the only thing a drummer needs to understand is how to play a beat, steady timing and having great sounding drums is more important then reading or rudiments , but you can't learn timing or how to tune your drums without with other musicians , you have to go out and play music . if you want steady work , Sam was a fun guy to work with , to know Sam is to love Sam. I knew Sam's weakness I had a few fights with Sam having a different opinion and calling him out for some of his crazy ideas , but always have great love and respect for my friend The great Sam Ulano
I studied with Sam for 17 years. I didn't agree with everything he said and we often argued, but he was the deepest thinker about drums, drumming and drum teaching I ever came across, and that was after studying with some of the alleged "greats" like Gary Chaffee, Tommy Campbell, Bob Armstrong and Ed uribe. I learned from all of them, but if I'd met Sam 30 years earlier, I'd be twice the player I am now, and I'm quite good as it is.
To say he was a bullshitter is just stupid. He had his schtick for sure, but he was one of the most sincere and dedicated teachers I've ever come across, and he could really play.
I think he's quite right about the rudiments, and I think you have misunderstood what he was saying. I use stick control, I use Chapin, Ted Reed is ok if you understand how to use it, but they are not "great" books, they were just around before anyone knew better. You want to know a BS'er? Read what Dom Famularo has to say about those books....
I studied with Sam He was great and he had me learn Stick Control by the way it's by George L Stone and Ted Reed wrote Syncopation which Sam also used. Perhaps learn who wrote what Great books my brother. His and the others he used besides those two Buddy Rich Snare Drum Rudiments was another Sam taught me! I consider Stick Control my drummers Bible and the other two just as good. Plus Jim Chapin's books are so classic.
I had the Stick Control and Syncopation books, as does every drummer who bothers to study. Sam’s point with that was not that those things have no value, but that you can get the same control by practicing reading… and be learning to read as you do. Like everyone else I had my disagreements with Sam. And Alex Carozza would have been quite angry if Sam sold leather stick bags under cost! But Sam’s fundamentals in his method were solid, so solid that guys like Marvin Smitty Smith studied with him. Every teacher brings something different. But no other drum teacher on the planet has written a book called How To Lose Weight - and Fit Behind Your Steering Wheel lol
@@Gk2003m I guarantee I knew Sam way better then you , he was not just my teacher , but a good friend . I did about 100 Mr. Rhythm shows in the NYC public school system with Sam , I was featured on several drum clinic's hosted by Sam . One with Roy Burns , Elvin Jones Sam and Myself , the shows were at Palm Gardens , Westbury Music Fair . I helped Sam build practice in his studio out of gum rubber ,and wood , we bought by the 4' x 100' rolls 1/4" thick , Lumber , blue masking tape and glue , We cut the wood , rubber to size I must have assembled over 200 pads , one was build like a table. He did that in 1967 So I know Sam very well > He put down Ted Reed in this meeting with this young lady . The metal stick theory is a terrible approach . He sold metal sticks to his students back in 1966 not cut down metal pipe , I still have the practice and metal stick I bought with my first lesson along with the books ABC of Drumming, Bass Bops , and The Buzz Roll If you use the metal stick for two minutes , of course the regular stick seem very light , but if your practice for three / four hours and go use a regular say 5B stick , you'll find you have no control of the stick , it feel like nothing in your hand , after 20 minutes you certainly don't get faster . Sam is so wrong in a lot of this principals , reading is important , but you can't build your hands without doing rudiment , they don't have to be anything fancy just singles and doubles and maybe triplets , that is the rudiment that's all you need to know , every rudiment is just a combination . Sam use question " what is a rudiment " or What is Rhythm or What is a Chorus , or Bridge " All basic question you know what they are , but not the exact definition , but Sam does He uses that questions as a way to make you look dumb and him smart and decide to take lessons from him . The dictionary say rudiment The first principles of a subject . Drummer use the term to describe the first thing you do just single strokes RLRLRLRL and you learn RRLLRRLLRRLL and so on . You can't play a drum chart if your hands are not developed , every sax , piano , trumpet , schooled players of any instrument could read with their mind any drum chart , but because their hands are not developed they can't physically play what their mind is reading on the drums. You really can't develop your hand just by just practicing reading , it helps , but I bet Thomas Lang sat for hours doing doubles until it hurt . Sam is wrong again you could certainly play a gig without reading a note , but even if you could read any drum chart , but your hands are not developed you can't play a gig . So just because you could ready , like I said every musician that studied his instrument could read any drum chart , its the same thing as a regular piano chart , but without musical notes Sam knows that his hands are fully developed and yes his teaching all day playing along with his students did help him , but he had the basics down . Sam was great soloist , he sang his solo and played on the drum set what he was singing , very musical . I heard him at the Gaslight more then several times , plus I did the show with him . If Sam would have ask me to do doubles I would have been doing the doubles while Sam was going home the young lady was tired out in a few minutes . I know Marvin fairly never heard he studied with Sam Marvin grew up in Illinois and after high school went to Berklee What years did Marvin study with Sam ?? I say that is BS Although Sam was well liked a lot of people disagreed with him , but to know Sam is to love him . Besides his basic BS Sam is a smart guy , he taught me good life lessons , Sam has a big heart , stressed education go to school , he was right you can't learn anything with working hard and focus on self improvement
@@franksaladino3938 You seem pretty conflicted. If he was such a bullshitter, why did you study and work with him for so long?
Sam asked questions to get you to think more deeply about what you were doing. The world is full of people who never develop because they never question what they've been taught. Sam questioned everything and encouraged me to do the same. You say you worked with him for 30 years? I say you missed the point and you also seem to have some axe to grind against him. Well, maybe that's fair enough; he could be difficult (and God knows we used to argue) and of course he had his limitations and is blind spots, as we all do, but I think you have completely misunderstood his point about rudiments and reading.
The way Sam's playing flows in this video is astonishing. He's playing in 7, counting out loud, playing with metal stick, AND IT SWINGS! Jim Chapin couldn't do that to save his life.
This is one of the best lessons I have ever seen.