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Book Review:
Paul Wertico - Turn The Beat Around
Modern Drummer
Inside Methods
Paul Wertico’s Turn the Beat Around
by Martin Patmos
Paul Wertico long ago established himself as a creative force. He’s a
drummer with excellent technique, great feel, and a strong sense of texture
and color. Yet he’s also a drummer who makes observations, asks questions,
and inevitably comes up with unique approaches and fresh solutions.
Wertico came to widespread attention during his stint with the Pat Metheny Group,
a gig that lasted from 1983 to 2001 and earned him seven Grammys. Wertico is
not only a skilled performer, though, he’s a respected teacher. Based
in Chicago, he’s an associate professor of jazz studies at Roosevelt University’s
Chicago College of Performing Arts, and his main goal is to challenge his students’
ideas. The drummer’s new book, Turn the Beat Around, exemplifies his penchant
for thinking outside the box.
Observation
And what about those observations, questions, and fresh ideas? Turn the Beat
Around fully demonstrates Wertico’s predilections, with the premise being:
What if the backbeat were placed on 1 and 3, rather than the usual 2 and 4?
In his introduction to the book, Wertico makes the astute observation that the
backbeat has developed a stronger emphasis over time. Early jazz, for instance,
didn’t emphasize it as strongly as modern styles do. Similarly, rock,
R&B, funk, and other forms of backbeat-driven music grew from emphasizing
it to really emphasizing it. In some cases, Wertico posits, certain types of
music can become overly defined by that backbeat.
Question
So, has it always been this way? Does it have to be this way? What happens if
the backbeat is not on 2 and 4? Taking a look back, we can find examples of
backbeats on 1 and 3, the downbeat—or as Wertico sometimes refers to it,
the “frontbeat.” Perhaps the most famous instance is Ginger Baker’s
playing on Cream’s classic track “Sunshine of Your Love.”
Other examples can be found as well, including future Foreigner drummer Dennis
Elliott’s playing with the band If, and John Bonham’s approach to
Led Zeppelin’s “Dazed and Confused.” Tony Allen, Shelly Manne,
and Roy Haynes have experimented with emphasizing 1 and 3 at times as well.
Idea
As Wertico developed this line of thinking, Turn the Beat Around began to take
shape. Designed to be used in an open-ended manner, it offers exercises with
quarter-note, 8th-note, 16th-note, and triplet grooves, followed by variations
on snare, bass drum, and ride patterns. In this way, the exercises and concept
can be approached by players at any level. In practice, these beats sound familiar
yet unexpected at the same time. They might seem to reference some lost African
or samba groove and bring some new interpretations to the beat.
Yet Turn the Beat Around is about more than simply the mechanics of 1 and 3.
“Books should not only help you technically but also conceptually, and
make you more aware of things that you might not be aware of,” Wertico
says. “In writing this book I really wanted it to not just be about frontbeats
but about improving drumming overall. I’ve been using it with students,
and when they go back to the backbeat after working on the frontbeat, their
1 and 3 on the bass drum is so much fatter and more pronounced. The intention
is not to replace everything necessarily, but to strengthen people’s time
and feel, and that seems to be working.”
In essence, then, it strengthens the time, feel, and playing of the backbeat
by increasing awareness of the frontbeat, while developing a new creative avenue
for the player as well. “Beyond a drummer, an arranger or composer can
use this concept to start thinking differently,” Wertico says. “Why
does it always have to be on 2 and 4? Not only the drums [could be affected]
but the way the whole rhythm might section work. You displace it, and all of
a sudden you’ve got a different arrangement of something you’ve
always played the same way.
“I’ve done it on some gigs now,” Wertico continues, “and
the look on people’s faces is like, Wow, what is this! Musically it can
work—it seems to make it a little more urgent perhaps. I’ll tell
[the band] I’m going to do it up front, though. You want to make sure
at first that they’re aware you’re going to do it, but it creates
really interesting results.
“Expand your concept, expand your hearing,” Wertico adds. “That’s
what this is about.”
Now Wertico has been involved with numerous high-level projects and released
many albums as both a sideman and a leader. AfterLive, the latest release by
the trio Wertico, Cain, and Gray, involves an improvised performance—“one
hundred percent made up on the spot,” Paul is quick to point out. Truly
open ended in their thinking, Wertico, David Cain (sax, voice, keys), and Larry
Gray (bass, cello, flute) mix a range of styles and sounds both acoustic and
electronic, referencing everything from art rock to free jazz. Wertico can be
heard creating and navigating textures, playing with drive and spontaneity,
and keeping the performance fresh—never an easy feat in completely on-the-spot
composition/performance situations. “You don’t want to be boring,
or vague, or just noodle,” Wertico says. “You’ve really got
to come up with the goods.”
Study Suggestions
“A lot of times I’ll suggest to students to practice with a song,”
Wertico explains. “It’s great to practice with a metronome, because
you’re going to work with a click, but if you practice with a really good-feeling
track, you’re not only working on feel, you’re also learning a song
and you’re working on form.
“Find some really great tracks that groove—an Al Green track, for
example—something with a really good feel, and play along with that while
trying the frontbeats. Try the frontbeat, try to do fills, try to do the coordination,
and then go back and play it the way Al Jackson Jr. did, normally, and see the
difference in how that feels. I think it’s pretty enlightening.”
For more information on Turn the Beat Around, visit paulwertico.com.
Not So Modern Drummer
Paul Wertico's "Turn The Beat Around" now available from Alfred Music
December 7, 2017 David Barsalou Alfred Music, the leading publisher in music
education since 1922, announces the release of Paul Wertico’s, Turn the
Beat Around, A Drummer’s Guide to Playing “Backbeats” on 1
& 3.
Turn the Beat Around breaks decades-old routine by examining “backbeats”
in a whole new light, asking the questions: “Why are backbeats always
played on beats 2 & 4?” and “What about playing them on beats
1 & 3?” By delving into this inquiry, Paul Wertico provides drummers
with innovative ways of expanding groove vocabulary, solidifying time, and mastering
coordination and limb independence. Wertico has even coined a new word for these
types of reversed beats—frontbeats.
Hailed in the press as “One of the most versatile and musical drummers
in music today,” Paul Wertico gained worldwide recognition as a member
of the Pat Metheny Group from 1983 to 2001. During his tenure with Metheny,
Wertico played on ten recordings and four videos, appeared on numerous television
shows, and frequently toured around the world. He also won seven Grammy Awards
(for “Best Jazz Fusion Performance,” “Best Contemporary Jazz
Performance,” and “Best Rock Instrumental Performance”), magazine
polls, and received several gold records.
“I wrote this book to help drummers explore an alternative way of thinking
and grooving, and the book is for all drummers, since it runs the gamut from
simple to complex, regardless of their musical style”.
Here’s a brief description:
Habits and traditions are often hard to change, but discovering new and creative
ways of rearranging and rethinking established norms is what distinguishes a
great drummer and provides endless challenge and possibilities. TURN THE BEAT
AROUND breaks decades-old routine by examining "backbeats" in a whole
new light, asking the questions: "Why are backbeats always played on beats
2 & 4?" and "What about playing them on beats 1 & 3?"
By delving into this inquiry, Paul Wertico provides drummers with innovative
ways of expanding their groove vocabulary, solidifying their time, and mastering
coordination and limb independence. Wertico has even coined a new word for these
types of reversed beats: frontbeats.
Last, but not least, Wertico Cain & Gray are releasing their new CD entitled
AFTERLIVE.
Turn the Beat Around is available for $19.99 at music retail stores, online
retailers, and alfred.com.
http://www.alfred.com/Products/Paul--00-44214.aspx
Great podcast interview with Paul Wertico and chock full of info. Paul has a
revolutionary new book out called Turn the Beat Around and he discusses the
concept, along with his 6th CD with Wertico, Cain and Gray. Paul is one of those
guys who has so much knowledge to impart...which I guess is why he's an Associate
Professor of Jazz Studies at Roosevelt University in Chicago...take a listen.
http://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-mydty-7c81e3#.WhIfvhoH00U.facebook
Moulder Gray Wertico
PAS Percussive Notes
Paul Wertico’s Turn the Beat Around
by Jason Baker
Grammy-Award-winning drummer Paul Wertico will challenge your independence and understanding of groove with this interesting and forward-thinking method book. Breaking from tradition, this text focuses on using beats 1 and 3 as backbeats, instead of the regular 2 and 4. Wertico begins the book with a detailed explanation of his reasoning, as well as musical examples where "turned around" beats have been used.
The exercises begin at an elementary level with quarter-note figures. These progress into eighth note, sixteenth note, and triplet patterns, all with the snare drum playing on beats 1 and 3. Exercises developing independence and elaboration of ride cymbal, bass drum, and hi-hat are given. Wertico encourages the reader to practice the exercises both open-handed and "crossed over." The second half of the book provides pages of separate ride cymbal, bass drum, and hi-hat patterns that can be played in conjunction with each other in a manner seen in Gary Chester's The New Breed. While the book begins rather innocently, the sophistication of the material accelerates and would prove demanding for even a seasoned professional.
While the "backbeat" in music is generally accepted as beats 2 and 4, the material in this book presents opportunities for students to challenge their preconceived notions of feel and groove. Whether for musical applications or developing technical independence, Wertico's book will test the hands, feet, and mind.
TURN THE BEAT AROUND is available at Alfred.com