The Drummer’s Perspective Podcast

Ep. 015 - Interview with Emma Ford // Playing Drums on Broadway

Emma Ford was born and raised in Australia, studied drums at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, became an active member of the Australian musical theatre community, but is now living, working and playing drums on Broadway.
She has played numerous shows both in Australia and on Broadway, including In The Heights, Moulin Rouge, Pippin, Paradise Square and became the first woman in the world to play the drum chair on Hamilton. She currently holds a full-time chair on the new musical, Shucked.
In this amazing conversation, Emma shares her journey of moving from Australia to New York, what is was like to become established in the theatre scene on Broadway, some of the similarities and differences between Broadway and the Australian theatre scene, and has some incredible advice for anyone who is considering making the move to chase their dream gig.
Enjoy!
Make sure to follow Emma at https://emmaforddrums.com and https://www.instagram.com/emmaford.drums

Ep. 014 - 5 Challenges of Long-Term Touring

Touring as a musician, and being paid to do it is one of the greatest privileges you can have as a performer. Not a day goes by where I am not extremely grateful to have a full-time touring job playing drums.
Having said that, being on tour, especially for a long period of time, can be a challenging and difficult environment to be in for many reasons.
In this video, I want to share with you what I have found to be the top 5 challenges that I've experienced being on tour, to not only give you a better understanding of what some of the realities are like, but also to help better prepare you to face these challenges, if you are ever fortunate enough to be heading out on the road.
Enjoy!

Ep. 013 - Interview with Angus Mason (New York) and Joel Prime (London) - Moving to a New City

Ep. 012 - Interview with Benjamin Northey - Playing Drums with an Orchestra

Benjamin Northey is one of the most well respected, in demand and versatile conductors in Australia. He has worked with every major symphony orchestra in the country, as well as numerous performances as a guest conductor overseas.
Due to his incredible versatility and background, Benjamin has had the chance to conduct countless orchestral performances that also include drums and rhythm sections.
He has worked with some of the best drummers in Australia in these environments, and has had a vast amount of experience bringing the two worlds of orchestral and contemporary drumming together. In this amazing conversation, Benjamin shares his thoughts on what he thinks are the most important elements that drummers need to be conscious of when performing with an orchestra, as well as what he believes to be the key strengths that drummers need to have to succeed in the orchestral environment.
He also shares some amazing tips for drummers who have had little experience working with a conductor, and what the most important things to be aware of are!
Make sure to follow Benjamin at http://www.benjaminnorthey.com and https://www.instagram.com/maestrobenny/

Ep. 011 - 1 SUPER Easy Hack to Play More Relaxed

Any time we play, we always want to aim to be as relaxed as possible.
This can be much easier said than done sometimes, however there is one super common issue that many drummers and musicians have, that can be easily fixed to help them play more relaxed.
The best part is, it takes literally no practice to execute it at all!!

Ep. 010 - Interview with Gerry Pantazis (Tommy Emmanuel / Bachelor Girl / TV and Session Legend)

Gerry Pantazis is someone who I would consider to be the quintessential "all-rounder". He's worked in pretty much every conceivable musical situation, with an amazing array of artists from Bachelor Girl to Tommy Emmanuel to Larry Carlton just to name a few.
He's also performed on countless TV shows, and recorded a huge variety of albums and soundtracks both commercially and from his home studio.
In this interview I speak with Gerry about how he has been able to establish himself as the amazing all-rounder that he is, his advice on how to best operate in high pressure gigs and some tips for other drummers who want to be able to play a wide variety of musical situations on a professional level.
Enjoy!
Make sure to follow Gerry at https://www.instagram.com/gerrypantazis and https://www.youtube.com/@gerrypantazis2518

Ep. 009 - Maximise Practice with Minimal Time

Finding time to practice can sometimes be a real challenge.
Say you do find yourself with a spare 10, 15 or 20 minutes to practice, how do you make sure that you get the absolute most out of that time, without wasting minutes fumbling around and trying to think of things to work on?
In this weeks video I share with you my top 3 tips to help you get the most out of your practice when you only have minimal time available!

Ep. 008 - Interview with Chong Lim (MD for John Farnham / Commonwealth Games / Dancing With The Stars)

Chong Lim's list of credits is astounding. Not only has he been the long time musical director and keyboard player for the legendary John Farnham, Chong has served as an MD and producer for some of Australia's biggest events, including the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games and the AFL Grand Final to name just a few. He has also been the musical director and keyboard player for multiple TV series, including Dancing with the Stars and the Logie Awards. In his extremely successful and varied career, Chong has worked with the who's who of Australian drummers. In this interview, I speak with Chong about what he thinks are some of the most important skills that a drummer needs to possess to succeed in high pressure events and situations, such as live TV and awards shows, the key traits that his favourite drummers share and what it takes to be a great leader in todays music scene. Enjoy!

Ep. 007 - 5 Books That Have Changed The Way I Think

Books are of course a limitless resource of information for us to learn, be inspired and change the way we think. The 5 books that I discuss in this video have not only changed the way I think about drums and music, but in many ways about life in general. No matter where you are in your drumming journey, I know that at least one, if not all of these books will be able to help your development in some way.

Ep. 006 - Interview with Darryn Farrugia (Hey Hey It’s Saturday / Hugh Jackman / Tom Jones)

Darryn Farrugia is an absolute legend of the Australian drumming scene. In his long and extremely varied career as a musician, he has played with artists such as Tom Jones, Tina Arena, Lou Rawls, The Commodores, Curtis Steigers, Trisha Yearwood, Ruby Turner, Larry Adler, Joe Cocker, Michael Feinstein, Ray Davies (the Kinks), Ernie Watts, B.B. King, Bonnie Raitt, Jeff ‘Skunk’ Baxter, Randy Crawford, Eartha Kitt, Justin Robinson, Buddy Greco, Gloria Loring, Roger Daltry, Barry Manilow, Jackson Browne, John Tesh, Martin Taylor, Rene Geyer, Thelma Houston, Petula Clarke, Tommy Emmanuel, Keb-Mo, and Olivia Newton John to name a few. He was also the long-standing house drummer for the hit TV show "Hey Hey It's Saturday" in Australia, as well as recently subbing with "The Cat Empire" on their European tour. In this chat, I speak with Darryn about how he has been able to establish himself as the incredibly versatile player that he is, his experience subbing with a major Australian touring band as well as his journey and approach to starting his amazing YouTube channel, "Darryn's Drum Room". Make sure to follow Darryn at https://www.youtube.com/@darrynfarrugia9904 and https://www.darrynfarrugia.com