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About Me

Scott Gardner

  Rhythm is as universal as mathematics and is recognized and felt by most every living person. Nature is full of rhythm, and has been since the dawn of time.

  As long as I can remember I have been pulled to music and rhythm, be it through Classical music, Swing, Latin, Pop, New Age, or the musical traditions of the world. I started drumming in the Society for Creative Anachronism in 1994 when a friend handed me a doumbek one evening at a drum circle and asked, "you know how to drum don't you?" I told him no but said I would give it a shot. I learned the basics that night and proceeded to teach myself through CDs and web sites and made it a point to watch the hands of any drummer I could see at a drum circle. I learn best through mimicking hand movements and taking apart recordings for ideas on fill combinations. I practiced Tai Chi when I was a child and learned to mimic others well and spent lots of time listening to classical music and picking out the different parts each instrument played.

  In 1995 I discovered traditional Japanese music and the shakuhachi, the traditional end blown flute. Taiko drums and the different patterns they played also enthralled me. Then in 2002 I went to a seminar and took a class taught by Jeremiah Soto who records under the name Solace. Until then I was still only self-taught. At his class I learned a traditional Arabic method for playing the doumbek and learned other embellishments and accent methods. I consider that seminar a break through in the level of my drumming ability and recommend that if you have the opportunity to learn from a good teacher, take it. Make sure that you enjoy listening to your teacher's playing and are able to interact well with him. You don't want to learn to drum in a way you don't enjoy and spend time learning in an uncomfortable environment!

Playing for the Mirage Dance Troupe at the Iowa State Fair