Like Buddy, it`s always about the music first for me. Having a Big Band and playing with these outstanding musicians to do these great arrangements for the people live is why I`m a band leader. When it`s Buddy`s turn to do a solo, I have seen so many amazing performance by BR that it`s so hard to say which one is better. That solo from 1985 on his Slingerland Radio King drums is for sure one of his best. Buddy was so relaxed and doing some super speed crossovers with ease. I love the solo he did in 1978 at the North Sea Jazz Festival in Holland. He took his time to build up what he wanted to play. I always see and hear something different in what he plays during his solo. I saw Buddy live so many times and the way he drives a Big Band to bring up the level of the music is what impresses me the most about Buddy Rich. I became a huge Buddy fan because of the music he played. No way did I ever think I would have my own Big Band. Now I get to honor Buddy by playing some of his great music. Thanks for your comment.

Like you, I enjoy playing so many different types of music. From jazz, rock, funk, blues, latin and Big Band music. No one drummer can do it all, but I always give 100% in the music I`m playing. Thanks so much for your very thoughtful comment.

To me, it`s always about the music first for me as a drummer. I just feel this Big Band music so much and want to support my fellow musicians to make the music sound as good as possible. Mike Pachelli who I got to know is the best guitar player I ever worked with. His feel for jazz or any type of music he plays is why he is a world class musician. He can play in any of my bands anytime and it would bring up the music for sure. Mike now lives in France and I get to watch his great youtube channel, which all of you should check out. Thanks so much Mike for your comment. Your old friend ,Ken Loomer.

You are correct I was using a 24 inch bass drum. I always enjoy doing these concerts at the Ringling Museum. I have to thank my outstanding musicians for their excellent performance on this Duke Ellington song. Thanks for your comment.

@@KenLoomer i hope everybodys ok w the hurricain.

Tony and I know how to make a swinging duo work with our love of this music. You just have to feel it and put your style into making the music exciting to listen to. Thanks for your comment.

We both just feel this jazz music so much and add our own arrangement to make it work for us. Thanks for your comment.

I always want to hear the real natural sound of the drums with no muffling. Using the right heads I can get these Gretsch Catalina drums to sing. Thanks for your comment.

Not to many Big Bands left anymore performing live. So wonderful to do this concert at the Ringling Museum for the people. Thanks so much for your comment.

It`s always about the music first for me as a band leader. I just love performing with these outstanding musicians and bringing this great Big Band music to the people. So many of the young people told me after I did this concert that they are hearing a swinging Big Band for the first time and now are fans of this music. That makes me feel so good as a band leader. I thank you so much for your comment.

I must thank my outstanding musicians for their performance on this swinging arrangement. So wonderful to do these concerts for the people and keeping the sound of a swinging Big Band alive. Thanks for your comment.

You are correct that Buddy did not tune his drums to a certain note. He tensioned his drums is what he said all the time to what he thought was a good open tone sound. He never muffled his drums. All tone controls were never put on his drums. So Buddy for sure always said he tension his drums for the sound he liked best out of his drums.

I love being a drummer Big Band leader and doing these concerts with my outstanding musicians. When it`s my turn to do a solo, I want it to be exciting and dynamic for the people. Thanks so much for your comment.

As you know, Ludwig no longer makes the Super Sensitive snare drum. So you have a excellent snare drum with no pits which is rare for this model. I use a Remo Emperor top head and a clear Remo Ambassador snare side head. Bottom head is tension very tight, and top head is tension medium tight. This gives me a crisp sound with some ring that I like for the rim shots. The big snare tension knob I have the snares going across the bottom of the head at a medium tension. This is the way I tune this Ludwig Super Sensitive snare drum.

I enjoy playing on this over 50 year old Slingerland snare drum. Every beat I play on this snare comes out super clear. Thanks for your comment.

Those were amazing times for me as a young person getting to see and knowing these amazing drummers and hearing the great music they played. Thanks so much for your comment.

What I love best is that I get to use these classic drums with my Ken Loomer Big Band. It`s always about the music first for me and using my drums to make the music feel good. Here is just one video of what I mean ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-MM-OXmNhzO0.html Thanks for your comment Kenny.

Buddy had the best drum technique I ever saw and could play what ever he thought of doing on the drum set with feel. I`m an old school drummer playing with the snare drum tilted in which works best with my technique. Yes great Buddy Rich book Traps The Drum Wonder by his friend Mel Torme. Thanks for your comment.

I always give 100% in every performance that I do for the people who come to my Big Band concerts. Thanks so much for your comment.

I enjoy so much doing these concerts with my Big Band. When it`s my turn to do a solo, I want it to be exciting and dynamic for the people who come to hear my band, Thanks for your comment.

For sure Buddy would like that a drummer would do all the work of having a swinging Big Band and keeping this great american music alive for the people to hear. Of course I honor Buddy by playing some of his great music. When it`s my turn to do a solo, I want it to be dynamic and exciting and it 100% in every performance that I do. Thanks Charlie for your comment.

@@KenLoomer You're doing a great job keeping this great music alive! Thank you!

No one will ever be close to what Buddy played. What I`m sure he would like is that a drummer would do the work of putting together a swinging Big Band and playing this great music for the people.

No need for the people to understand all the drumming techniques I use to do this solo. As long as they enjoyed what I played, that is what counts the most for me. Thanks for your comment.

This was the last song I played in this 2.5 hour concert. A lot of my charts are very demanding to play for my horn players. So I`m not going to be to hard on them. They always give me 100% effort and it`s my honor to play with these musicians who believe in the Big Band music I want to play. But I understand where you are coming from.

I play at my best when I do these live concerts with my Big Band. Well keep on enjoying playing your drums. Thanks for your comment.

What I learned from Buddy the most is that it`s always about the music first. I became a huge Buddy fan because of hearing his Big Band music and the way he played to make it so exciting to listen to. Sure it`s a lot of work of putting the music together, hiring the musicians, getting the jobs and so much more. But I`m a hard working drummer who loves being a band leader and doing these concerts for the people to hear live a swinging Big Band. When it`s my turn to do a solo, I want it to be dynamic and exciting for the people who come out to see me and my Big Band. Thanks so much for your comment.

You are correct I`m using 13 inch hi-hat cymbals. These are my 70`s Zildjian New Beat which I use all the time with my Big Band. I like better the smaller size for fast jazz beat playing.

@@KenLoomer newbeats r my faves.

Got to keep that Buddy style of playing the snare drum alive. No need to hit every drum in sight all the time, but to just use the snare drum to express yourself in a swinging way with accents and making up your own drum patterns which is cool to do. Thanks for your comment.

The Slingerland shell has the 3 ply maple, poplar, maple with solid maple rings on them. This makes it easy for tuning that big open full tone which is what I like best. I get the natural sound out of these Slingerland drums that projects so well. Thanks for your comment.

@@KenLoomer I am the same that way, I like to have all of that range with the tonal qualities warm and open, I am not too particular to "Rock" sets at all, I am looking to buy a set but it is really getting hard to find anything good these days.

Wonderful you have one of these Slingerland Super Sound King snare drum. My strainer works great. When I put the lever down, I have a lot of space between the snares and the bottom head. Of course the snares stay at the tension you want from the two big knobs that controls the snare tension. Something must be off that you can`t turn the snares off with your lever with the tension you want the snares to touch the bottom head. I could tension the snares using the top knob super tight against the head and when I turn off the snares, I still have a lot of space. Maybe the parts you got were not fitted right. If I can be of any help, let me know. Thanks for your comment.

@@KenLoomer It was always like that. I had to release tension on the main strainer, and push down on both strainers to release the snares. But nobody else in the marching band or the jazz band had a snare drum anywhere close to mine. So we just let it go, after getting pushback from the music store where I also got drum lessons. Some years ago a couple of small parts fell off the strainer, and I did a 2 year eBay search for replacement parts, which I finally found. I took pictures of each step, reassembled the snare strainer, and same issue. It is still in great shape, with barely any pitting, sounds great; still a prized possession. I more recently bought a Ludwig brass over brass Black Beauty, with tube lugs. 5x14. But I'm 68 y/o and don't play as well as I used to. I bought reprints of George Lawrence Stone's 'Stick Control' and 'Accents and Rebounds'. And thank you for your response; it's nice talking to a really proficient drummer.

@@haciendavilI just love being a drummer Big Band leader. It`s always about the music first for me. I like the old vintage drums best since I`m a vintage drummer. You can check this video of my Big Band ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Vz5CLDz-ebo.html Wonderful you have a Ludwig Black Beauty. My friend has one of those snare drums that I played on. Always good to talk to a fellow drummer who has the snare love of drumming as I do.

@@KenLoomer I really like your playing and that you seem to be a 'traditional' drummer, and I mean that in the best way. I always believed (in retrospect) that it all starts at the snare drum. You get really proficient at that, and then playing a drum set. I like 'open-handed' drummers, and good drummers who play gigantic kits, but I just can't relate to it. I met Buddy Rich, Joe Morello and 'Baron' John von Olen (probably misspelled) through my drum instructor. Joe was super nice, Buddy was his consistent 'wise guy', and 'Baron' was nice, but I was better than him on rudiments.

@@haciendavil I`m an old school drummer who like traditional grip the best for the type of drumming and technique that I use. So wonderful you got to meet those excellent drummers. I met and knew every major drummer that were famous. Buddy Rich was always so kind to me and I got to know him a little bit. He even gave me a drum lesson and let me play on his Slingerland drums. The reason why I have my own Ken Loomer Big Band is because of Buddy. I became a huge fan of his because of the music he played. To see pictures of me and Buddy and me playing his drums, here is the video ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-BTsnnA6nlvk.html Thanks for your comment.

So good to hear from people like you who enjoys the sound of a swinging Big Band. It`s a lot of work being a drummer Big Band leader, but I love playing this music. Lots of video`s I have posted of my Ken Loomer Big Band you can check out. Thanks so much for your comment.

Playing on this rare Slingerland Super Sound King snare drum brings out the best in me. Every beat I play comes out very clear and projects well with this snare drum. I have never seen another drummer use this Slingerland Super Sound King snare drum. Thanks for checking out this video.

I know Roland bought out DW drums. So it must be Roland that owns the Slingerland name now. Thanks for your comment.

Could be I`m not as relaxed at my house as I am performing at a live concert like this ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-12lKwlpq8Vg.html Thanks for your comment.

@@KenLoomer oh i see your right you are more relaxed.

@@captainsenileinfo Thanks for checking out that video. With the drum technique I have learned, I put no stress in my playing and want a good smooth flow to my drumming.

You are correct I`m using 13 inch h-hats in this video. These are my 70`s A Zildjian New Beat 13 inch size that I like best. Thanks so much for your comment.

I`m using my 70`s 13 inch Zildjian New Beat hi-hat cymbals. The splash is a 6 inch size.

The little girl was just so happy hearing this music. She had her hands in the air jumping for joy. I always enjoy doing these live concerts with my outstanding musicians. When it`s my turn to do a solo, I want it to be dynamic and exciting for the people who come to see my Big Band. Thanks so much for your comment.

Always good when I have a friend who can run my video camera. Thanks for your comment.

I like to keep my old A Zildjian cymbals clean. Same with my classic Slingerland drums. Thanks for your comment.

So wonderful to see that little girl run to the front with her hands in the air jumping with joy. If the young kids get to hear live music like this, I know they will enjoy it so much. Glad you notice that sweet moment. Thanks for your comment.

@@KenLoomer Exactly, get them started early! Pleasant job, Ken. Here is praying you, your family, friends are surviving Hurricane Helene.

@@Elsewhen404 Thanks so much for your praying for me. It must of work. A huge pine tree in my back yard went down and it came with in one foot of hitting my house. Huge mess to clean up, but so glad I only have a down tree and not a down house.

@@KenLoomer You're very welcome, Ken. I am glad for you that you and your house were spared.

It`s always a joy for me to do these concerts with my Big Band and perform live for the people. When it`s my turn to do a solo, I want it to be dynamic and exciting. Thanks for your comment.