Max Roach's St. Thomas Solo - The Art of Jazz Drum Solo - Transcribed & Played

Описание: Welcome to an in-depth look at one of one of the most famous jazz drum solos in history! In this video, we explore Max Roach's virtuoso solo on Sonny Rollins' "St. Thomas". For this video, I analyzed Max Roach's solo on "St. Thomas" note for note. The transcription covers the complete solo and a bit more, showing Roach's patterns, ideas and his innovative use of the drums. I have also tried to copy the sounds and guess at the techniques in my performance, but it can only be an interpretation and cannot claim to be absolutely accurate.

"St. Thomas" is one of the most famous instrumentals in American jazz and was originally popularized by tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins. Although Rollins is commonly credited as the composer, the origins of the piece are deeply rooted in traditional folk music. It is based on the Bahamian folk song "Sponger Money" and the English folk song "The Lincolnshire Poacher". Over time, "The Lincolnshire Poacher" developed into a children's song in the Virgin Islands, which Rollins' mother used to sing to him as a child.

"St. Thomas" gained great popularity when it was featured on Rollins' 1956 album Saxophone Colossus. In 1956, Rollins led a quartet session with Tommy Flanagan on piano, Doug Watkins on bass and Max Roach on drums - a collaboration that would produce the album Saxophone Colossus. This album marked an important phase in Rollins' career.

Max Roach's drumming on "St. Thomas" is a prime example of his innovative approach. Roach was a pioneer of drumming, and his techniques and playing styles helped to redefine the role of the drummer in jazz and music in general. He introduced a more interactive and musical way of playing, where the drummer is not just an accompanist, but an integral part of the melodic and harmonic structure of the music.

In "St. Thomas", Roach's solo demonstrates his ability to combine complex rhythms with melodic phrasing. His use of space, dynamics and sounds, among other things, creates a solo that is both technically impressive and musically captivating. Studying Roach's playing in "St. Thomas" provides invaluable insight and inspiration.

If you're interested in Max Roach's groove in St. Thomas, check out my transcription and performance of it here:

   • St. Thomas – Max Roach – Drum Transcriptio...  

I like to keep this performance as original as possible to the studio recording in terms of playing. The superimposed sheet music is available for free download to subscribers of my site www.deinschlagzeuglehrer.de. The transcription is written with the notation program Finale. 🎵

I recorded in Ableton Live with two Beyerdynamic MC-930, a Beyerdynamic TG D50 on the bass drum and a Beyerdynamic M 201 TG on the snare drum. 🎙️

I hope you have fun watching and listening and then checking out and playing yourselves.

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Song Info:

Band/Artist: Sonny Rollins
Album: Saxophon Colossus
Songwriter: Sonny Rollins
Release date: Apr. 1957
Label: Prestige