[mymnduccete]

V.O.R (I'm assuming this is Terry, but I'm not sure). I understand your point about execution. I've just always found that the more I play in front of people... whatever the musical situation, the more the nerves get conquered, and thus, execution is improved. But of course the technical building blocks of that execution are a stumbling point that needs to be addressed in the practice room.

As far as your point about grip goes, it's interesting. I've heard some people say the same thing. Other people say it doesn't matter, as long as you can get the sound. I fall somewhere in between. Myself, playing matched (but learning both as a kid-- I decided on matched when I was about 17... just made more sense at the time), I've definitly had to find ways to play certain things a bit differently, but I've never felt that their sound came exclusivly from their grip. They all switched back and forth, depending on the situation anyway, with very few exceptions (Philly, I believe, played almost exclusivly trad, and as I said before, his shit is nearly impossible to play). Some of them also studied timpani, which requires matched grip, and applied some of those techniques to the drums (I think Max Roach's mallet solo on "Delilah" is a good example of this... However I lifted both the trading AND the solo from this song, and found that to play one of his comping figures in one of the trades, I almost HAD to switch to trad! It was VERY akward to play using matched grip). I think what you're talking about is less related to grip as it is to the ruidimental vocabulary that Philly, Max et al. were definitly conversant in. These techniques are not exclusive to traditional grip though. Bill Stewart is one of many guys who I think play at a high level, have the vocabulary of jazz in their sound and play matched grip. Just off the top of my head, Tain, Ari Hoenig, Clarence Penn, Brian Blade, Ralph Peterson and Jack DeJohnette come to mind (Jack played most of his life trad, as did Tain and Clarence, but recently switched due to injury, I believe. Clarence told me that he just felt there was more he could do with matched grip, although he plays trad at the same level of facility. Ari is a guy who plays exclusivly matched, and really, really knows how to get the subtle differences of traditional grip out of that way of playing). One thing that's very hard to do with matched grip is play a stick shot in the middle of triplets... I'm still struggling with that one! But it's not impossible to get those sounds with the more versatile matched grip, it just takes a little extra consideration while working out some of these things. Dave Robbins pointed out to me that a lot of those guys played "right heavy", meaning their right strokes sound different from their left strokes. Small subtletys like this are hard to reproduce no matter what grip you're using. When I transcribe, I try to play the solo as closely as possible, but you're never going to get it to sound exactly like Roy Haynes or Max or whoever... they're way too distinctive. I guess it wouldn't hurt me to shed a little more trad grip though... something to think about anyway.

Do you play drums as well? I've heard Lovano is a great drummer... maybe Josh Redman too, though I can't remember.