つっちーの「太鼓奇談」第二回｜バーテンダーの技術とドラムチューニング技術の類似性

Hello everyone reading the JPC newsletter.
I'm Tsucchi, the drum tech, and I've been here since the last issue. Apparently, it didn't get canceled and I'll be writing about Yota again this time.

Well, this time we're on tour (Eikichi Yazawa's tour), so while we're talking about the tour, I'd like to talk about tuning as well.
One day in November, just before the deadline for this manuscript, our tour crew was in Hakata preparing for a concert.
It's called Marine Messe, and it's a large venue by the sea.
Next door is the Kyushu Sumo Tournament and Masashi Sada's concert.
After setting up our instruments and completing some basic checks and other work, we handed over the stage to the lighting team and quickly checked into the hotel.
Then I took a shower and had dinner.
Speaking of Hakata, it is ``Motsunabe''. We made a reservation at a famous restaurant called "Yamanaka", sat around a hotpot with the sound crew, and toasted!
``It's delicious, it's so delicious!'' I clapped my lips and finished off the Champon noodles and rice porridge, and returned to the hotel with a full stomach.
After calming down my swollen stomach, I changed out of my clothes that smelled like giblets, and headed back to Tenjin for the night.

Now comes the main point. It was a long pillow lol

Whenever I visit Hakata, there is one bar that I always visit.
It's a bar called Palme d'Or in a town called Daimyo.
It's a sister bar to a bar called Oscar in the same area, but all the bars are very nice.

I only meet Mr. Shintani, the master of the Palme d'Or, a few times a year, but we always end up having a fun conversation.
What I'm particularly fascinated by, as I usually drink at the counter, is the soothing sound of the bartender shaking a shaker, for example, the stirrer when he's stirring a martini, and the concentration he feels in his hands as he stirs it. It disappears once you drink it, but you can clearly and casually feel the spirit of wanting to serve that cup as deliciously and beautifully as possible.
Of course, all of the actions of a first-class bartender are commonplace, but the work of a first-class bartender is something you never get tired of no matter how many times you watch it.Although it may be difficult for bartenders like me, whose job is to serve drinks at the counter, to be able to do great work right in front of my eyes.
As the night progresses, the customers thin out and the atmosphere of the bar becomes a bit more relaxed.
My favorite time of day is between 2:00 and 3:00 am.
The atmosphere at the counter is a bit slow, so you can have a lively conversation with the bartender.
I was in a good mood, drinking several martinis, highballs, gin and tonics, and bourbon (too much, obviously).
Then we got into a conversation about European art and got so excited that we lost track of time.
The Metropolitan, the Louvre, MoMa, the Guggenheim, the British Museum, stories about various art, the spirit that flows through time, the origin of cocktails, Belle Epoque Paris, Woody Allen movies, jazz in Paris, stories about trips to St. Petersburg, the streets of Berlin, the Bauhaus in Weimar, etc...
To make a good cocktail, it's not enough just to know about alcohol; it's only when you know its origin, historical background, and the culture, customs, art, and music of the time that the cocktail begins to shine with life.
I think the same thing can be said about music. You collect puzzle pieces from various places, put them together, and connect them. Although it is supposed to be a disparate piece, when you use your mind and all your senses and look at the finished product, it becomes a single expression.
When you're stirring a martini, your fingertips mix the clear liquid in front of you like a slow tempo brushwork, as if praying. A few seconds later, the liquid was poured into a glass and appeared in front of me, with a distinct aroma and taste, and a melt-in-the-mouth aroma.

It may be similar to the concentration you get when tuning a snare drum from scratch when you are handed it for the first time.
First, pick up the snare, check the exterior, remove the head, and check the inside of the shell. Remove the bottom head and snappy, remove as many parts attached to the lugs, strainer, and shell as possible, polish and grease each part, and prepare it for smooth movement.
If the shell is metal, I sometimes wash it with lukewarm water, and if it's a wood shell, I clean it with a small amount of cleaner using a fine cloth.
Support the clean shell from the inside with the middle finger of your right hand, and try tapping the shell from the outside with the middle finger of your left hand. You can hear the original "resonance" of the shell.
I let my ears memorize the tone and pitch, and then I put the parts I polished earlier back into the shell.
What I always keep in mind here is, "It's not enough to just make everything shiny."
This is especially true if the instrument is vintage, but it is often best not to restore the scratches and aging that represent the time the instrument has traveled.
Well, of course, it's not possible to completely restore it to its original condition and make it look like new...

As part of my job, I often get to touch instruments that other people are using, and one of the things I always wonder about is how the time spent by the instrument and its owner is reflected in the instrument.
Just like the scratches on the shell, the dents on the head can also be completely different depending on the person.

In the movie ``Eternal Motown,'' which became a hot topic a few years ago, James Jamerson, one of the greatest bassists of the century, said, ``This bass is dirty, but this dirt is the source of funk.''
At this moment, I realized that the values ​​I had were correct. There is nothing more important than what time tells.

So, I don't mind asking someone to make a vintage snare shiny and new, as it would be a waste of money for me lol.
My basic philosophy is to, at the very least, fix any dirt or malfunctions that may interfere with or neglect the instrument's functionality, and otherwise keep the instrument in the same condition as the owner has spent the time with it.
Therefore, no matter how flat the head is, if the owner asks me to keep it and tune it, I will take on the challenge. If that doesn't work, I'll replace the head, but when the job is done, I'll put it back in. It's important to me.
Of course, I also love new instruments and heads.
A brand new scent that has just been given life as a musical instrument.
It's exciting.
Let's get back to building the snare.
Once assembled, the snare is fitted with a head appropriate for the instrument, and tuned in a slow, stretching manner. The striking head mainly determines pitch and pitch, while the bottom head determines timbre and tone.
If you want a high, bright sound, try adding a little tension to both the top and bottom, and if you want a dark, calm tone, try lowering the snare side and back head evenly.
If you want to lower the pitch, loosen the top head.
It is important to tension it evenly, so hit the area around the bolt with a stick and make sure to tighten it evenly.
I think it would be a good idea to go and listen to Chi.
Perform each task reliably, quickly and carefully.
This is similar to the behavior of the bartender that I wrote about at the beginning.
The same goes for alcohol, but tuning the drums is a very delicate process.
One day, a young bartender at Palme d'Or said to me, ``Alcohol is a living thing, so if you stir it roughly, the flavors will fall apart and you'll end up with a harsh, unpleasant flavor.'' He poured regular Gordon's Gin into two shot glasses, swirling one around, and slowly and carefully stirring the other.
It's just chilled straight gin.
However, the two gins have surprisingly different tastes.
"No, it's just a placebo effect. It's just my imagination."
Some people may say so.
I think that's fine.
However, those two glasses of gin were completely different to my taste, and if they were that different, I would carefully stir them.

The tuning is exactly the same. If you assemble it roughly, put the head on it, tighten it up, and bang it, you'll cry no matter what instrument you play.
The wildness cannot stand out unless there is a hundred times more subtlety behind it.
Behind sweetness there is poison, and behind brightness there is darkness.
It's obvious to everyone.
However, what we must never forget is honesty towards music.
I feel that this is a polite gesture.
currentJapanIt seems that the reality that the number of craftsmen is decreasing rapidly and the reality that the number of young people aiming to become craftsmen is increasing are overlapping.
If people who have acquired first-class skills to earn their daily bread and have a new, young life in the world of passionate craftsmen who have built themselves up for themselves are able to work hard with respect and sincerity, without being crushed by history and tradition,JapanThis craftsmanship will never go out of style. Our line of work is still young and not well-recognized by the public, but will we be able to survive 20, 30, or 50 years from now? I don't want to think that all musical instruments will become extinct, butJapanWhen I look at the unique developments in the music industry, I wonder if it's all a lie.
A vocaloid sings and all performances are performed using a laptop.
Now that virtual music is appearing one after another, I feel that there is a growing sense of admiration and awe for music that makes the raw air tremble.

Next year will mark three years since the 3.11 earthquake.
Many lives and memories were lost in the tsunami.
Many musical instruments were also washed away and destroyed.
I was really happy when I heard that a piano that had been damaged in the disaster was brought back to life thanks to the efforts of a local music store. The music that the piano played had a very warm tone, and it didn't sound like he had overcome the hardships of being hit by a tsunami.
It is said that all people who have overcome hardship are kind, and the same may be said of musical instruments.

Encounters with musical instruments are once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. The instruments you acquire are instruments that ``came'' to you. Cherish and enjoy the time spent playing the instrument and music. Share that time with various people and share the joy. I hope that 2014 will be a time where I can help out a lot.
I'm sorry that this time, as with most of you, I've gone off the rails a lot, and the writing is completely disorganized and messy, like a child's toy box.
The possibility of cancellation will increase as the series progresses, so please do not leave any comments, comments, or questions regarding this column.

Well then, thank you for all your help in 2013.
I would like to conclude this post by praying that the coming new year will bring light of recovery to the people of Tohoku, Izu Oshima, and the Philippines who were affected by the disaster, and to all the readers for good health.

December 2013
Yoshinori Tsuchida

P.S.
Needless to say, I was hungover the day after drinking the Palme d'Or.
I would like to add something that was not of this world.