Virgil's precision...

[C.J.]

Hello from the south of France !!!

I would like to know if anybody happens to know if Virgil's precision is sort of a natural thing that he has, or if it is something that he has worked on, and if so what kind of exercices can be used to achieve such precision.

Thank you for your anwers, cheers to all, and hail Virgil !!!!!

[jimi]

All hard work CJ! Virgil practices with control in mind all the time, and said in Modern Drummer that he sets a goal and doesn't stop until he is satisfied.
You should check out the masterclasses here and you will find out exactly what i'm talking about!
Btw WELCOME to the msgboard! :)

[quitou]

I think it's all about control....Virgil has amazing control of his limbs, and I think this is what we should strive for....not speed, or crazy chops, or anything like that, but control.....if you have control over the drums, you'll be able to do just about anyything....that's why I think it's important to practice things slowly and accurately....practicing that way will increase your control....

I've heard Mangini and Minnemann state openly that anybody can do the stuff that they are doing, it's just about hard work, and being willing to put in the time and practice the things it takes to acheive that kind of facility....so I think it's more about hard work than being a complete natural....

oh ya, welcome aboard:)

[peter]

I have been told that Virgil is the hardest
working drummer. I believe it. The road to
Virgil is the long road. This is the road for
us. What we learn here - let's use.

[MaltBuddow3]

Amen... let us.

[C.J.]

Thanks for your answers !

I am perfectly aware that Virgil is a person thats works very hard and that he strives for perfection, but some drummers happen to have some things naturaly (and of course they work to perfect it)... That is what I meant.

Though the chances of me being able to achieve his level of control are very weak, I will continue to work my head off !!!

Since I'm here I'll ask another question (yeah I'm curious... Sorry but I'm wiling ti learn !) what styles of music did Virgil study ?

[alencore]

i think Virg is more on rock or progressive rock or progressive fusion. He can groove as good as anyone else but i think he can show more drum goodies on heavy advance stuff.

btw - i might add to practice using a metronome or drum machine which i'm yu already did to help develop precision but remember precision is half the struggle, grooving within a band is still the ghetto.

[MaltBuddow3]

CJ!!!! Not the right attitude man... you can do anything if you really want it bad enough... the chances are very high if you work at it, and the right attitude is key in making that happen. Virg's been playing for 40 years, and that's about long it's gonna take for anyone else to reach that point, so always keep in mind this is a long road.

I'm pretty sure Virg studied a good bit of out there jazz... if I remember correctly his old bio on this site mentioned Elvin Jones as an influence.

Good luck,Keep practicing!

[Raul]

i agree!

i say,it's all about (1)practicing (2)ideas
first you have to do things with precision and be "clean" when you're playing