He is always on the move, always thinking about his rhythm and always going into the depths of any beat. They excite him, move him and transport him into another world of possibilities. And bringing these possibilities to India is well-known percussionist Benny Greb, who is counted among the top 10 drummers in the world.
Greb had hosted a drum clinic in Mumbai on Sunday. “What I am happy about is that I was able to strike a connect with
the audience here on the first go,” says a happy Benny on his first trip to the country.
An interactive audience always provides space for learning and Greb was happy about the fact that the participants were inquisitive and curious. “What mostly happens at these drum clinics is that you don’t really get to interact much with your audience. People play and show various techniques, but there is hardly any scope to get to some fundamentals of the music,” he says, adding, “My style is very simple and basic. I have my basic drum kit and keep it limited, as I don’t like going over the top with it. In my next clinic, however, I plan to use a bigger kit.”
Greb, who started playing drums at the age of six, has played various forms of music over the years. His distinct style has earned him a reputation for being a drummer par excellence
and one of the most sought after drum tutors. He believes that the key to good drumming is listening to music and understanding even the subtlest of the nuances.
“It makes a lot of difference if you can listen to music carefully. Especially for those who are just starting out, tuning your ear to music is one of the most important tasks as a musician,” he says. With tutorials and drumming kit lessons available online and with demo lessons on sites like YouTube, drummers may be led to think that it is not that difficult. But Greb says all this certainly won’t teach you everything. “Don’t depend on everything that online lessons teach you.
It is important to use your discretion on what suits you and what doesn’t,” he says.
“There is no substitute for hard work,” Greb says. He stresses on how important it is to sit with your drum kit and practise for hours together. “This is true for anything in life; you have to go deep into the subject and put in hours of practice. Moreover, it is not the amount of practice that counts but how efficiently you develop your skills in the process,” he says. He says that early on in his career he didn’t really express himself the way he wanted to. He listened to various styles and artistes and realised that he had to make his own way. “There is no right or wrong way. I’m still figuring out different ways to improvise upon my talent and music. There’s something new in your
head as a musician every other second,” explains Greb.
Indian percussion is thrilling and enormous. “Indians are extremely talented. The rhythm culture here is advanced and the conical system makes it easier to absorb music. Not having had a chance to learn Indian music is something that I miss. If you have the knowledge of the basic Indian drum, you technically have learnt a lot,” says Greb.
He says that he still has a lot to learn. “I’m thinking about my next project and how that can be made better. It is very easy to get distracted and I have to control myself. It has been an interesting journey so far, but there are greater challenges ahead. For me all the answers lie in music itself.”