ihatemusic

I really enjoy experimental artists who use only one instrument, but I never found one using only a drum set. Do you know one?

Edit: I meant experimental percussionists, whatever they use, and playing alone. Sorry for not being clear enough in first post, I'm french and I really apologize for my crappy English...

Alex van Halen.

Maybe if you edited the topic and your post to say "experimental solo drumming" or "experimental solo percussionists" (and specify that they use a full kit) people will be better able to make suggestions. Or free improv or free jazz solo percussionists (if that's what your "free" refers to). As it is it's a bit unclear.

wow, where to start?

Han Bennink
Tatsuya Nakatani
Susie Ibarra
Chris Corsano
Samm Bennett
Paal Nilssen-Love
Gregg Bendian
Jeph Jerman
Jon Mueller
Michael Zerang
JGuy Laughlin
Ryan Jewell

just scratchin th surface...

Or even better, Sean Meehan who uses only a snare drum with stuff on top of it.

Lê Quan Ninh

chris corsano is hip solo.

Milford Graves

Steve Noble

i don't really need a drum, but thanks.

wait no i meant to add nick hennies, chris cogburn, and jason kahn to the discussion.

kahn i think is a pretty well known name here, though i'm not sure i've heard him solo on cd.

cogburn i'm sure i've not heard solo on cd, in fact recordings of him are pretty hard to come by. he has a trio (called nafta) with kurt newman and juan garcia, and some tracks on the no idea festival 2004 double-cd in various small groups. he works mostly in the space between tatsuya nakatani and sean meehan, but i think he's quite unique.

hennies still passes through ihm on occasion, he performed the malfatti piece ''l'effecage" for the b-boim release and has a handful of solo releases available to download here. his latest solo, on thor's rubber hammer, is no-input mixing board, but that's the first time i can think of that he's released a wholly electronic solo.

m

the list goes on...

Mark Wastell's solo tam tam trilogy
Eddie Prevost
Andrew Cyrille
Vladimir Tarasov

there are probably as many solo percussion albums as any other instrument except maybe piano and guitar

Excluding expanded percussion sets narrows down the choice a bit.
Detlef Schönenberg is out then (enormous set-up).

Uh, I myself occasionally play solo as well, though with prepared/slightly extended bebop-set.

How's about Gerry Hemingway? I remember he uses single instruments/drums for a line of pieces on one of his LPs.

J.F. wrote:How's about Gerry Hemingway? I remember he uses single instruments/drums for a line of pieces on one of his LPs.

At least 2 solo acoustic albums, maybe 3, and one (or more) electroacoustic

more solo performers:

Peter Hollinger
- had a programme I believe called "Koffer Suite"? using small percussion stuff he carried around in a suitcase, and spread over the floor in concert; don't know if LP exists

Wolfgang Schliemann
- there's a limited-edition solo CD of him

Michael Vorfeld
- I know he recorded a solo CD on nur-nicht-nur, though that one uses multitrack recording... I'm sure he performed as a "regular" soloist as well though; individual set up of (partly self-constructed) instruments

Paul Lytton
- there's a solo LP from the 70s... on Po Torch (I think he uses lots of electronics there along his very extended set up)

Sven-Ake Johansson
- "Schlingerland" might be pure drum set mostly (never heard it), "Schallplatten und Plastikblumen" has solo drumming along with other stuff (voc, acc, scenic stuff)

Burkhard Beins... Tony Buck.... get the "Berlin Drums".

Dan G wrote:

J.F. wrote:How's about Gerry Hemingway? I remember he uses single instruments/drums for a line of pieces on one of his LPs.

At least 2 solo acoustic albums, maybe 3, and one (or more) electroacoustic

I'm fairly sure both of Hemingway's Random Acoustic titles you're referring to are out of print, though I do think the Sound Aspects title "Tubworks" he's re-printed as CD-R and is selling through his web-site.....go for the electro-acoustic title on RA first.

Ichiraku Yoshimitsu (not dora videos but bowing cymbals .. . )

Yoshida Tatsuya & Seijiro Murayama
Will Guthrie

I forgot Tony Oxley, Günter Sommer and Andrea Centazzo, all of whom recorded solo stuff, maybe mostly out of print now (though I wouldn't want to recomment the latter two).

Patrick Farmer

I also second Will Guthrie, his release on Cathnor really is rather special.