Purdue jazz concert to spotlight drums in 'The Big Beat'

Admission to "The Big Beat" is free.

Krupa, who was a drummer and big band leader in the 1930s and '40s, "changed the whole way drums were approached," said M.T. "Mo" Trout, the director of all three of Purdue's jazz ensembles. "[Instead of a background role] drummers were given interactive solos. The drums were used to set up big kicks and accentuate important parts of the music."

"The Big Beat" concert will feature many songs that represent "firsts" for drummers — including Neal Hefti's "Cute," the first drum solo using brushes, and Louis Prima's "Sing, Sing, Sing," the first extended drum solo.

Trout plans to highlight a pivotal era in the development of jazz using the tunes that made Krupa, the first drummer to lead a big band, and Buddy Rich, a child prodigy who followed Krupa's lead, legendary.

"Krupa was not a schooled drummer; he played primarily by ear," Trout said. He said Krupa's talent brought him into contact with musicians including Glenn Miller, Bix Biederbeck, Tommy Dorsey and Benny Goodman.

"They all met up in the 1920s when jazz, as an art form, was very young and they were all trying to make something out of it," Trout said. "They were inspired by New Orleans musicians and dreamed of having hot jazz bands."

Trout said Krupa's charisma, movie star looks and flair for drama as he twirled his drumsticks in performances coupled with his talent to make him a superstar of the era.

"Krupa represents a turning point for drums," he said. "He developed the hi-hat cymbal and the drum set, as we know it today, is credited to Gene Krupa. He influenced a whole generation of drummers."

Krupa also started schools and camps for jazz drumming, and Buddy Rich was among the drummers who fed off his energy.

"He helped Buddy Rich along, and by the 1940s, Rich was 'out-Krupaing' Krupa," Trout said. "Rich had incredible technique and quickly became known as one of the greatest drummers in the world."

Trout said between them, the two drummers — who had very different styles — laid the groundwork for everything that has happened with drums in jazz since that time. "The Big Beat" concert will give audiences the chance to hear the differences between the Krupa and Rich styles in one concert.

The Lab Jazz Band will open the concert with a variety of jazz standards that offer key roles to drums including Tito Puente's "Ran Kan Kan," Neal Hefti's "Cute" and "Splanky," Paul Desmond's "Take Five" and Louis Prima's "Sing, Sing, Sing."

The American Music Repertory Ensemble will explore the Gene Krupa tradition including the boogie rhythms, such as in "Boogie Blues," that he was known for.

Purdue singers sophomore Darby Brignac of Jasper, Ind., and freshman Erica Bourdage of Carmel, Ind., will add the vocals originally performed by Anita O'Day with the Gene Krupa Orchestra in "Opus One" and "Stop, the Red Light's On."

Rachel Kirkpatrick, a sophomore from West Lafayette, Ind., will sing "A Tisket, A Tasket," a tune Ella Fitzgerald performed with the Chick Webb Orchestra.

Among the tunes on the Purdue Jazz Band's portion of the concert are Joseph Zawinul's 1968 hit "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy," Bill Potts' "Big Swing Face," John LaBarbera's "Pipe Dreams" and "Dancing Men" and the Duke Ellington hit "Cottontail."

"Channel One Suite" will offer a slight change of pace as the Purdue Jazz Band tackles a Buddy Rich Orchestra concert type piece with changing tempos, melodies and styles. It will feature soloists including Alex Chiaghana, a graduate student from Houston, on tenor saxophone, junior Ken Yasui on drums and senior Michael Herkamp, on trumpet, both from Columbus, Ohio.

"The Big Beat" concert is sponsored by Purdue Bands & Orchestra. The next jazz concert, "Holiday Cheer & All That Jazz," is set for 8 p.m. on Dec. 8 in Loeb Playhouse. It will feature jazz arrangements of familiar holiday tunes along with Bing Crosby, the Andrews Sisters and Glenn Miller numbers. Admission is free.

Writer: Kathy Matter, Purdue Bands public relations director, (765) 496-6785, kcmatter@purdue.edu

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