Having first picked up a pair of sticks in very early childhood I have now been playing for more than fifty years.
Born into a musical family I was fortunate to have great influences and access to inspiration from my first days. Such was the power of this inspiration that I made it my goal very early on to aim as high as possible, seeking a level of attainment akin to that of the legendary drummers in my father’s record collection.
Not blessed with a formal music education or an entree into the upper echelons of the music industry it was very much left up to me to make my own way when it came time to become a professional player. This I have done and I believe that you can do it too.
I first began performing at a professional level in 1977, took my first private students in 1982 and have been teaching at university/college level since 1994.
My career as a performing musician has always and continues to encompass a broad range of musical genres, however it is as a jazz musician, with particular emphasis on big band playing that I have forged an international reputation. In 2015 I was voted in the world’s top 5 jazz drummers by Rhythm magazine, the only non-USA player to be nominated in that year’s poll.
I am proud to be affiliated with Premier drums, for whom I appear as international brand ambassador, the Avedis Zildjian company, Vater drumsticks and Evans drumheads.
My lifelong quest for attainment in my field, having been inspired in very early childhood by legends like Joe Morello, Buddy Rich and Louie Bellson has led me to scrutinise the techniques of drumming very closely. I have spent much of the last three decades analysing and deconstructing the approaches of all manner of drummers across the entire musical spectrum.
However, not content merely to replicate what has gone before I have fused the traditions of the past masters with contemporary concepts and developments both with regard to technical facility, musical application, and with particular emphasis on creativity and improvisation.
Decades of research and development have led me to a point where I feel I have a logical, easily understood and fully formed approach to the instrument, and that I have the tools to simplify and revolutionise drumming for players of all ability levels.
My work as an educator in music colleges, masterclasses, clinics, drum camps and with private students has proved that a great many students feel overwhelmed by the amount of information available and the required level of knowledge. My approach simplifies and strips away unnecessary baggage and will help the student understand how everything comes back to a very small number of key parameters that are at the root of everything all drummers do.
Now it is time to share this with the world. My never-ending quest for self-improvement means that I’ll never run out of things to work on, and you can have this too. I have seen the dramatic effects of my methods on private students on numerous occasions and it is my aim to achieve a global reach that would be impossible for me as a single individual.
I’m aiming to make this DVD as informative as possible. Production values will be at the highest possible level but the intention is to make the end product long on substance without being fixated on style and image. There is no contingency for ‘photo shoots’ in this campaign for instance.
In order to take raw footage and edit it into a coherent sequence of between 2 and 4 hours duration, together with manufacturing costs, DVD artwork, a booklet containing notation examples relevant to the video content plus all contingencies and sundry expenses, the target has been set at 5000 GBP.
In the event that the target is significantly surpassed, the scope of the production will be expanded to feature performance examples with musician colleagues from my three bands; The Pete Cater Big Band, The Ministry of Jazz, and The Organisation.
The videos on this page include two parts of a series of four produced in 2015 in association with Rhythm magazine. These videos prompted a huge response, requests for private lessons and clinic/masterclass appearances, as well as all sorts of questions about all manner of drum concepts relating to both hand technique and musical applications. All these questions I will endeavour to answer in the dvd. These videos are shared here in order to give an insight into the style of presentation and method of delivery.
The aim is to make every drummer play better; to demistify and simplify much of what we do. With so much material available these days, be it audio visual or good old fashioned printed words it can be easy for aspiring players to feel overwhelmed by the amount of knowledge that is seemingly a prerequisite of the contemporary drummer. Stand by to see a few myths get busted!
Through Indiegogo’s InDemand feature plans are also in place for further projects including a ‘big band minus drums’ package featuring some legendary and challenging music as well as recording, performance and educational projects featuring The Pete Cater Big Band, The Ministry of Jazz and The Organisation.
Every contribution counts and helps. Whatever you feel able to pledge all makes a difference. Also I won’t be annoying you with unsolicited and needy emails, private messages or texts. I look forward to making this happen with your help. Thanks.
Pete Cater (Feb 26, 2017)