Talk:Peter Erskine

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He is the musical kit drummers choice.

I have added commentary on his personal style as it diverges from old-school mainstream jazz drummers. I personally feel them to be important. Erskine may be a genius that has brought jazz-drumming to the era of modern metronomical timekeeping, or he can be a divergent jazz drummer "not a jazz drummer, really". I have run into both descriptions of him from colleague drummers. I personally feel that his vast recording history proves how preferable his style is by many modern jazz musicians and composers, having rarely seen his critizisers used as widely as musicians, but leave this discussion of Erskine's jazz-styles influentiality for the future generations to decide. If it lives on, he is right to modernize timekeeping styles of jazz.

The above and the article is a very personal opinion that should not be construed as qualified critique of Peter Erskine's style or capability. Peter Erskine has the ability to adapt and vary his style depending on the arrangement, musicians and particulars of the recording session or concert. To the trained ear his sound is utterly particular, impressive and creates a powerful drive for the rest of the orchestra or group. Two very good extreme examples of Erskine's capability and range are Maynard Ferguson's Airegin, where he displays his incredible domain of the drums, understanding of the arrangement and the orchestra's capability . At the other extreme end of the spectrum is Chris Botti's The Place Between Us. Here Erskine plays pure accompaniment, yet his playing is vivid, powerful and a driving factor to the rest of the group. I have followed Erskine's career for years and as the paragraph above by n.n. indicates, the list of artists that Erskine has played with is spectacular and attests to his demand as a drummer. He can transcend all styles, whether playing big band jazz or contemporary group jazz. If one likes Erskine, consider listening to Billy Kilson. His style, drive and power are very similar to Erskine's. Henry Danforth.