Name: Srdjan Ivanovic
Nationality: Serbian
Occupation: Composer, drummer
Current release: Srdjan Ivanovic's new album Modular is out via Rue des Balkans.
Pure Drum Music recommendations: I don't listen much to drums or percussion only albums. But one I would listen to is Andrew Cyrille & Milford Graves - Dialogue of the Drums - two amazing drummers who play pure music with percussion.

If you enjoyed this Srdjan Ivanovic interview and would like to find out more about his music, visit him on Instagram. 



What was your first drum set like and what are you using today? What, to you personally, are factors in terms of build and design that you appreciate in drums and percussion instruments?

My first drum set was an Amati, a Czech one, at least that's what I figured it was, some kind of a Premier rip off, with fake Premier badges ... I loved that drum set though and can still hear how it sounds.

It was a 22'', 12'',13'',16'' with power toms, I used different drum heads on it, I made the floor tom into a bass drum, even (inspired by Trilok Gurtu) the second tom into a bass drum, with a loose head.

[Read our Trilok Gurtu interview]

What I use today is a Gabriel, handmade by a Greek drum builder from Athens. It's a 5 ply maple 20", 12", 14", with an olive wood finish, just for the Mediterranean vibe. The snare drum is 5''1/2.

Generally speaking, I think that the drums are an instrument in which tuning, the choice of heads and of course the playing of the drummer have such a big influence that the wood and sizes of the drums only add up to a small part.

Late Rush-drummer Neil Peart said: “The equipment is not an influence. It doesn't affect the way I play. It's an expression of the way I play.” What's your take on that?

Well, he says something similar like I just did but in a more rock n' roll way. In rock / pop they often really base the music on the equipment they chose, so then the equipment is the expression. Like they chose that snare because they wanted that kind of sound.

I would do that too but the beauty of jazz is in the unexpected. So I would also let myself be surprised by a different drum set that I find in a club or a festival and add that to the mix of surprises that I would get in a concert. It's a good thing to get surprises, things than happen that you couldn't think of otherwise and the music stays fresh.

Drumming is an integral part of many cultures, and traditions. Which of these do you draw from in your playing – and why?

I played Balkan percussion as a kid a lot, which is very similar to Turkish and Arabic percussion. I love that music and I have a connection to it and I'm sure it has influenced my playing, unconsciously.

I also love the west African tradition, which I studied on percussion and I really feel connected to it, even though I'm not an expert. I really think I managed to connect these two on the track "Résistance'' from the new album.

There is a very Balkan 15/8 melody and rhythm that's mixed in with west African 6/8 rhythmic elements on the guitar and the drums.

What were some of the main challenges in your development as a drummer / percussionist? Which practices, exercises, or experiences were most helpful in reaching your goals?

I'm still challenged or challenging myself in different technical areas. But the biggest challenge has probably been detaching myself from the practice routines and exercises into actual playing in a band which only comes from a lot of playing with other people.

Every experience of playing is important, from blues to Korean baroque (I've actually done that …). So I can only recommend to play a lot, with people, if possible people that are better musicians than you.

What do you think you're doing different than other drummers?

I'm different, without necessarily wanting to. I don't try to be different but I don't stop it either.

I think about the music and I guess that I'm a good listener and that is very important. You have to listen to everyone in order to know what to play.

What is the relationship between harmony, rhythm and melody? How do non-percussion instruments contribute to the overall rhythmic texture of a piece?

We often say that these are the three elements of music. But really, a melody includes rhythm and a rhythm mostly includes a melody of some sort, like a very basic melody between a low and a high note for example. And then harmony is just many melodies that come together, or at least that's how harmony developed.

So, for me they are like specializations of the same thing which is just organized sound or as we like to call it - music. I like to use trumpet for a rhythmic ostinato or bass as a melodic instrument or give the guitar a percussion part.

On the tune "Kapetan Mihalis" you can hear the guitar playing a percussion part in the solo that really brings the rhythmic harmony together.



In relation to drumming, Stewart Copeland said: “Listening is where the cool stuff comes from. And that listening thing, magically, turns all of your chops into gold.” What do you listen for?

Yes, that makes perfect sense. It's like what I was saying before about transferring your practice knowledge into actual playing in a band.

To do that you need to listen to the rest of the band and with a lot of that, understand how something you've practiced can become part of the music you're making right then and there.

Do you feel that honing your compositional / songwriting skills has an effect on your drumming skills?  

Yes, besides just understanding music better I think the great thing about writing music is that you get to be the composer and the drummer, meaning that as a drummer you get to understand better how someone who wrote the song thinks, who didn't necessarily have a drum part in mind.

I mostly don't come up with a drum part before I finish the song and bring it to rehearsal. So I actually mostly meet my own music as any other musician.

How has technology, such as drum machines and sequencers, impacted the way rhythm is created and perceived? Has it been a concrete influence on your own approach?

I think this is an old story, dating back from the 1980s and I actually think that we're now not anymore in a time where the metronomic and dynamic precision of a machine is so appreciated by the audience. In fact, I see a tendency of machines trying to copy human "swing" and imperfection.

Drum machines and sequencers have impacted my playing as well but even though I love electronic music and the possibilities within using technology, I'm rather trying to get rid of the "perfectionist" influence they've had on how musicians play.

Physical strain is a particularly serious issue for many drummers. How does it manifest itself, how do you deal with it and in how far does it affect your creativity?

I have had some hand and wrist problems, some sort of tendonitis. But I keep it under control and I try and see what causes it or makes it worse and than fix that.

Tense playing causes it so that's one that I work on. But also carrying heavy stuff which I have to keep doing and I play tennis for fun and that also causes it. But I don't want to stop so I try to find a better technique that won't cause it.

I think it's important to notice what causes it as early as you notice a problem and change that habit.

Many recording engineers have remarked that the drums can be particularly hard to capture. What, from your perspective, makes drums sound great on record and in a live setting?

In the studio I like to hear the space that the drummer is in and I like to hear some kind of character to the drum sound, not an entirely clean sound.

I like ribbon microphones as overheads and I like positioning them behind me, kind of like my ears but half a meter over my head. I want to hear recorded what I hear and that is not easy.

Live, I enjoy when the drums sound warm and clear.

Drums and percussion are remarkably often used for physical therapy / healing. What, from your point of view, makes them particularly suitable tools for this?

I don't know but I guess the fact that percussion or rather body percussion was probably the first instrument next to the voice means that it can touch people at a deep level.

Also rhythm is the backbone of all music and relates to many people so I'm guessing it makes it a suitable tool for healing.