MiM 10: Happy Father's Day! New drums, new studio, and a day with the Colorado Symphony.

Happy Father’s Day! I write this from Seattle, where I’ve spent the last few days with my mom and dad, still going strong at 86 and 87 respectively. Amidst the ever-growing chaos and instability of our world, it’s been a blessing to be able to hide out for a few days in the bosom of those who raised me, remembering old times and just appreciating each other. 

New Drums and Production Studio Over the last few months, I've been slowly assembling a four camera production studio that will act as a new home base for all things DG. The space was put together with the help of Jim Toscano, an expert in the field who’s helped Dave Weckl, Stanton Moore and many other top drummers with their studios.

After 15 years in NYC, I’ll finally have a dedicated space to create high quality educational content, remote recordings, and a home base to rehearse and record with the trio. Most importantly, this studio will offer me the chance to show off the AMAZING new set that recently arrived from DW (the drum company I’ve endorsed since 1994).

As you might imagine, putting together a studio in the middle of New York City has its challenges, and can often come with some surreal moments. A couple of weekends ago, I had to carry several 10-foot sections of electrical tubing more than a mile across Manhattan (cause you ain't gonna fit that sh*t in a cab or the subway).

Less than a block from the building that was my destination, a giant SUV pulled up, and out popped none other than Mike Tyson. After shaking a few hands, he walked right in front of me into a brand new cannabis shop, which was apparently celebrating its grand opening with a paid appearance by the G.O.A.T.

I grabbed my phone to take a quick video (which you can see here), and the music I'd been listening to (Lee Konitz’s arrangement of “I’ll Remember You”) started blaring through the speakers, giving this surreal moment a very hip soundtrack. What can I say, baby? Only in New York ....

Leadership Seminar in Denver: A few weeks back, I had the opportunity to travel to Denver and participate in a leadership seminar, hosted by the Colorado Symphony. 

The opportunity came through my friend Daniel Wachter, a student at last year's European Jazz Intensive who recently became the CEO of the Colorado Symphony. Daniel is an amazing person and a great leader in his own right.

One of the several innovative programs he’s already introduced in his young tenure as CEO is a leadership seminar for business executives. The participants (myself included) were seated not in the audience, but among the musicians, allowing us to observe the fascinating and unexpected organizational dynamics between conductor (the leader) and the players.

I even had the opportunity to view the events from the podium.

Overall, this seminar offered a great metaphor for understanding the inner workings of a highly successful organization. You can see a video of my experience HERE.

DG Trio: European Tour, October 2025: The trio will be headed back to Germany in the Fall, with a tour that will run from October 2-13. The trip includes: 
- Three concerts in the Hamburg area
- A featured clinician spot at the two-day International Drummer Meeting in Salzgitter
- Our fifth annual European Jazz Intensive, which happens in the Frankfurt area from October 9-13. 

All the tour and Jazz Intensive details can be found on the DG Gigs Page. 

To read more of Daniel's Music in Motion posts, click the BLOG button at the top of this page.

I'd love to know what you think about these blog posts. You can leave a comment below via your Facebook account. Just click in the comments box and it will bring up your FB login. When you've signed in one time, you'll be able to comment on any of the posts in this blog.