Swing was king in the 1930’s. The bands of Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Benny
Goodman helped Americans forget about their troubles throughout the decade of the
Great Depression. This new sound began in 1923 when band leader Fletcher Henderson
began composing and arranging original music for his ensemble. With space left for
improvisation, the characteristics of his music consisted of tight harmonization, call and
response between the brass and reeds, and the use of repeated riff figures played behind a
soloist. Henderson’s new ensemble combined improvisation found in the early New
Orleans style, coupled with compositional aspects of piano ragtime music. These
developments had an enormous effect on the drummer. When listening to music from this
period, you will notice the change in the sound and feel. Beat patterns that were typically
played on the snare drum and “effect” instruments such as wood blocks, temple blocks,
and cow bells were consistently being played on the hi-hat cymbals. As the right hand
played the swing pattern on the hi-hat, the left hand was free to accent on the snare drum
in support of the arrangement and soloist.