Editor’s note: Author Robert Cataliotti treated me to a personal guided tour of the exhibit, DrumsVille, in 2019 at the New Orleans Jazz Museum. It was impressive to say the least. And now you can see it too in this very high quality coffee table book of DrumsVille, which has tons of in depth articles and pictures of ALL the New Orleans drummers from Baby Dodds to Stanton More. Highly recommended. Beautiful publication and very thorough. It was hard for me to put it down to write this. This should be in every drummer’s library. It can be purchased at all the usual online sites. Here is the press release from the publisher:
THE EXHIBIT The New Orleans Jazz Museum debuted Drumsville: Evolution of the New Orleans Beat on November 8, 2018, in celebration of both International Drum Month and the New Orleans Tricentennial, along with the development of the drum kit in New Orleans and the ongoing evolution of rich local drumming traditions.
Drumsville is a highlight of our exhibit offerings, and we are excited to announce an accompanying book written by exhibit co-curator Dr. Bob Cataliotti.
THE BOOK The first book-length study of its kind, Drumsville! The Evolution of the New Orleans Beat is a companion to the New Orleans Jazz Museum exhibit that traces the history of drums and drumming in New Orleans from Native People to today. A main goal of Drumsville! is to provide the keys to understand how this legacy led to the creation of the drum set, an instrument so pervasive that few people question its origin. Drumsville! also pays tribute to many of the musicians who have been important in developing the drum set and in the transmission of these rhythms, particularly the city’s signature Second Line groove. Each section of the book draws its visuals from the historic photos, graphics, and photos of the percussion equipment and artifacts featured in the exhibit. The text of the book expands the narrative of the exhibit with historical backgrounds, musicological analyses, and biographies of New Orleans musicians. Some of the drummers interviewed for the book include: Joseph “Zigaboo” Modeliste, Alfred “Uganda” Roberts,” Willie Green, Adonis Rose, Ricky Sebastian, Johnny Vidacovich, Shannon Powell, Stanton Moore, Joe Lastie, Christie Jourdain, and Herlin Riley, who will also be contributing a Preface to the book.