Frank Rosaly
Frank Rosaly has always been a drummer. His only sibling, his older sister Frances, made sure of it, when being in the fourth grade band herself, she showed her brother how to use the snare drum. Frank was just in the second grade. He “was immediately fascinated” by the snare and by the time he joined band in fourth grade, he had learned all the basics. He felt as though “he excelled in something at school, for once.” He also started lessons.
That was only the beginning of the shaping of his inner drive. Born in Phoenix, AZ, in 1974, of Puerto Rican parents, Rosaly’s early musical life was consistent with his familial and cultural heritage. Never wont for parental support, he says that “music was a part of growing up.” Both classical and Latin music infiltrated his listening space. Experiencing a public school music program, even at age ten, Rosaly was so open to music’s variability that seeing a video of Van Halen’s “Panama,” captivated him.
“That’s when I fell in love with the drums…[Van Halen] was playing these giant, clear Ludwigs that completely freaked me out.” And, then, two years later, Rosaly heard a “hot” live concert by Tito Puente’s band; Rosaly was moved to tears. His spirit had been tapped. “Nothing ever felt so good that very moment…That’s when I fell in love with the music.”
That was only the beginning of the shaping of his inner drive. Born in Phoenix, AZ, in 1974, of Puerto Rican parents, Rosaly’s early musical life was consistent with his familial and cultural heritage. Never wont for parental support, he says that “music was a part of growing up.” Both classical and Latin music infiltrated his listening space. Experiencing a public school music program, even at age ten, Rosaly was so open to music’s variability that seeing a video of Van Halen’s “Panama,” captivated him.
“That’s when I fell in love with the drums…[Van Halen] was playing these giant, clear Ludwigs that completely freaked me out.” And, then, two years later, Rosaly heard a “hot” live concert by Tito Puente’s band; Rosaly was moved to tears. His spirit had been tapped. “Nothing ever felt so good that very moment…That’s when I fell in love with the music.”
His curiosity compelled him to begin collecting recorded music of every kind—from Paul Simon’s Graceland to the Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz. Rosaly did not allow genre bar his way from learning about the directions in which music could go. He did not care. He wanted to absorb the material and the tools that he needed to continue to tailor what was inherent to his being. “I think it was around then, in 1986, that I decided I wanted to be a professional musician, really. It wasn’t the fireman, architect (which I thought I wanted to be until I was twelve), President of the United States dream thing…it was reality.”
The study of classical percussion, in both high school and college, exposed him to classical contemporary composers such as Milton Babbitt, John Cage, Harry Partch, Iannis Xenakis as well as their precursors, notably, Charles Ives, Henry Cowell, and Alban Berg. Through the music of these composers, Rosaly learned about extended techniques of making sound which was “an epiphany” for him. He put these lessons away until later in his musical life.
Yet, he claims that classical percussion in addition to the study of jazz provided the doorway to being serious about playing traps. With the essential knowledge of Latin, rock, electronic, as well as classical music in mind, Rosaly faced the world, ready to go, but not yet completely sure of his own direction.
Between the ages of sixteen and twenty-five, Rosaly talks about “focusing a lot of energy on hearing unusual pulse centers…I had been introduced to Afro-Cuban, Brazilian and African rhythms and began to discover polyrhythms…I got super nerdy about it… [creating various sequencing programs and taping them for the purpose of] memorizing two beat cycles over each other.” This “simple idea” led him to appreciate the basis of phasing. “It was a fascinating discovery, one that helped me to understand theoretical relationship between pulses that are happening around us all the time. I even tried to memorize my heart beat over my breath before bed each night for a long time.”
He describes this nine year period as “a very heady time.” His rhythm was so clean and precise; he claims that it didn’t “breathe at all.” A year or so after college, he moved to Los Angeles and stayed for a couple of years. “I could play anything…and was doomed to become a studio cat making money playing jingles and porno sound tracks. And I did, too!” It was at this point, however, that he met Billy Higgins, whom Rosaly dubs his “angel.” “I guess what I remember most about my time with him was that he saw the light in me…”
The two drummers developed a rapport where Higgins gave Rosaly much of his own “time, energy and support.” Their human relationship reminded Rosaly “why I fell in love with music in the first place.” Their relationship as drummers taught Rosaly some specifics: “The ride cymbal is the center of your universe,” Higgins told him. Rosaly confesses that it has been only recently that he understands what Higgins meant: “Cut down the white noise in your head.
Relate all that you hear around you to the ride cymbal. Make it the most important sound you make at all times. Allow it to be everywhere around you.” Billy Higgins was not the only transitional figure in Rosaly’s life. Returning to Arizona in 1999 after LA, he began a Masters course of study at Northern Arizona University and eventually received a scholarship to Manhattan School of Music. On his way, Rosaly visited his dad outside of Chicago. During his stay with his father, he happened to see an improvised music performance with cellist Fred Lonberg-holm and drummer Michael Zerang at The Empty Bottle.
“I was simply floored…not simply because they were using sounds but because they were playing such exciting, well-played music…with such commitment, such connection…THAT was the hook. The line and sinker came with Zerang buzzing dildos and masterfully using friction on his snare drum. Fred played the cello like a piano, then a guitar, then a glockenspiel, then a tube of toothpaste…I’ve never witnessed such mastery of sound or complete concentration.” After hearing that gig, Rosaly gave up his scholarship to MSM and stayed in Chicago. He has lived there now for a little over ten years.
As his exposure to improvised music grew, Rosaly changed his rigid, metronomic approach to the drums. Now he addresses his instrument in the same way as “an improvising dancer responds to sound…I have begun to generate sounds through gesture in reaction to sounds I have heard when improvising…It’s a very physical approach to playing, one that often produces very little actual sound compared to the energy expended. Sometimes I imagine all my muscles contracted: only when I relax them can my limbs move to attempt to produce sound.”
Read More on: http://jazztimes.com/sections/artist-profiles/articles/27124-frank-rosaly-music-from-within
The study of classical percussion, in both high school and college, exposed him to classical contemporary composers such as Milton Babbitt, John Cage, Harry Partch, Iannis Xenakis as well as their precursors, notably, Charles Ives, Henry Cowell, and Alban Berg. Through the music of these composers, Rosaly learned about extended techniques of making sound which was “an epiphany” for him. He put these lessons away until later in his musical life.
Yet, he claims that classical percussion in addition to the study of jazz provided the doorway to being serious about playing traps. With the essential knowledge of Latin, rock, electronic, as well as classical music in mind, Rosaly faced the world, ready to go, but not yet completely sure of his own direction.
Between the ages of sixteen and twenty-five, Rosaly talks about “focusing a lot of energy on hearing unusual pulse centers…I had been introduced to Afro-Cuban, Brazilian and African rhythms and began to discover polyrhythms…I got super nerdy about it… [creating various sequencing programs and taping them for the purpose of] memorizing two beat cycles over each other.” This “simple idea” led him to appreciate the basis of phasing. “It was a fascinating discovery, one that helped me to understand theoretical relationship between pulses that are happening around us all the time. I even tried to memorize my heart beat over my breath before bed each night for a long time.”
He describes this nine year period as “a very heady time.” His rhythm was so clean and precise; he claims that it didn’t “breathe at all.” A year or so after college, he moved to Los Angeles and stayed for a couple of years. “I could play anything…and was doomed to become a studio cat making money playing jingles and porno sound tracks. And I did, too!” It was at this point, however, that he met Billy Higgins, whom Rosaly dubs his “angel.” “I guess what I remember most about my time with him was that he saw the light in me…”
The two drummers developed a rapport where Higgins gave Rosaly much of his own “time, energy and support.” Their human relationship reminded Rosaly “why I fell in love with music in the first place.” Their relationship as drummers taught Rosaly some specifics: “The ride cymbal is the center of your universe,” Higgins told him. Rosaly confesses that it has been only recently that he understands what Higgins meant: “Cut down the white noise in your head.
Relate all that you hear around you to the ride cymbal. Make it the most important sound you make at all times. Allow it to be everywhere around you.” Billy Higgins was not the only transitional figure in Rosaly’s life. Returning to Arizona in 1999 after LA, he began a Masters course of study at Northern Arizona University and eventually received a scholarship to Manhattan School of Music. On his way, Rosaly visited his dad outside of Chicago. During his stay with his father, he happened to see an improvised music performance with cellist Fred Lonberg-holm and drummer Michael Zerang at The Empty Bottle.
“I was simply floored…not simply because they were using sounds but because they were playing such exciting, well-played music…with such commitment, such connection…THAT was the hook. The line and sinker came with Zerang buzzing dildos and masterfully using friction on his snare drum. Fred played the cello like a piano, then a guitar, then a glockenspiel, then a tube of toothpaste…I’ve never witnessed such mastery of sound or complete concentration.” After hearing that gig, Rosaly gave up his scholarship to MSM and stayed in Chicago. He has lived there now for a little over ten years.
As his exposure to improvised music grew, Rosaly changed his rigid, metronomic approach to the drums. Now he addresses his instrument in the same way as “an improvising dancer responds to sound…I have begun to generate sounds through gesture in reaction to sounds I have heard when improvising…It’s a very physical approach to playing, one that often produces very little actual sound compared to the energy expended. Sometimes I imagine all my muscles contracted: only when I relax them can my limbs move to attempt to produce sound.”
Read More on: http://jazztimes.com/sections/artist-profiles/articles/27124-frank-rosaly-music-from-within
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