Home > Author > Patrick R.F. Blakley
1 " Percussion is my religion, and the band room is my cathedral. Inside this holy place, I don’t believe in anything more than myself. "
― Patrick R.F. Blakley , Drummond: Learning to find himself in the music
2 " The table stands fast between the kitchen and the family room. It nestles between arguments and television shows, homework and birthday parties, breakfast and dinner. "
3 " The most important emphasis in the allotted warmup time is repetition. Don’t talk more than they play! "
― Patrick R.F. Blakley , Drumline Instruction Packet & Warmup Book
4 " The wind announces itself through my open bedroom window. Sheet music is blown face down onto my floor, but the birds outside sing it from memory. Accompanying them are four steady-sounding knocks on my door, very evenly spaced, about mezzo-piano, my mom must be practicing drums too."Let's leave now, so we get a good view for the parade," my mom adds lyrics through the closed door. "
5 " Lying on the ground, the instrument looks like a Venn diagram for toppings that belong on a pizza versus pineapple, two big separate circles. He lifts the whole thing up, minding the ceiling, sticks his head through the pineapple portion, and straightens the pizza portion to be a little flatter to the front. "
6 " I don't know yet," I give her the perfect reply. The political 'I do not recall' get-out-of-jail-free card. Let's see how Ashley handles this verbal razzle-dazzle. "That's not what Chelsea said," Ashley pops my bubble. "What did Chelsea say?" I ask. Now I look silly, not knowing what my apparent girlfriend thinks of our own relationship. "Chelsea thinks you two are dating," Ashley spills the bag and lets the cat out of the beans. "
7 " I lift my arm and feel around for the snooze button, the only word I know in braille. "
8 " Terre Hill received an official nod by the United States Coast And Geodetic Survey, USC&GS, or just simply CGS, in the form of a permanent bronze marker in 1934. The Terre Hill survey markers have been officially recovered, or found, only four times since 1934. Unofficially the station has been logged three more times by geocachers using the NGS datasheets for reference. "
― Patrick R.F. Blakley , Terre Hill, Woodard, New York State
9 " I'm not totally engaged with the man, rather, the clock on the wall behind him. About six, but ticking slow and tocking even slower. "
10 " Steve holds his breath as I suck all the air from the room into my lungs. I pause, then blow as hard as I can while squeezing my lips tightly together. The sound that comes out is not that of a sousaphone. In fact, it doesn't even come out of the bell above my head. The sound that escapes and reverberates throughout the long hallway did, in fact, start with F but ended in A-R-T, and it came out the opposite end! "
11 " If you wanted four eighth-note triplets in one measure you’d run into the same problem. 4/12 will suffice as a time signature in that instance. "
― Patrick R.F. Blakley , Quadratics: The Tenor Drum Equation
12 " Rule number one, in general visual design, is to create an exceptional listening environment. "
― Patrick R.F. Blakley , The Field Percussion User Manual
13 " Learn with your group. Take as much information away from this season as possible to start the next one with momentum. "
14 " The on-field warmup should invoke confidence in the members, don’t have them play something that isn’t ready, or abovetheir level here. Remind them to listen to the environment while playing to understand as much as they can about the overall listening situation. You might try ending the field warmup session with a very loud single note from everyone in order to listen specifically to the reverb and echo of the stadium. "
15 " It will be necessary to communicate within a loud environment most of the time. ASL signs can help you understand or communicate information without being able to hear it and continuing to rehearse without stopping for minor comments. "
16 " The on-field warmup should invoke confidence in the members, don’t have them play something that isn’t ready, or above their level here. Remind them to listen to the environment while playing to understand as much as they can about the overall listening situation. You might try ending the field warmup session with a very loud single note from everyone in order to listen specifically to the reverb and echo of the stadium. "
17 " Bye!" I yell over about four nearby flutes doing the opposite of tuning. "
18 " I started to doubt my belief in a god and instead began to believe in myself. "
