Benny Greb's Canadian Tour a Huge Success! A Tour Diary By Scott Atkins: Sonor Artist Relations Canada, Coast Music.
Sunday, November 13th, 2005
It didn't take long for the audience at the Centre Pierre Peladeau in Montreal to figure out that once again Sonor had delivered something special to Drum Fest 2005!
In keeping up the annual tradition of introducing cutting edge, international, rising drum stars, Benny Greb was no exception to this years star-studded line-up.
Working with Benny behind the scenes, one would have to wonder if he was really there to perform, as his calm, warm personality kept him occupied in conversation and discussions about technique and musicality amongst the other performers. He even managed to keep cool during soundcheck, after realizing that none of his tracks were going to operate from his laptop, and he would have to play the performance from his iPOD without a click track! When it came time to deliver, the crowd was not aware what they were about to witness. Into a few minutes of his performance, he was overcome by the crowd's appreciation for his amazing talent, and quick sense of humour. The end of his performance brought the audience to their feet for what would be the longest standing ovation of the weekend, leaving an emotional Benny with an incredible sense of welcome to Montreal!
Monday, November 14th, 2005
Monday morning brought cooler temperatures that Benny was told of in the “Great White North”. After picking up the trailer with Coast Rep Dave Rundle, we headed off to the hotel to pick up Benny and Milan Goltz, the Artist Relations Manager from Sonor, Germany. We stopped off at Coast Music / JAM headquarters for a quick tour and some lunch, and then boarded Dave’s “Rudimental Tour Van” for the first clinic location: Cornwall, ON. The first stop in Cornwall was to the clinic host store: Melody Music. I think Milan was happy to see us arrive, since Benny and I had been drumming in the backseat the entire way there! We also connected with fellow Coast Representative for Eastern Ontario: Bob Martin. The store was filled with Benny Greb advertising, and more tickets were being printed and sold while we were there. We had a feeling it would be a good night, but I wasn’t totally prepared for the packed room at Jazz Magnolias! A great way to start off the clinic tour – a sold out, and very receptive crowd, and a great store that really got behind the event and promoted it like crazy! After all – how do you sell a drum clinic where the drummer is virtually unknown in North America??? Several people had even come from Montreal to see a repeat extended performance from the one at the Drum Fest. Many thanks to Steve and his staff at Melody Music for hosting such a great kick-off to the tour. This clinic also prompted the tour’s most interesting question: “Benny, how much damage can you do with one hand???”
Tuesday, November 15th, 2005
Tuesday started with a bit warmer temperatures and a lot of rain. After a quick shopping stop for Benny to look for some true CanEHdian wearables, we heading back on the road towards our next clinic stop: Kingston, ON. Our host dealer: Kingston Soundworks had found the ideal spot to host a drum clinic: the Time to Laugh Comedy Club! Aside from having a great atmosphere for both performer and audience, the venue also provide some room for the store to showcase some Sonor drums!
Bob locked his keys in his car, Dave fell off the edge of the stage, and I almost broke my back going up the back stairs which were slippery from the rain – yes, how fitting for a show that would be taking place in a comedy club! The room was filled with young drummers, local players, educators and a couple of tables for members of the local Drum Corps – the Grenadiers. Benny once again worked his magic, throwing in a few humorous punches to add to the evening! The crowd responded well to his performance of mixed play-alongs, including Frank Zappa’s “Black Page”. His snare drum solo at the end of the evening brought the crowd to their feet and capped off another great night. Thanks again to Joel and Rob at Kingston Soundworks for a great clinic and awesome venue!!!! After getting a bite to eat, and checking out some live jazz music, we left Kingston to travel to Oshawa to stay for the night.
Wednesday, November 16th, 2005
Well, it made sense to come to Oshawa to split the travel distance to Barrie, ON. But did you know that Oshawa is Dave Rundle’s home town? We all do now! Thanks for the great informative tour of Oshawa, Dave! Just how many Grandparents did you have as a kid, that lived where a road now passes through??? Definitely a great time being had in the van by now, from the fury of rudimental chops in the back seat, to Milan complaining about the noise and trying to get sleep, and the guided tour commentary coming from the driver!!! GM was doing some renovating, so we decided not to stop in!
By mid-afternoon, we arrived at Music Pro’s new location in South Barrie, and were greeted by Ted Johnstone. His staff was ready to go at the downtown store location where we would hold an up close and personal clinic, so after a quick tour of the new store, we headed over to the store on Dunlop in downtown Barrie. It was here during the sound-check that Benny met the local “King of Paradiddles”. We grabbed some quick pita sandwiches and once again, Benny was out to win over another crowd of drumming enthusiasts. I think because of his vast knowledge at such a young age (25), and his warm personality, he was able to relate very well to a wide range of audience, young and old, amateur and pro, drummer and non-drummer. Everyone was having a great time and once again, Benny wrapped up the evening with a snare solo that sent the crown into rounds of appreciation. Thanks to Ted Johnstone and his staff at Music Pro for a great clinic and making our job easy!
Wednesday night after the clinic was all about eating sushi, Dave’s brush method, and AL BUNDY!!!
Thursday, November 17th, 2005
Thursday morning we awoke to several inches of snow on the ground! This was the weather Benny had hoped to see while in Canada, and after he finished checking his emails, we got back on the road to Cambridge, ON. We arrived at the host store: Long & McQuade and were brought over to the United Kingdom Hall, the site of the clinic. When we got there, Drum Department manager: Dave Colter had everything ready to go! Dave and I left Milan and Benny to set up the drums while we headed to drop off the tour trailer. The drums were staying in Cambridge following this last clinic. On the way from returning the trailer, a snow storm began that would develop into a major blizzard in Cambridge. When we finally arrived back at the venue, the sound-check was finished, lights in place, everything ready to go! Now, would we still see people out for the clinic with such a severe storm outside? When we saw that people were still coming in past the start time, we decided to hold off for a while to give people a chance to get in. They had endured the drive anyway, and were determine to come out to see Benny play! Some fellow Sonor artists came out to support the clinic as well – driving in from Toronto: Dave Langguth and Anthony Michelli. Overall, the evening was a huge success, being the store’s first-ever Drum Clinic! A good crowd despite the weather and lot’s of excited drummers with questions!!! Benny was a bit sentimental this night, being the last clinic of the tour. His performance was heartfelt, and inspiring. I actually saw something for the very first time, in all the clinics I have been to in the past. Following Benny’s performance, while the L&M staff went on stage to handle door prizes, a majority of the crown had gotten up from there seats and followed Benny to the back of the room for a chance to speak with him and get something signed! They were more interested in getting a chance to meet and speak with Benny, than winning prizes including a Sonor Maple Snare Drum! Following the clinic, we went out locally for a bite to eat with some of the store staff and family, and headed off to our hotel in Toronto. Congratulations to Dave and the staff at L&M Cambridge for a great inaugural drum clinic and a fantastic conclusion to the clinic tour!
Friday, November 18th, 2005
On Friday, Milan ordered a taxi and along with Benny and I, headed downtown Toronto to the CN Tower. Our lunch took just long enough to make a complete 360 degree revolution atop the city at 1150 feet! Following the lunch, we headed over to the glass floor, and after about 20 minutes of convincing and bribing, we managed to get Milan out on the glass for a picture! After a brisk walk around, and I mean brisk – it was freezing, we hailed a taxi, and got back at the hotel in time to get some last drumming in before meeting up with some of the Sonor endorsers for dinner: Anthony Michelli, Dave Langguth and Alan Hetherington. Benny made friends with the cow out front of the restaurant, and I did my best to stay awake for the one last hang with the gang, before I flew out of Toronto and returned to Montreal.
Once again, I would like to thank all of the stores that hosted Benny and our crew for the drum clinics: Melody Music in Cornwall, Kingston SoundWorks in Kingston, Music Pro in Barrie, and Long and McQuade in Cambridge, to all of the sponsors that helped make the clinics a success: Sonor, Meinl, ProMark, Remo and Beyerdynamic, and to our gracious drivers and tour companions, fellow Coast Guys: Bob Martin and Dave Rundle. Thanks to our fellow Sonor endorsers that supported the shows. Thanks to Benny for sharing his great talents and humble, warm personality. Most importantly – thanks to all of the people that came out to see an unknown drummer from Hamburg, Germany, and were able to come away with a piece of Benny Greb! I know he will be back!!!
For more information on Benny Greb, please visit: www.bennygreb.com
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