Benny Greb - Be An Entertainer

I had a suspicion Benny Greb would be an interesting and thought-provoking conversation partner, and I wasn’t wrong.

I was interested to compare notes with the master-clinician on a number of things that have been top-of-mind, like nature/nurture, the paradox of the subjectivity of - but requirement for skill in - art, gap-click, and overrated drum advice.

Benny surprised me at turns, and confirmed my suspicions at others.

One of his most-interesting insights, in my opinion, was that he wants to be an entertainer/craftsperson, not just an “artist”.

We also managed to touch on Pablo Picaso, Neitzsche, Vinnie’s Attack of The 20lb Pizza (it’s 20 pounds, I know - I misspoke and under-weighted the pizza during the interview), and why Benny maybe disagrees with me on independence as a concept.

Chapters

0:00 - how can you tell if you're meant to play the drums 2:33 - did the drums feel natural to Benny when he first started? 5:35 - on being an entertainer 9:53 - if art is subjective what are we getting better at when we practice? 13:57 - was there a "goodness threshold" for Benny? 16:10 - biggest progress blockers Benny sees in drummers? 20:10 - are there any sacred cows in drum education that Benny disagrees with? 23:17 - "applying rudiments to the kit" 25:17 - Benny's recipe for learning improv 31:13 - JP's story, and why Benny loves teaching 35:45 - is there a place for competition in music? 41:02 - Vinnie, and filling other drummers' shoes