An Interview with Bucks County's Master Blaster"Dave Mohn"

Chronicle - Dave, welcome to The Chronicles. What a treat to have you on the hot seat! Give our readers a glimpse of your early years, Dave: teachers, influences and inspirations. Dave - Very early years were spent banging on random things and then on my dad Harry’s drums whenever I could. As I got a little older my dad began to teach me the rudiments. He would play me jazz and classical music, teaching me the art of listening. When we listened to jazz he would often pick out things to listen for, like what the drummer was doing behind the different solos, and how the piano player would be comping, and so on. My dad gave me a snare drum at age seven, and I was off and running with it. Around 10 or 11 years old, my uncle Don took over the drum lessons. He taught me how to play all the different grooves along with reading and independence exercises on an old set of my dad’s; until I was surprised with a new set of Ludwig’s right around 12 years old. I played my first gig around that time as well. I also studied briefly with Getz/Byrd drummer Buddy Deppenshmidt. Chronicle - I'm sure our readers would love to hear about your association with master drummer Jack DeJohnette. Dave - I met Jack when he was living in New Hope, PA at a gig he played at the Ney Museum with Bobby Moses and a couple other players. We became friends, and when he moved to West Amwell, I often went up to his house to hang out, to play and listen to music. Our daughters would spend time together, and Jack and I would play. A couple of times stick out: one day with 2 snare drums when he showed me how to loosen up; one day at a party of some sort when Keith Jarrett was there, and he and Jack were playing each other piano licks; and another day when Jack called to come up and play, Ron McClure was there with Jack playing piano. Watching Jack’s group, Compost, rehearse was a treat too. Many great times. Jack was a true inspiration! Chronicle - So Dave, what's it like working with the Amish Jazz Man? Dave - It can be difficult at times when you can only use solar power. Chronicle - Seriously though, I recently saw a video of the Eric Mintel quartet with you, of course, as drummer. I was thoroughly entertained; you just get better and better bro. What would you tell young players about the journey of exceptional drumming? Dave - Thanks for the compliment man! Keep studying, practicing, listening and play. Play in your school ensembles and with other players, get a band, and- as much as possible- don’t play for free.

Chronicle - It looks like the Eric Mintel Quartet has a nice brotherhood thing going on, is that important? Dave - It’s very important to me. We all get along great and it comes out in the music. Everybody listens and we respect each other both musically and personally Chronicle - Over the years, you have played with some very impressive musicians. Tell our readers who, where, and how a couple of them came about. Dave - I recently had the opportunity to play with Phil Woods at the COTA festival in the Delaware Water Gap, PA when he sat in with The EMQ. I’ve played with Richie Cole often, Urbie Green, Charles Fambrough, Jim Ridl, Dennis DeBlasio and as you will see later with George Duke and Larry Coryell in the studio…the list goes on, they are all great players and wonderful musical experiences. Chronicle - You have been working your web site and FB pages since the outset of the medium. How important is this in today's music market? Dave - Very important. The Internet and social media are a must today. With the age of digital downloads and ability to share music and videos and sell music on the Internet, it’s totally necessary to be well versed in it all. Chronicle - Over the years you have done a lot of studio work; tells us about that. Dave - My wife Patricia would often say to me, “You should do more studio work.” I balked at it at first but eventually recognized her words as wisdom, thanks honey J . There have been many projects over the years and include two albums on Polydor with Randy Burns; three albums on RCA with Johnny’s Dance Band; the contemporary jazz group Soulminded CD, led by Glenn McClelland; and numerous other CD projects. There are jingles, commercials and soundtracks for Sesame Street animators, a project for the Musitronics Company with George Duke and Larry Coryell, demo sessions with Elliot Randall on the band, and with a band called Bittersweet who also had players like Paul Shaffer and Lance and Larry Hoppen on the sessions, and recently a CD project with Stephen Parker, and several CD's with EMQ. Chronicle - For the consummate professional what regiment do you suggest to stay sharp and relevant? Dave - Keep listening, learning, be versatile. Along with playing a lot of jazz these days, I still do rock and funk gigs, musical theater gigs which require a lot of reading, singer/songwriter stuff. If it’s good, do it. Chronicle - Right now the Chronicle sees you at a cruising altitude of about 30,000 feet. What’s Dave Mohn’s next destination? Dave - A warp speed flight to the end of 2015 including a two-month run at Hunterdon Hills Playhouse (most every day), 16+ gigs in December alone which will include 7 days in New England with EMQ (subbing out the show those days), and a lot more. Chronicle - Dave thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule to talk to us. The Chronicles wishes you continued success, and we look forward to hearing your work on Eric’s ‘Live”. CD…

Web: davemohn.com FB: Facebook Twitter: @jdmdrums