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Bernie Dresel
Bernie Dresel has been one of the busiest studio and live musicians in the world as both a drummer and percussionist since moving to Los Angeles in 1983 after graduating from the prestigious Eastman School of Music. He has traveled the world, occupying the coveted drum chair for Grammy Award-winning Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band since its inception in 1999. And also, for an overlapping 15 years (1992 to 2006), he was the drummer for the multi-Grammy Award-winning Brian Setzer Orchestra, selling close to 4 million records. Modern Drummer magazine’s readers’ poll named Bernie “Best Big Band Drummer” and Drum! Magazine has put him on their list of “53 Drummers Who Made a Difference in the ’90s” as well as honoring him with a Drummie® for Best Big Band Drummer.
Bernie Dresel’ s jazz orchestra, The BBB, is without question one of Los Angeles’ most exciting large jazz ensembles, if not on the planet. It is one of the most innovative and original hard-swinging large jazz ensembles ever. The BBB provides potent testimony to the sheer exhilaration of big band jazz...a combination of intense swing and fiery soloing, as well as tight ensemble playing, powered by Bernie Dresel’s extraordinary drumming talents.
The BBB is comprised of 16 seasoned pros on the Los Angeles studio scene. Populated by LA’s finest players, The BBB delivers a contemporary, highly original sound featuring the witty, intricate, and hard-swinging compositions of established and up-and-coming composers and arrangers. And like those other famous jazz orchestras such as Buddy Rich’s, Count Basie’s, Woody Herman’s, Stan Kenton’s, Maynard Ferguson’s, Thad Jones/Mel Lewis’ and Gerald Wilson’s, the music and delivery of The BBB’s music is nothing less than astonishing when experienced live. The sound has a contemporary, dynamic, and hard-swinging energy, with a focused edge to it that is like no other jazz orchestra, though, reminiscent of Buddy Rich’s ensembles. The band make-up is unique in that there is no piano but jazz/rockin’ electric guitar instead, in addition to four trumpets, four trombones, five saxophones, and upright acoustic slap bass and drums. When people hear Bernie’s BBB, the first thing that hits them is its energy and intensity.
At the helm of The BBB is jazz drummer extraordinaire Bernie Dresel. Bernie is the first-call drummer and percussionist on the Hollywood stage for motion picture and television soundtracks. Count Basie, Maynard Ferguson, Woody Herman, Duke Ellington, Buddy Rich, Thad Jones and Mel Lewis, Earth, Wind & Fire, and Tower Of Power, among many others established and new jazz orchestra composers and arrangers, fill the book for the music his band makes today. And like those other bands, Dresel’s rendering style is nothing less than exciting, driven by one of the most accomplished jazz drummers in the world.
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Richard Williams: Hollywood Christmas
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by C. Michael Bailey
Jack Bowers, All About Jazz's large ensemble authority, previously considered this entire recording, The Pugilist, remarking that ..."if swing is your thing, you've come to the right place, as that is what Dresel and his elite group of sun-baked sidemen (and two women) do best and most often." One of the elements that ensures “swing" is the attentive and informed arrangement of these often sprawling pieces. Dr. Jack Cooper is known for his insightful and creative arrangements of percussion-driven music. ...
read moreThe BBB Featuring Bernie Dresel: The Pugilist
by Jack Bowers
No, drummer Bernie Dresel hasn't taken a day gig at the Los Angeles-area Better Business Bureau; the BBB in front of his name stands for Bernie's Big Band or Bernin' Big Band or Bernie's Bernin' Band or something like that. It's really hard to say, as the band's full name isn't spelled out anywhere, even on Dresel's web site or Wikipedia. Be that as it may, the important point to keep in mind is that the BBB comes out swingin' ...
read moreMarcus Miller to Play with Bob Sheppard, Alan Pasqua, Bernie Dresel, and More...
Source:
All About Jazz
MARCUS MILLER, ALAN PASQUA, BOB SHEPPARD, BERNIE DRESEL, CHRIS TEDESCO, BOB MCCHESENEY, MATT HARRIS, SCOTT WHITFIELD AT THE HW JAZZ FESTIVAL Eight world-renowned jazz musicians will be playing together one time only at the 4th Annual Harvard Westlake Jazz Festival on April 18th. The “All Star Combo” will have Marcus Miller on bass, Bob Sheppard on sax, Bernie Dresel on drums, Alan Pasqua on piano, Chris Tedesco on trumpet, Bob McCheseney on trombone, Matt Harris and Scott Whitfield playing at ...
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