This book was, indeed, WAY ahead of its time.
- Rating
- Posted by
- Gary Kuta
- Date Posted
- 01/22/2023
Sandford Augustus Moeller, in my opinion, was a brilliant genius. The Moeller Book contains FIFTEEN pages of text, far more than any snare drum instruction manual written at that time. Much of it has to do with what we now know as the "Psychology" of Music. This book was, indeed, WAY ahead of its time, being published by The Ludwig Drum Company of Chicago, in 1956. Moeller passed away shortly thereafter, in 1960. He taught both Jim Chapin and Gene Krupa. He also built his own, custom-made street drums and drumsticks. He was a principal proponent of an unusual stick design that measured a conventional 5/8" thick at the butt, then morphed into a very gradual taper down to the bead or tip. This forced the fulcrum further back on the stick, rendering the action, more whip-like. You may find many professional symphonic band and orchestra percussionists, still employing this same type of stick today, the one with the unconventionally long taper.