PL Lalonde – Drummer ◦ Band Leader

Hi Guys!
As you know I have been having a good time in England, but I think it was time to come back home for a few days, relax, see the family and gig. During my stay, I will be playing in Grenville for the St-Jean Baptiste on the 20th of June (8pm to 11pm) and on the 23rd (7:15 to 8pm) in St-Canut opening for “Les Villains Pingouins”.  I am lucky to be surrounded by amazing musicians just like last year. Check it out, both are free and will be quite entertaining.

This video from 2014 features the band in Grenville with Josiane Lambert on Vocals, Anthony Brancati on Keys, Nick Tateishi on Guitar, Pat O’Reilly on Bass and myself on drums. Our 2015 set will also feature Maxime Carrière on vocals for a short segment.

See you soon!
PL

Hi Guys!
It has been way too long since my last post, but, I was busy working on so many projects. The modules I was working on took a lot of my time and, for this reason I can share this Live Studio recording with you! This was a final project for my Recording Techniques Module that is now finished.

While launching my Master’s 3rd semester research, I am coming back to Canada in June for a few gigs. Those proudly include my yearly St-Jean Baptiste gig in Grenville, June 20th at the Grenville Parc, where I will have the chance to share the stage with amazing musicians and relax a little bit.

Hi Guys,

I have been really busy in the last month with the many recitals I was playing on. Here is a sample from one of the songs as promised. This is Royals by Lorde in rearange in 7/8 time signature. I was researching odd time signatures and part of the assignment was to modify a song to a new ”style”. Hopefully you like it! (p.s. wear headphones for better sound quality)

Hi guys!
I would like to use this post to wish everybody a fantastic new year, good health, happiness, success and good times for 2015.

2014 in review:
This last year was filled with achievements. I officially launched this website almost a year ago and since then I have developed a lot of content for it; this has been a work in progress with a steep learning curve that modified the way I approach my career and understand media. Achievements that I am particularly proud of were to graduate from Humber College with a Bachelor of music in Contemporary Music Performance and being accepted for my Masters of music in Pop Music Performance at the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance in London, England. There were many memorable performances for me this year including Groove Merchants performances, the St-Jean show in Grenville and performing as being a band leader on a party boat in London just to name a few. There will be many more for the upcoming year in the London and European scene.

Present thoughts:
At this moment, I am on a bus from Paris to London, heading back home to take on some new challenges. I feel energized and ready to tackle the many recitals I will be performing on in the next 2 weeks for the Masters recitals we need to present for the completion of our advanced instrumental studies course and advanced ensemble studies. These will be long days, filled with many performances and rehearsals at night which are very stimulating for me.

Thoughts for 2015:
For 2015 I will keep working on my development as a professional in this industry as well as work hard to attain completion my Masters degree. I am working towards more learning, more gigging, more sessions and studio work. Those goals will get me to meet more people to influence me in my career and life. My new year’s resolution will be to expand my horizons to different genres and study styles of music I have never had the chance to investigate.

Stay tuned!
PL

Hi Guys!

The first thing I want to mention is: I finally received my drumset! I have attached a picture at the bottom of this post. They are a set of PacD drums from Sakae, the shells as Asian Mahogany shells with a cherry wood ply. Sizes are : 10” Tom, 12” Snare, 13” Floor tom, 16” kick drum. I am really excited about the sound that comes out of those little drums and I am super excited to have the opportunity to record with them this month. That should be a really good test to see how they sound. I can’t wait to jump on stage with them.

This last month has been really challenging for me musically, I have been working on really hard songs like Frank Zappa‘s as part of my advanced instrumental studies module, it has been keeping me busy and in good drumming shape. I also have the pleasure to be rehearsing with a few projects for the Masters recitals that will be held in January. Those will be excellent shows and keep me motivated to learn and play.

London has been a really great city to live in as it offers a variety of activities to do, and sometimes it is hard to keep up with them. Fortunately I had the chance to attend the London Drum Show 2014. I got to see all the new gear that has come out in the last year as well as attend performances from Todd Sucherman and Keith Carlock. Those were amazing clinics and great learning opportunities for me.

Stay tuned!
PL

Hi Guys!
Since the last time I made a post I had a chance to perform for the first time in the U.K. I have yet to receive my drum set which has been a drag, but as soon I receive it I’ll start working really hard on gigging as well as share some pictures with you. I have a few projects with who I am working that will hit the stage soon enough so you’ll get pictures and hopefully videos.

I started rehearsing my pop ensemble for one of the recitals as part of my masters degree modules and it will be dynamite! I am really excited to have stuff to show you from this project! I have also been studying with Gabor Dornyei which has been really beneficial to me. Gabor is a seasoned professional in the London music scene. He has extensive experience touring with many acts, he has shared the stage amongst the best drummers in this world as a clinician and in February 2010 the UK’s biggest-selling drum magazine, The RHYTHM, listed him as one of the “10 best new drummers to watch out for worldwide”. He is helping me out with my odd time signature recital which will also be amazing.

More to come soon,
Stay Tuned!
PL