'Tis the SEASON, ya'll! With Christmas coming up this weekend, here's a festive lil' video (quite different from anything I've done before!) "Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy" from #TheNutcracker !!!

Ok, so backstory time (!): Obviously the focal point here isn't JUST the drumming, but the lovely dancer / dancing as well! Her name is Leigh George she's a ballet performer & teacher (as well as my girlfriend!). With me being a drummer & her being a dancer, it's pretty obvious that we're both in the arts (Lol). But for both being creativetypes, there isn't a lot of crossover in what we do. Extreme metal drumming & ballet don't exactly mix all too often (which is probably an understatement). 

So for quite awhile, we tried thinking of a way we could collaborate / do something together, & I think it was initially Leigh's idea to do some kind of drumming to this piece from The Nutcracker. From there, I was trying to think of a way I could make it work... I mean, I don't play guitar, so trying to recreate a metalversion of the song that way wouldn't really be possible. 

Ultimately, I found a transcription of the piece online, which I was able to utilize the midi from. I dropped that into ProTools, & using a bunch of different synth plugins (predominantly Omnisphere), I recreated the song in a way I thought would sound kinda cool. It took awhile, actually I really wasn't sure what to do with it initially. I had to duplicate a lot of tracks, extend notes, create layers, shift tempos, etc. But in the end, this is what I came up with! 

From THERE, I composed / transcribed some drum ideas, Leigh choreographed a variation of the original dance, & BOOM: #Ballet / Metal#Drumming version of 'Sugar Plum'! LOL !!! 

I'll probably have to go into more detail about Leigh's dance background on my podcast sometime, but lemme tell ya she's a badass, ya'll. Especially considering what she's gone through healthwise. She originally hoped to perform this entire piece on pointe, but with how many takes we had to do, she ultimately decided it would be best to do it on flat (Lol, I've low key learned a lot about ballet in the last year). I know she was slightly disappointed by this (for herself, I mean. She's hard AF on herself, which I relate to a lot), but PERSONALLY, I think she fuggin' CRUSHED IT!!! I also have no doubts we'll be doing more stuff like this together in the near future, so I'm sure you'll see her on pointe sometime, too!

(& while I'm at it, give her a follow on Instagram if you'd like!)

  / itsleighg  

Anyway ya'll THAT's the whole story! Hope you enjoy, & I hope you all have a WICKEDMADSWEET Christmas / Holiday Season!

Lastly, HUGE thanks to Allegro Dance Company (one of the places Leigh teaches at!) for letting us use their facility! If you live in / around WV & wanna sign up for ballet, check em' out using the link below!

https://www.allegrodancecompany.com/

& of course big thanks to Declan White for the slammin' MIX!!! Love ya, doode!

Annnnd, kit specs!

Tama STAR Maple

10x6.5
12x7
14x11
16x13
20x16
14x7 JT Sig. Snare

Meinl Cymbals (from left to right if sitting behind the kit)

18" Pure Alloy Custom Med/Thin Crash
14" Byzance Traditional Med HiHats
12" Classics Custom Trash Splash
19" Pure Alloy Custom Med/Thin Crash
20" Byzance Traditional China
21" Byzance Traditional Heavy Ride
18" Artist Concept Thomas Lang Super Stack

Evans Drumheads

Toms Clear G2's (batter), Clear G1's (reso)
Snare Coated UV2 (batter), Snare Side 300 (reso)
Kick Clear EQ4 (batter), Smooth White EQ4 w/ port & Tama Logo (reso)

Feel free to follow me on your desired social network(s)!

http://www.Gumroad.com/AlexRudinger
  / alexrudinger  
  / alexrudingerofficial  
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  / rudirudinger  
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http://www.AlexRudinger.com

My Podcast
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3t5j9n1
Apple Podcasts: http://bit.ly/RantsAndRevelations

Big love to everyone that supports me on Patreon, TOO! Love ya'll! 

I proudly endorse Tama Drums, Meinl Cymbals, Evans Drumheads, Tama Drumsticks, Vratim Drumshoes, ACD Unlimited, Audient, 64 Audio, Gator Cases, OnTrigger, TunerFish Luglocks, & 2Box

As always, thanks for watching & stay tuned for more!