Logan drummer looking forward to professional career

Logan drummer looking forward to professional career

From the The Hard News Cafe 5-06-04

In 12th and 13th century educational systems, the educational theory of the Latin termQuadrivium, meaning the four ways, consisted of the study of arithmetic, geometry, astronomy and music. 
These were the four staples of education, and of these, percussionist Keith Sorensen considers music to be the necessary and valid part of our society.

Maybe that's why Sorensen spends more than 12 hours a week teaching private lessons at Utah State University, and at KSM Music--molding his percussion students into musicians who love music because it makes people happy.

"Music is valid because it's music. It's who we are," he explains. "It is the seminal difference between us humans and animals. It is the critical aspect of survival for me."

Sorensen is a senior music major at Utah State with a dual emphasis in secondary education and percussion performance. Whether it is with his roommates, friends, or students, Sorensen teaches for the sheer fact that his goal in life is to make a difference.

And go pro.

"You can impact some people by playing in a band or solo, but when you're teaching, you do it over and over," Keith said.

Sorensen is the "drum guy" at KSM, the locally owned music store in Logan, and manages the percussion department's stocking, sales and repairs.

His two-year experience at the specialty shop has taught him a lot about the professional music scene's retail and business sides, as well as the ability to connect with the local musicians.

When he does hit the pro arena soon, he hopes to impact those around even more, just like three of the "drum gods" he admires so much. Dave Matthews' drummer, Carter Beauford, Vinny Colaituta -- who currently plays for Sting and Faith Hill, and Journey's original drummer, Steve Smith, are musicians Keith has borrowed skills from.

"In the words of my good friend John Smith, Carter (Beauford) is 'straight poop,'" he hysterically adds. "He never plays the same things twice. His drumming is a spoken line. It's always creative and fresh with an emphasis on the grooves and beats."

In Keith's early childhood he was also a student, even though he's only taken three drum lessons his entire life. Before he was 11 and entered Cedar City's education system's band program, his "lessons" were spent in front of the radio and studying his older brother's practice sessions in their basement.

"When Doug's band came over, I was fascinated by their drummer and the fact that he was using all four limbs to play an instrument," he said. "I've always listened to the drums and the different rhythms and combinations people played."

As the youngest of five musically talented siblings, Keith looked up to and admired his predecessors. However, by the young age of 11 he could already tell who was being played on the radio by the drummer.

"But then I was frustrated because I thought I could play better," Sorensen said. "Anyone can learn to play, but there's people who just have a combination of innate ability and a willingness to learn. People say I have a great feel and concept for the drum set, and I think I do, too."

Utah State Director of Music Technology and of the Percussion Program, Dr. Dennis Griffin, agrees.

"Keith is an excellent musician," he said. "He has been a stand out, particularly in the area of drum set. He is by far the best player in the program on this instrument."

Some people have wondered why the talented, drumming guru hasn't left Logan yet; why he hasn't already hit the professional scene with more force.

"I want to continue on after my bachelors and get a masters degree,” said Sorensen. "I will either go to Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh, Kansas State or UCLA. Or, next semester when I'm finished with school I'll move to Salt Lake."

The music scene there isn't as huge as other places, but it's growing.

And, where he already spends 90 percent of his time playing professionally, his transition into the professional music scene will not be as difficult compared to those with less experience and equal musical skills.

"Keith has every possibility of becoming a professional -- he is already playing professionally part time," said Griffin. "He has probably had the most practical experience playing in the professional scene. He will have less of a transition to the professional playing scene out of college because of this."

Sorensen is only 25 years old and has already played with over 100 bands, along with being a member of nine bands from Utah State's music program, and nine jazz, folk, fusion, country, Latin pop and rock 'n' roll bands from around the country.

With a look of child-like giddiness, Sorensen remembered the first band he played with at the age of 15, Entercity. The group played three of his favorite songs, even though they only played four total. "But it was fun!" he laughs.

With increased opportunities to play within a wide variety of musical genres and bands, this hard-core percussionist's favorite is jazz.

"It's what I do," he said. "Jazz allows you the most free-style opps, and increased room to be creative and expressive."

He clarifies the difference between his love of jazz and good rock 'n' roll as this: in jazz you find strong musicians (such as Miles Davis and Duke Ellington), and in rock 'n' roll you find yourself.

As a four-year member of Utah State's Jazz Ensemble, as well as with four other local bands -- including ‘lokalgrown,' Keith has had adequate opportunities to play the good stuff.

He is also the assistant director of the university's percussion ensemble and has worked closely with Dr. Griffin.

"He has been very helpful to me as an assistant who is fully capable of preparing students for performance," Griffin said.

Quinn Dietlein, a fellow music major and band member of lokalgrown, said when Keith joined the band in January 2003, it was like someone came in with a ratchet and tightened everything up.

"We all share the creative juices, but he's at a level of proficiency, as far as instruments are concerned, that the rest of us are not," said Dietlein. "It was like this pleasant amoeba before, but now it's a hard-core skeleton.

Percussion is the backbone of music because it dictates everything. Keith's professional nature really pushes us to improve."

Sorensen believes that in the music business, the higher you climb the ladder of talent and skill, generally there is better music and musicians, and you play killer stuff.

"It's a professional league where people just don't make mistakes," he said. "That's exciting. It helps in the effectiveness of carrying out your message."

There is a stigma in the professional music scene, Keith said, that most of the technicians, roadies and musicians are rough people; i.e., chain smokers and drug addicts. He has been offered "every vice imaginable," but knows the environment is not the most conducive to his dreams of successful personal and family lives.

"The hours are hard, the environment is definitely not the best, and the business side is really crooked," he explains. "It's difficult to get paid for what you're worth and hard to have a family on the road."

On the flip side, Keith looks forward to the positive aspects of his career.

Heart-thumping, roaring crowds are at the top of the list, and being able to set his own hours, pushing himself musically and meeting other talented artists, he said.

"I don't want to have to punch a time clock," he said. "And I'll never get bored. The last three weeks I've played in over 20 shows and five recording sessions and they're all different. It keeps things fresh."

In 10 to 15 years, Sorensen sees himself with a "pretty nice house; no. . . in a really nice house in a really nice neighborhood with a supportive wife and a few children," he said. Even though he is currently single, he would like to be selective with his gigs so he can spend valuable time with his family and teach his kids about life, to treat people right and with patience.

He doesn't want to be the "Joe Jerk" musician, he added.

"There are things in life that remain constant, a place of solitude that is yours," Sorensen explains. "Happiness is something that is uniquely yours, a way to maintain a sense of identity. For me, it's music. It's healthy, it's a way to express what the spoken word can't."

French essayist Michel de Montaigne once said, "There is nothing more notable in Socrates than that he found time, when he was an old man, to learn music and dancing, and thought it was time well spent."

Keith Sorensen's entire life has been time well spent. He will continue spending it well until he's "older than dirt and wants to go play some more drums," he said.