Founder and Artistic Director of the University of South Carolina’s Jazz Girls Day, Dr. Colleen Clark is an Assistant Professor of Jazz at the University of South Carolina where she teaches her drumset studio, jazz history and research courses, coordinates the small ensembles, and conducts Swing Shift Big Band. Clark can be heard playing on SteepleChase Records and upcoming releases by Michael Dease (Origin) and Matt White. Clark was invited by the ASCAP Foundation to lead her band, the Colleen Clark Collective, at the Kennedy Center. Her latest project, "CC + The Adelitas" performed to a packed house at the Jazz Education Network Conference in 2023.

Clark is author of the frequently accessed (3,000+) dissertation: "The Evolution of the Ride Cymbal Pattern from 1917 to 1941: An Historical and Critical Analysis." Dr. Clark is the only woman and drummer to earn a doctoral degree in jazz from the University of North Texas. Clark endorses: Zildjian, Vic Firth and Mono

This clinic will provide a brief historical analysis of how time was played on the drumset from 1917-1950 and will be actively modeled on the kit. The goal of the clinic is to help performers and educators better understand the history of not only the ride cymbal pattern, but from where its origins began on the drumset and how it evolved, to provide a more informed foundation for time keeping. This not only addresses the evolution into modern playing, but also provides examples of different ride cymbal interpretations to deepen our listening, understanding and in turn, our eventual decision making behind the kit.

This will entail listening/visual playback and demonstration from behind the kit. Resources will be provided including: discographical information, background on specified players and how their player was groundbreaking and deeply rooted in the history of the drumset (ie: Tony Sbarbaro, Baby Dodds, Zutty Singleton, Ollie Tines, Willie McWashington, Papa Jo Jones, Kenny Clarke, Elvin Jones, Jimmy Cobb, Tony Williams, Cindy Blackman, Teri-Lyne Carrington, Justin Faulkner)*
This list is only a start.*