Rod Morgenstein (born April 19, 1953) is an American drummer and music educator. He is best known for his work with the
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
bands
Winger and
Dixie Dregs
The Dixie Dregs is an American rock band from Augusta, Georgia. Formed in 1970, the band's performance consists entirely of instrumentals that fuse elements of diverse genres such as rock, classical music, country, jazz and bluegrass into an e ...
.
He also played with
Fiona
Fiona is a feminine given name. The name is associated with the Gaelic traditions of Ireland and Scotland (through the poetry of James Macpherson), but has also become popular in England.. It can be considered either a Latinisation of names, Lati ...
,
Platypus
The platypus (''Ornithorhynchus anatinus''), sometimes referred to as the duck-billed platypus, is a semiaquatic, egg-laying mammal endemic to eastern Australia, including Tasmania. The platypus is the sole living representative or mono ...
,
the Steve Morse Band
Steve J. Morse (born July 28, 1954) is an American guitarist, best known as the founder of the Dixie Dregs and as the lead guitarist of Deep Purple from 1994 to 2022. Morse has also enjoyed a successful solo career and was briefly a member of ...
, and
Jelly Jam. He has also done session work with
Jordan Rudess
Jordan Rudess (born Jordan Charles Rudes; November 4, 1956) is an American musician, software developer and composer best known as a member of the progressive metal band Dream Theater and the progressive metal supergroup Liquid Tension Experi ...
including his ventures with the
Rudess/Morgenstein Project. He also toured with
Jazz Is Dead Jazz Is Dead may refer to
* Jazz Is Dead (band): a Grateful Dead instrumental cover band
* Jazz Is Dead (record label): a Los Angeles record label and recording series
{{Disambiguation ...
. He has also been awarded ''
Modern Drummer
''Modern Drummer'' is a monthly publication targeting the interests of drummers and percussionists. The magazine features interviews, equipment reviews, and columns offering advice on technique, as well as information for the general public. ''Mo ...
''s "Best Progressive Rock Drummer" five years (1986-'90), "Best All-Around Drummer" (1999) and was inducted into magazine's Honor Roll.
He worked for twenty years as a
professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...
, teaching
percussion
A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...
at
Berklee College of Music
Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...
in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
,
. Morgenstein continues to tour with the band
Winger. He has also been a columnist for ''Modern Drummer'' magazine.
Morgenstein is known for his versatility of playing many styles of music.
Equipment
Morgenstein currently uses
Premier drums
Premier Music International Limited is an English musical instruments manufacturing company based in Kibworth. The company, founded in 1922, currently produces drum kits, sticks and accessories.
History
Premier was established in 1922 when ...
,
Evans Drumheads
D'Addario is a family-owned and operated American multinational company that specializes in musical instrument accessories headquartered in Farmingdale, Long Island, New York.
D’Addario is the world’s largest musical instrument accesso ...
,
Sabian cymbals
Sabian is a Canadian and Armenian cymbal manufacturing company established in 1981 in Meductic, New Brunswick, where it is still headquartered. Sabian is considered one of the ''big four'' manufacturers of cymbals, along with Zildjian, Meinl and ...
,
Vic Firth drumsticks
Everett Joseph "Vic" Firth (June 2, 1930 – July 26, 2015) was an American musician and the founder of Vic Firth Company (formerly Vic Firth, Inc.), a company that makes percussion sticks and mallets.
Biography
Vic Firth was born June 2, ...
, and LP Percussion. He has, in the past, also used
Remo drumheads
Remo Inc. is an American musical instruments manufacturing company based in Valencia, California, and founded by Remo Belli in 1957. Products manufactured include drum kits, drumheads, drums, and hardware.
History
Drummer and founder Re ...
and
Paiste cymbals
Paiste (English pronunciation: , ) is a Swiss musical instrument manufacturing company. It is the world's third largest manufacturer of cymbals, gongs, and metal percussion. is an Estonian word that means "shine".
Apart from cymbals and go ...
.
Drums: Premier signia series (also uses the genista series):
* 22"x18" bass drums (x2)
* 10"x9" rack tom
* 12"x10" rack tom
* 13"x11" rack tom
* 16"x16" floor tom
* 18"x16" floor tom
* 14"x6.5" snare
* 14"x14" piccolo snare
Drumheads: Evans:
* Snare: G1 Coated or Power Center Reverse Dot/300 Snare Side
* Toms: EC2S Clear or G1 Clear (top and resonant)
* Bass: EQ4 Clear/EQ3 Black Bass Reso
Drumsticks: Vic Firth:
* Vic Firth Rod Morgenstein signature drumsticks (Length 16.12", Diameter: .610")
- described as essentially combining a 5B and 2B stick
Cymbals: Sabian:
* AA regular hi-hats 13"
* HH china kang 10"/AA splash 10" (stacked)
* AA splash 12"
* AA splash 10"
* AA splash 8"
* AAX stage crash 18"/cymbal disc 12" (stacked)
* AAX stage crash 16" (or studio crash)
* AA splash 10"
* Signature tri-top ride 21"
* HH china 20"
* HH thin crash 18"
Paiste cymbals (circa 1984):
* RUDE 14" hi-hats
* Formula 602 11" splash
* RUDE 16" crash/ride
* RUDE 18" crash/ride
* 2002 18" medium
* RUDE 20" ride/crash
* Formula 602 22" heavy
* 2002 20" china type
* Sound Creation 22" dark china
Cymbals circa 1988:
* 3000 14" sound edge hi-hats
* Formula 602 11" splash
* 3000 17" thin crash
* 3000 18" thin crash
* 3000 19" thin crash
* RUDE 22" ride/crash
* Sound Creation 20" dark china
Discography
with Dixie Dregs
*''
The Great Spectacular
''The Great Spectacular'' is a self-produced demo album by the Dixie Dregs, recorded in 1975 on campus at University of Miami and released in 1976 only on limited vinyl. By the time the band had risen in popularity in the late 1970s, the record ...
'' (1976)
*''
Free Fall
In Newtonian physics, free fall is any motion of a body where gravity is the only force acting upon it. In the context of general relativity, where gravitation is reduced to a space-time curvature, a body in free fall has no force acting on ...
'' (1977)
*''
What If
What If may refer to:
Film
* ''What If'', a 2006 TV film starring Niall Buggy
* ''What If...'' (2010 film), an American film
* ''What If...'' (2012 film), a Greek film
* ''What If'' (2013 film) or ''The F Word'', a Canadian-Irish film
Telev ...
'' (1978)
*''
Night of the Living Dregs
''Night of the Living Dregs'' is the third album by Dixie Dregs, released in 1979. The first half of the album was recorded in the studio, and the second half at the Montreux Jazz Festival on July 23, 1978.
The album received a Grammy Award nomin ...
'' (1979)
*''
Dregs of the Earth
''Dregs of the Earth'' is the fourth studio album by Dixie Dregs, released in 1980. This album was the band's first release on Arista Records, their last one before changing its name to The Dregs, and contains a re-recording of one of their earl ...
'' (1980)
*''
Unsung Heroes
''Unsung Heroes'', also known as ''Unknown Heroes'' or more literally as ''Nameless Heroes'', is a North Korean war drama mini-series about a spy in Seoul during the Korean War. Over twenty hours long, it was filmed and released in multiple part ...
'' (1981)
*''
Industry Standard
''Industry Standard'' is the sixth studio album by the Dixie Dregs, released in 1982. This was the second of two albums released under the moniker The Dregs, and is their only album featuring vocals (by Alex Ligertwood of Santana and Patrick Si ...
'' (1982)
*''
Full Circle'' (1994)
with The Steve Morse Band
*''
The Introduction'' (1984)
*''
Stand Up'' (1985)
*''
High Tension Wires'' (1989)
with Winger
*''
Winger'' (1988)
*''
In the Heart of the Young
''In the Heart of the Young'' (also known as ''Winger II'') is the second studio album by the American rock band Winger. It was released by Atlantic Records in 1990. Beau Hill produced the album. Although coming out at the decline of the glam ...
'' (1990)
*''
Pull
Pull may refer to:
Sports
*In baseball, a pull hitter is a batter who usually hits the ball to the side of the field from which he bats
* Pull shot, a batting stroke in cricket
* A phase of a swim stroke
* A throw-off in the sport of ultimate (o ...
'' (1993)
*''
IV'' (2006)
*''
Karma
Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptivel ...
'' (2009)
*''
Better Days Comin'
''Better Days Comin'' is the sixth studio album by American rock band Winger. It was released on April 23, 2014, debuting at #21 on the Top Current Rock Albums Chart and #85 on the ''Billboard'' 200.
Track listing
Personnel
;Winger
*Kip Wi ...
'' (2014)
with Fiona
*''
Heart Like a Gun
''Heart Like a Gun'' is the third studio album by singer Fiona, released on October 2, 1989 through Atlantic Records. It reached #150 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart in 1990 and remained charted for sixteen weeks. "Heart Like a Gun - Fiona" '' ...
'' (1989)
with Rudess/Morgenstein Project
*''
Rudess/Morgenstein Project'' (1997)
*''
The Official Bootleg'' (2001)
with Platypus
*''
When Pus Comes to Shove
When Pus Comes to Shove is the debut album of the band Platypus.
Track listing
# Standing in Line - (3:10)
# Nothing to Say - (4:54)
# Rock Balls/Destination Unknown - (7:40)
# Platt Opus - (5:01)
# I'm with You - (4:13)
# Blue Plate Spec ...
'' (1998)
*''
Ice Cycles
''Ice Cycles'' is the second album by the progressive metal group Platypus, released in 2000.
Track listing
# Oh God – 4:16
# Better Left Unsaid – 5:24
# The Tower – 3:30
# Cry – 6:15
# I Need You – 4:17
# 25 (instrumental) – 5 ...
'' (2000)
with The Jelly Jam
* ''The Jelly Jam'' (2002)
* ''The Jelly Jam 2'' (2004)
* ''Shall We Descend'' (2011)
* ''Profit'' (2016)
with
Jazz Is Dead Jazz Is Dead may refer to
* Jazz Is Dead (band): a Grateful Dead instrumental cover band
* Jazz Is Dead (record label): a Los Angeles record label and recording series
{{Disambiguation ...
* ''
Laughing Water
''Laughing Water'' is a live album by the instrumental Grateful Dead cover band Jazz Is Dead. Subtitled ''Wake of the Flood Revisited'', it is a reinterpretation of the Grateful Dead's 1973 album. It was JID's second release, and was recorded in A ...
'' (1999)
* ''
Great Sky River'' (2001)
* ''
Grateful Jazz'' (2015)
References
External links
*
Berklee College of Music profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morgenstein, Rod
Jazz fusion drummers
American rock drummers
Winger (band) members
Dixie Dregs members
Berklee College of Music faculty
Living people
1953 births
Progressive rock drummers
Progressive metal musicians
20th-century American drummers
American male drummers
The Jelly Jam members
American male jazz musicians
Jazz Is Dead members