{"id":18902,"date":"2019-11-08T15:04:30","date_gmt":"2019-11-08T23:04:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.drumeo.com\/beat\/?p=18902"},"modified":"2022-08-19T12:23:54","modified_gmt":"2022-08-19T19:23:54","slug":"broadway-drummers-jamie-eblen-dear-evan-hansen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.drumeo.com\/beat\/broadway-drummers-jamie-eblen-dear-evan-hansen\/","title":{"rendered":"Jamie Eblen, Dear Evan Hansen"},"content":{"rendered":"

You\u2019d be hard pressed to find a drummer who plays insecurely. But how many drummers have to convey insecurity through their playing? Enter Jamie Eblen of Dear Evan Hansen. The show is about a boy named Evan who writes a letter that wasn\u2019t meant to be seen. He tells a lie, and what follows is an emotional journey dealing with suicide, divorce, and social media. But the songs are jams!<\/p>\n

Eblen has to convey those complex emotions and themes through his drumming. He was up to the task three years ago, and still is today.<\/p>\n

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Let\u2019s start on the heavy emotion. The actors are crying on stage; how do you convey that through drums?<\/strong><\/h5>\n

I was brought in maybe a week before the rest of the band. It’s just piano and drums in the rehearsal room and that was the first real taste of the show that I got. Basically, on my first day we were running charts. (The emotion) hadn’t been a thing that I had imported into my playing yet.<\/p>\n

But when we did a full run in the room, I started to really feel the piece, so for me it’s an energy thing. I was feeling the intensity of the music and the lyrics, and the whole energy of the show was something that I was trying to transport from inside my soul through the sticks. It wasn’t anything technical that I was doing differently, but I was really focused on the intention behind the notes because the music kind of brings you there anyway.<\/p>\n

The biggest challenge is to make sure you’re bringing that intention and that emotion. Not to say that you’re putting yourself through emotional trauma while you play the show, but having that heightened feeling of we’re doing this thing<\/em> and this audience didn’t see it two nights ago.<\/p>\n

Not only do you get some of the best singers to play Evan, but they all play him differently. How much do you adapt to each actor?<\/strong><\/h5>\n

I’m so glad they got Ben (Platt, the original Evan). I wasn\u2019t sure anyone else could do it. But then Ben leaves and then somebody else does it. You’re like \u201doh, somebody else does do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The thing you notice most at the beginning, I think, is timing. Pace was the thing that we noticed. Ben was so quick – his action on dialogue was so quick – and you start to feel the differences there. But over time they find their groove with it.<\/p>\n

It’s been super interesting musically. They bring a little bit of a different thing, maybe vocally or acting wise.<\/p>\n

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Evan is one of the most difficult male roles on Broadway. It is currently played by 17 year-old Andrew Barth Feldman! Photo: Matthew Murphy<\/p><\/div>\n

So how do you change for understudies and standbys, when you maybe have never played with them before?<\/strong><\/h5>\n

It’s crazy because the same thing happens for us musicians, too. The first time [a musician sub plays] is the show that they\u2019re playing. So there’s a part of you that wants to focus through and get to the end of the show in a way where we’re like “nothing bad is happening.”<\/p>\n

When an understudy goes on, just be ready to catch them if there is a stumble. Not to say we’re not on our toes when the OGs are in, but everyone’s a little more alert and focused and ready to catch them if we need to.<\/p>\n

The orchestra is up top in the corner of the stage. You\u2019re across on the other side?<\/strong><\/h5>\n

Yeah, I’m up in an iso booth basically by myself. The best I can describe it is like a little drum tree house.<\/p>\n

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If \u201cLittle Drum Tree House\u201d isn\u2019t already the name of a band, you\u2019re welcome.<\/p><\/div>\n

I have a window that faces toward the band. It’s a little bit blurry because they don’t want anybody to see in, and the [stage] lights reflecting is also a thing. So it’s sort of like looking through drunk goggles. You can see silhouettes, but you can’t really see faces or anything. That was one of the first challenges for me. How do we feel the energy as a group together?<\/p>\n

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This shot is in focus…that\u2019s how blurry it is.<\/p><\/div>\n

There are some awesome jams in this show. Gimme your favorite.<\/strong><\/h5>\n

They’re all so good. I mean there is an intensity with \u201cWaving Through a Window\u201d…especially because it’s the first number everyone knows. It’s also the first moment where you get inside of Evan’s personality, too. It’s a heavy moment for a variety of reasons but it’s always funny because a number like that doesn’t always come second in the show.<\/p>\n

So that may be a good answer to what\u2019s musically challenging: how do you get there<\/em> in the second song? Sometimes that would be an 11 o\u2019clock number. You finally get that number where he speaks his piece and does the whole thing, but it’s number two in our show and that I think is one of the greatest challenges.<\/p>\n

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Crack the track:<\/strong><\/h5>\n

\u201cWaving Through a Window\u201d is the<\/em> song from this show. Songwriters Pasek and Paul (of The Greatest Showman fame) crafted the rare song that sounds like a \u201ccar-top-down-power-to-the-youth-anthem\u201d…but it\u2019s actually about how everyone ignores Evan and he\u2019s lonely. The three main grooves all vary. Listen carefully to where the hats open, and to the rhythm leading into those barks. I\u2019ve seen some drummers play with the butt of the stick during the bridge (\u201cfalling in a forest\u201d). And remember to play with the intention that Evan is delivering, even if you have to shed a tear!<\/p>\n