Overly Verbose! Untying the musical knots! Straddling the Plant! Rivaling the smoke generated from Texas BBQ, drummer George Fludas can always be trusted to light a fire behind the kit. In our chat, we discuss an organic approach for connecting with heroes, adapting our teaching methods to each student, and the dangers of playing football after soundcheck.
Getting to Know: George!
Chicago drummer George Fludas was born in Chicago on October 10, 1966. He was inspired to play drums by his father, who was also a drummer, and who exposed him to great jazz drummers such as Art Blakey, Max Roach, and "Philly" Joe Jones.
He attended Lane Tech High School where he majored in music and played percussion in their concert band and orchestra. After briefly attending Roosevelt University's music school in 1985-86, he began freelancing with Chicago greats Von Freeman, Jodie Christian and Lin Halliday, as well as playing in groups with guitarist Bobby Broom, and saxophonists Ron Blake and Eric Alexander. He has subsequently played with many stellar musicians such as Ira Sullivan, Buddy Montgomery, Lou Donaldson, Frank Wess, Kenny Burrell, Betty Carter, Johnny Griffin, Benny Green, Roy Hargrove, Tommy Flanagan, Hank Jones, Cedar Walton, Diana Krall, Benny Carter, Phil Woods, Junior Cook, Slide Hampton, and Bobby Hutcherson.
FEATURED RELEASE:
Joe Magnarelli “If You Could See Me Now” (2018)
https://open.spotify.com/album/6G3uv0...
About Off The Bandstand:
Too often, audiences are only able to experience jazz musicians while they’re performing on the bandstand.
“Off The Bandstand”, hosted by vocalist Christian Wiggs, is a series of one-on-one, informal conversations with members of the jazz scene. Each episode will feature a new guest and provide an opportunity for listeners to get to know more about the people behind the music, as well as their influences and stories throughout their career.
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