Terry Bozzio Interviews Nick Mason

Legendary drummer Terry Bozzio sat down to interview Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason. They talk about lessons, tuning, dynamics, and favorite moments from his decades of touring. Here’s an excerpt from their conversation.

Terry Bozzio: Did you take formal drum lessons?
Nick Mason: I did not take formal lessons, and that is certainly a regret because I think it would have given me a lot more confidence. I would recommend taking lessons to anyone starting out rather than trying to invent it themselves. In the era with Ginger, Mitch, and so on, they played very full parts to the music. Not having had lessons probably restrained me a little bit, but for my particular band that worked quite well.

There are two things I focus on: space and dynamics. The problem with rock music is that it’s full on, flat out the whole time. If you can build dynamics into the music, it helps enormously. This is perhaps the most difficult thing to learn, because the natural feeling is that you have to fill every space rather than leave it open.

Terry Bozzio: How do you like your drums tuned? Is there a specific melodic approach to your drumming?
Nick Mason: No, there isn’t. I tune them until they sound right, usually in fifths apart. I set them up and then see how they sound with the band, but I don’t tune to specific notes.

Terry Bozzio: What is your favorite part to play live?
Nick Mason: I play “Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun” with mallets, which makes it fun and different. Do you remember the film Jazz on a Summer’s Day, where Chico Hamilton plays a really lovely solo with mallets? That moment made me think, “I’d like to do that.” I built the whole piece around that. It’s a lovely piece from the point of dynamics, building to something, and then absolutely falling back down.

Terry Bozzio: Is there anything you would like to revisit?
Nick Mason: I would revisit the intro to “Time” played on rototoms, because when we recorded it we just took the second or third take. When I listen back, I think I could have constructed it better if I had thought about it longer and had more time. I tend to listen to everything I’ve ever done a bit critically. I rarely put something on for pleasure. The tendency is always to think, “I could have done that differently.”

Terry Bozzio: Which tour did you enjoy the most?
Nick Mason: I can’t pick a single tour I enjoyed most. I’ve enjoyed playing live all my life and consequently I’ve enjoyed every era of it. On the last tour, we traveled by private jet and limo to and from shows, but I also loved touring with four of us in the band and a couple of road crew, driving up and down the motorway. Without sounding too romantic about it, I realize I am really privileged to have toured at all in any of those capacities. I’m grateful.

Photo Credit: By Raph_PH – NickMasonDWalls200518-24, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=127654933