Executive Director Criag Dunn van deKersverse Wereldkampioen Rhythm X heeft ook banden met Percussion Unlimited. Craig is namelijk bij PU ook visual designer. Onderstaand leest u een interview welke Percussion Unlimited met hem heeft gehouden.

1. Was this season an exciting one and how about finals?
This season had its ups and downs. All season long we knew we had a product that was new and innovative and a concept that could pull you into the show. This show was one that we knew it was going to take almost the whole season to make the show what we wanted it to be. The staff was constantly tweaking and morphing the show into what everyone saw finals night. Every year is an exciting season with the twists and turns of developing a product that is what you see finals night.

2. Last year RhythmX took the title for the first time so this year you had to defend that title. Was it difficult and if so, what was so difficult about having to live up to everyone’s expectations?
It was extremely hard to look one year ahead and try to out design what you did the previous year. Tim Fairbanks, the program coordinator for Rhythm X, posed to me and the staff the question of how do we put out a product that with out a doubt everyone will recognize as being bigger and better than the previous year. At the time he was getting agitated by people walking up to him and asking the question, “How are you going to out do that?” We as a staff knew we would have to work beyond the previous season to bring to the floor a new and innovative concept and idea that was Rhythm X and what Rhythm X is known for.

3. Can you maybe tell us a little bit about your show, the story behind it?
The show started out with a different title and after the first few audition camps and design meetings we knew we wanted to change the show title, and focus on one solid concept that had depth, which ended up being, Touch.
The production explores the many different kinds of touch. From actual sense of touch to the way one person can touch another just by making an impact on them. We explored how to actually touch the drums and that is how the beginning came into play where the battery plays on their drums with their hands and the clapping part. Our goal finals night was to touch the whole audience and get them into the clapping part in the beginning, which proved to be a memorable moment when we looked around and saw the audience getting into the clapping. We really worked closely with the talented battery to have some very exposed parts at low dynamic levels. We always see group after group playing at the extremely loud dynamic levels but to expose the ensemble at such a low dynamic level is even more touching to the listener. The only music that was not original was Jason Mraz’s, Details in the Fabric. This was the opening part with the acoustic guitar and the same melody came back many times and eventually ended the show as well. The rest of the show was an original composition with the front ensemble music being written by Andrew Markworth and the battery music by Tim Jackson.
What I liked most about the 2009 production was that we were able to convey a message with no audio samples or props. We designed a show focused around what this activity is about, visual artistry and drumming.

4. How did you get it to the production that we could all enjoy during WGI-finals?
As I said before it was a long process this season. After each camp weekend we would analyze the videos as a staff and then submit proposed changes. We would discuss this as a staff with the guidance of Tim Fairbanks. We work really well as a staff and design team. We have all been together now since Rhythm X’s conception back in 2001. Tim Jackson and Andrew Markworth were both in Rhythm X and grew up around the ensemble.
Tim Fairbanks joined me as the third staff member I ever hired at the end of the season in 2001 just prior to winning the 2002 Independent Open World Championship. We all know what we like and what we want out of the Rhythm X production. We work towards building an environment that the members enjoy and treat each other like family. We all care about Rhythm X and each other which has helped us all to achieve the goal of making Rhythm X one of the greatest indoor drumlines to march in. We call it the Rhythm Xperience. The members come in each week expecting changes and are prepared to make those changes happen all in a weekend rehearsal. We evaluate the show and take into consideration what the judges are saying and feeling as they adjudicate the show.
We never lose focus on Rhythm X and what we want Rhythm X to be.

5. Indoor Percussion in the Netherlands is just now starting to appear. How did you experience working with Percussion Unlimited these last two years?
Percussion Unlimited has become my second home and I cannot say how great it is to work with Coen and the rest of the staff. Coen and I usually start working on the production in the late spring and continue all the way to the design camp that I attend. He will send me music and ideas and we discuss how to bring those ideas to life. Coen grew up learning about indoor drumline from me and his experience in the US with Rhythm X. He spent two seasons shadowing Rhythm X while he was preparing for Capital Regiment. I got to know him and saw his passion for what he does and that is what I am all about. When Rhythm X came over three years ago Coen came to me with the vision that he had for Percussion Unlimited and from then on out it has been history.
Percussion Unlimited is similar to Rhythm X in many ways. First off I love the family atmosphere and how caring and passionate the members are about percussion and performance. I also like how open the staff works together and how we all are working towards a common goal. We want work towards establishing a streamlined organization that can produce a great product season after season. When I was over last November Coen was already shooting out ideas for next season. We are always thinking of how we can be better as teachers and learners in the craft of indoor percussion.

6. Indoor Percussion in Europe or in the USA, can we make any comparisons and do you think Indoor Percussion in Europe has a future?
Indoor Percussion in Europe has a much shorter history than Indoor Percussion the United States. WGI has hosted a percussion class since 1993 which Rhythm X has been a part of since 2002. I have been competing with units since 1998 and formed Rhythm X prior to the 2001-2002 season. Being around the activity for over ten years and being an active member on the WGI advisory board I have watched the activity grow year after year. Indoor Percussion in Europe has had a shorter history but is growing rapidly. It seems like every year the European Circuit grows and gets better. With the CGN circuit and the newly formed IPE circuit the future for indoor drumline in Europe has never been better. IPE, Muremo, and Dynasty are bringing over groups from the United States yearly since we traveled back in 2007. When these groups come over we share our craft and how we do what we do. This proves to be an educational experience for the groups from the US and for the European groups.
I credit a lot of what Rhythm X is today from the experience we had when we came over. We grew closer as a family and the members realized there was more to life than competition. I will never forget the most memorable moments was when we were headed back home and were waiting in the airport. A member came up and told me he had the most incredible experience of his life and that no WGI medal could ever come close to his experience. Joel Hilbert aged out three nights ago and as I watched him walk off the floor I was reminded of that conversation. I think that all too often we get caught up on winning and lose focus why we do what we do. Joel got his two gold medals after leaving Europe and what he brought back from Europe and shared with the Rhythm X family was absolutely priceless.
Indoor Percussion in Europe has a bright future and that is why I have dedicated myself to seeing the activity grow in Europe and by getting involved with Percussion Unlimited.

7. Just one more question. This season the units you were involved in were the ones that in the end took the title. Is there anything left for you, as a person, you would like to win?
From my debut in 1998 with Westerville South High School up to now with Rhythm X, I have earned 3 bronze, 2 silver, and 3 gold medals in WGI. Now that is not counting the IPE and CGN gold medals that I hope to received from Percussion Unlimited when I come back in November. I won four championships in a row WGI 2008, CGN 2009, IPE 2009, and WGI 2009 what else could you want. Well to be honest I am not like that at all and I had to actually look up the dates and medals to quote them to you. I am not about winning or losing I am about the experiences that I have and what I gain from them. Coming to Europe once a year to work with some of Europe’s best designers and teachers at Percussion Unlimited to working with my Rhythm X family year after year that is so much more than a medal in my opinion. I care about what I do and I want to influence people to be the best they can be and max out what they do. That is what I do at Rhythm X and at Percussion Unlimited.
You ask is there anything else I would like to win and the answer is yes. I want to win more time to spend with my wife Robin, and kids McKenzie, Collin, and Caiden. My wife has been by my side since I got involved with indoor drumline and started Rhythm X. She does a lot of work behind the scenes and without her Rhythm X would cease to exist, she is the brains behind the financial side of Rhythm X and for that I owe her everything.