Allegiance - Joe Mowatt

Joe Mowatt's setup for the Broadway production of Allegiance at the Longacre Theatre.

"Photos below from the recording session at MSR Studios on December 7, 2015."

"Allegiance takes place during World War II and follows a Japanese American family from their home in rural Northern California to an internment camp in Wyoming. The music in the show was written and orchestrated to capture the Japanese heritage of the Kimura family as well as the period styles of big band swing, and more classic musical theatre styles.

Since we had a severe space restriction in the remote drum room (8’ X 8’), the instruments were carefully chosen to utilize the space most efficiently. I had the pleasure to visit Steve Weiss Music in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania to hand pick the gongs, the Chinese tom and the piccolo wood blocks. The larger instruments were rented from Eric Poland, who supplies percussion instruments to many Broadway shows. I supplied the drum set and smaller percussion.

There were many discussions about the use of Taiko sounds for some of the more tumultuous moments in the show, including one battle scene during the war. Due to the space limitations, we used a combination of Taiko samples in the Roland SPDX and sequences that were triggered by the conductor. Both were programmed by Randy Cohen Keyboards. During one brief 8 measure scene, I play the concert bass drum with taiko sticks, playing the head and rim similar to a taiko drum. We combined this with taiko samples triggered by the Roland KT-10 pedal.

Allegiance was a challenging and very busy book, and I am very grateful to have been a part of this important show."

Drums: Yamaha Beech Custom

• 20” X 16” Kick
• 12” X 8” Rack Tom
• 14” X 14” Floor Tom
• 16” X 16” Floor Tom

Snare:

• 14” X 5.5” Yamaha Maple Custom Absolute

Drum Heads: Remo

• Kick: Powerstroke 3 Batter and Powerstroke 3 Ebony Resonant
• Toms: Ambassador X Batter and Ambassador Clear Resonant
• Snare: Coated Ambassador Batter and Hazy Ambassador Snare Side

Cymbals:

• Sabian 20” Medium Artisan Ride
• Sabian 14” Medium Artisan Hi-Hats
• Sabian 18” Artisan Crash
• Sabian 16” Artisan Crash
• Sabian 10” Legacy Splash
• Zildjian 18” China Boy Low

Electronics:

• Roland SPDX-SX Sampling Pad
• Roland KT-10 Kick Trigger Pedal
• Roland BT-1 Bar Trigger Pad

Hardware:

• Yamaha 700 Series Stands and Cymbal Holders
• Pearl P2000C Eliminator Chain Drive Bass Drum Pedal
• Roc-n-Soc Nitro Throne w/Backrest
• RhythmTech Mountable Gig Tray (2)
• Pearl Trap Table (2)
• Meinl Gong Stand
• Cannon Wind Gong Adaptor

Percussion:

• Ludwig 28” X 14” Concert Bass Drum
• Yamaha/Deagan Orchestra Bells
• Zildjian Crotales
• Steve Weiss 28” Chau Gong
• Steve Weiss 22” Wind Gong
• Steve Weiss Chinese Tom Tom
• Pearl Shime Daiko
• Sabian 5” Hand Hammered Triangle
• Imported Finger Cymbals (Pair)
• Imported Tingsha (Pair)
• Japanese Piccolo Wood Blocks (2)
• Miller Machines (2)
• Toca Temple Blocks (2)
• Pearl Wood Blocks (2)
• Temple Bowls (3)
• Meinl Bell Tree
• LP Ice Bell
• Indian Bells

Sticks and Mallets:

• Vic Firth AS5A American Sound 5A Round Tip Drumsticks (some with moleskin on ends)
• Vic Firth 5ADT 5A Dual-Tone
• Innovative Percussion IP-5AM Multi-Stick
• Regal Tip 596R Jeff Hamilton Brushes
• Innovative Percussion BR-1 Retractable Nylon Brushes - Light
• Vic Firth/Tom Gauger TG04 Bass Drum Rollers
• Encore/Al Payson B1 Sostenuto Brown Bass Drum Mallet
• Innovative Percussion GS-1 Global Series Beaters / Large (for Taiko drum)
• Grover Pro Alloy 303 Red Triangle Beater
• Malletech OR42R Orchestra Bell Mallets
• Mike Balter 9AR Aluminum Bell Tree Mallets
• Musser M213 Medium Hard Blue Rubber Mallets (for temple bowls & temple blocks)
• Ron Vaughn PBM-1B High Density Piccolo Block Mallets - Birch Handles

In Ear Monitors:

• Shure SE535

Allegiance - Broadway - Joe Mowatt
December 2015