Chops Percussion News | Your Locally-Owned Indianapolis Drum & Percussion Shop

Quick Tips for Indoor Drumline – Warming Up Outside 2017

Tuesday, March 28, 2017 No Comments

Here’s a repost from last year, just before the first IPA State Finals at Hulman Center in Terre Haute. We thought it was worth sharing again heading in to state finals weekend.

This weekend is only the second contest in the history of the IPA (Indiana Percussion Association) that requires an outside warm-up. Those groups who have performed in Dayton for WGI Championships or participate in circuits in warmer regions of the country know this is a normal process. The outside extended warm-up can be very beneficial to preparing for the large arena environment. But for those who have not gone through that process before, here are some tips to make sure the experience is smooth and beneficial for everyone.

ChopsStick Challenge!

Tuesday, March 21, 2017 No Comments

Hey Everyone. Welcome back to the Chops Blog. We’ve got something brand new for you this week to help build some hype for the upcoming IPA State Finals competition on April 1st at Hulman Center.

We’re calling it the ChopsStick Challenge! The rules are simple.

Rules

1. Perform a trick “shot” like the one below and capture it on video.
2. Make it as fun/hard/complex as you see fit. (Please be safe!)
3. Post that video to our Facebook page with the hashtag #ChopsStickChallenge, and we’ll pick our favorite as the winner. Enter as many times as you’d like. Bonus points for wearing a Chops t-shirt!
4. Post your video by Thursday, April 6, 2017 at 11:59pm. We’ll pick a winner on Friday, Aptil 7, 2017.

Check out Jeff trying a couple of quick shots here in the store:

Prizes

The winning shot will receive a prize to be announced later. Don’t worry, it’ll be worth it.

Questions? Email us at chops@chopspercussion.com

Have fun!

Jeff, Derek, and Dustin

March 2017 News at Chops

Tuesday, March 14, 2017 No Comments

Visit Us At IPA State Prelims and State Finals!

Visit us at IPA State Prelims & State Finals

Indoor Percussion season is in full swing and we’re proud to once again be the Presenting Sponsor for the Indiana Percussion Association. This weekend starts the march to state finals, with State Prelims and Divisional Finals at Avon High School and Decatur Central High School. Check out the schedules at the links above.

IPA State Championships will once again be held in Hulman Center, on the campus of Indiana State University in Terre Haute. Once this weekend’s preliminary events are complete, the State Finals schedule will be available here.

We’ll be running a booth at state prelims (Avon site) and state finals, so if you’re attending either of these, make sure to stop by and say hi! We’ll have lots of sticks, practice pads, mallets, stick bags, t-shirts, and many other items to choose from. It would be a great time to try out all the different sticks and pads and take something home!

If you go to any shows, let us know what you think on our Facebook page! If you wear a Chops Percussion shirt, make sure to post a pic to our Facebook or Twitter page!

For more information on events, schedules, venues, ticket sales and more, visit the Indiana Percussion Association (IPA) website.

Demo Gear/Clearance Items

Our demo list has been updated. follow the link below to view what’s changed since last month!

View the list on our website.

Chops Closed for State Prelims & State Finals

Chops closed on 3/18/17 & 4/1/17

Due to our heavy involvement with the Indiana Percussion Association we will be closed on Saturday, March March 18, 2017 to support them at their State Prelims competition. We will also be closed for IPA State Finals on Saturday, April 1, 2017 (no foolin’).

We will resume regular hours on Monday, April 3rd. Thank you for your understanding!.

Opinion: Glen’s Favorite Rock & Roll Instrumentals, Part Two

Tuesday, March 7, 2017 No Comments

Hello and welcome back to the Chops Percussion blog!

Two weeks ago I introduced this series of posts on rock and roll instrumentals with some of my favorite, radio-friendly tracks. We covered five classics, such as Rush’s “YYZ”. If you missed it, its available here. Today I’m going to continue by introducing some more obscure tracks.

#1 – “Peaches en Regalia”, Frank Zappa, from Hot Rats

In 1969 Frank Zappa released Hot Rats, a classic, largely instrumental album. At the time of its release, Hot Rats was innovative due to Zappa’s creative use of 16-track recording equipment. “Peaches en Regalia” quickly became one of Zappa’s better known works, and a jazz fusion standard.

Funny story, back in 2012 I was at game five of the National League Division Series between the Cincinnati Reds and San Francisco Giants. When the Reds lost, after previously holding a 2-0 series lead, the stadium DJ immediately played “Peaches en Regalia”. It was a surreal moment, hearing an obscure Zappa tune after a demoralizing, season ending loss. Such is the life of a Reds fan.

2017 PAS Indiana Day Of Percussion

Tuesday, February 28, 2017 No Comments

2017 PAS Indiana Day Of Percussion - Saturday, April 8, 2017

Hello everyone,

I hope that you have all been enjoying your early Spring! The 2017 Indiana PAS Day of Percussion at DePauw University is coming up fast (Saturday, April 8th 2017), and I wanted to send out an update.

Check out our updated website with more information about the DoP!
http://community.pas.org/indiana/daysofpercussion

I have also attached a flyer to this email that you can post and share with anyone who might be interested!

Guest Clinicians

This year we will be welcoming She-e Wu of Northwestern University, Brian Mason of Morehead State University, and local drum set artist Kenny Phelps.