 Back
in 1977, there were no magazines dedicated exclusively to drummers and percussionists.
Drummers would scour jazz and pop magazines for scant mention of their craft
and they’d pour over the pages of drum company catalogs for pictures
of artists.
Things
changed when Ron Spagnardi and his wife Isabel came into the picture. Starting
out in the basement of their Nutley, New Jersey home, they created the world’s
pre-eminent magazine, Modern
Drummer, transforming it from a humble black and white publication into
a full color monthly glossy available in over one hundred countries. His
influence has been so pervasive that Ron Spagnardi has often been credited
as the father of the so-called "community of drummers".
Sadly,
Ron recently passed away following a long and courageous battle with cancer,
leaving the stewardship of his beloved magazine in the capable hands of his
wife and long time business companion Isabel. Ron’s funeral in Cedar
Grove, NJ, was well attended by the drum industry and by prominent drummers.
A 1963
graduate of Boston’s
Berklee College, Ron played famous New York night spots such as the Village
Vanguard with the likes of Joe Beck and Mike Manieri. An accomplished drummer
with good technique and a growing reputation, Ron initially had no plans
to enter the publishing business. Faced, however, with the scarcity of educational
and entertaining materials for drummers, he pasted together his first MD
issue, Isabel at his side. Spagnardi never looked back and his magazine grew
in leaps and bounds, always enjoying the acceptance of drummers and the drum
industry. In addition to publishing MD, Spagnardi authored a number of drum
instructional texts and produced the popular Modern Drummer Festival Weekend,
held since the eighties at Montclair State University, NJ.
Recently,
Modern Drummer magazine celebrated its twenty-fifth
"silver" anniversary. For this issue, as each issue since the magazine’s
conception, Ron took an active interest. He steered editorial meetings, assisted
in planning issues, and he read each article. The drum community will miss
him but will take comfort in the special forum he has bequeathed. The March
2004 issue of Modern Drummer will carry a special tribute to its founding father.
Latin Percussion
takes this opportunity to pay tribute to Ron Spagnardi, publisher of Modern
Drummer magazine—and friend of LP. LP grieves Ron Spagnardi’s
passing but rejoices in his role in honoring drummers and percussionists.
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