u/daved1986

Long time drummer here who has mostly played rock with people for many years. I've always played jazz on my own for most of that time and am comfortable with comping, independence and I'm building up my jazz vocabulary. So last night I jammed with a local jazz ensemble I signed up for. We are all mostly beginners to jazz. It sorta went OK but I REALLY struggled with playing quietly enough. Nobody complained but I just felt like everything I did was too loud. And because of that, I wasn't comfortable at all and wasn't really swinging. I assume this is common for drummers new to jazz? I am not a loud drummer by any stretch - have done probably hundreds of cafe gigs with singer-songwriters. I see videos of guys like Quincy Davis, Steve Holmes etc... and it doesn't look like they are playing as light as I was at all. Is this common for drummers? How did you get past it?