The First Circle
The MBBJE worked on Pat Metheny’s “The First Circle” this past year. (Big band arrangement by Bob Curnow.) It’s a complex piece of music in 22/8 with a manic hand clapping pattern throughout the introduction. I’ve been a big fan of the PMG since 1987 so I pulled out an old drumming exercise written by Paul Wertico who was the drummer in the band at the time.
This music brought to mind many questions about the original version of “The First Circle” that Paul had performed with Pat. Perhaps Paul would answer a few questions through his website. To my surprise, Paul replied with his phone number and suggested I call him directly with my questions. Here are some notes from our conversation.
1. The drumming exercise I was practicing had a significant notation error by the publisher. (Thanks for the correction Paul!)
2. The “count in” for First Circle is 4 quarter notes.
3. The First Circle was performed on every tour that the PMG did from 1984 to 1998.
4. Background parts (and clapping) were played during each concert by the Synclavier computer which broke down in Germany and cost $2,000 to repair.
5. The tempo of “The First Circle” could be changed and was usually increased for the end of the tune. More info at: www.paulwertico.com
