The Hunter Drum Play-Along: One Composition, Endless Interpretations

How do you write one composition for a group of young drummers without asking every player to sound the same?

That question sits at the centre of The Hunter. The music was written to provide a clear structure, strong musical character and enough detail to test a drummer’s time, feel, dynamics, form and judgement. It was also designed to leave something essential unwritten: the drum part.

From competition piece to independent release

Young Drummer of the Year was founded by drummer and educator Mike Dolbear. I became involved in 2023, initially writing and co-writing music for the UK competition. The work subsequently expanded to prepared and unprepared pieces, with separate compositions created for the UK, the United States and the DACH competition covering Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

Across those competitions, 70 finalists have now performed music that I wrote or co-wrote. That has given me an unusual opportunity to hear how different young drummers respond to the same musical information.

For the 2026 US final, the ten finalists received The Hunter four weeks before the event. They were given the composition without a recorded drum performance, together with a click. Each finalist then had to understand the form, decide where to support the music, where to leave space and how to develop an individual drum part for the live final.

The finalists were not being asked to reproduce a reference performance. The point was to make musical decisions.

Jahdiel C. Aviles won the 2026 US competition. His performance begins with The Hunter and can be watched here: Jahdiel C. Aviles — 2026 US Young Drummer of the Year.

Writing The Hunter

I wrote The Hunter with guitarist Carter Arrington and saxophonist Andreas See. We wanted the composition to stand up as music in its own right rather than feel like a technical exercise with accompaniment attached.

A useful play-along needs more than difficult figures. It needs a shape that can be understood, tension that can be managed and enough musical information to reward repeated listening. The drummer has to consider the relationship between groove and form, the weight of different sections, transitions, dynamics and the effect of choosing not to play.

That is why I think of The Hunter as a composition first and a drum play-along second.

Doug Harper’s interpretation

For the studio version, Doug Harper created and performed his own drum part. His performance presents one considered interpretation of the piece—not a template that every drummer should copy.

Doug’s version shows how the composition can be shaped by an experienced player while still leaving the central question open: what would another drummer hear in the same music?

The filmed performance was recorded at Masterlink Sessions with Carter Arrington on guitar, Andreas See on saxophone and myself on bass. It gives listeners the complete musical picture before they remove the drums and begin making their own decisions.

A play-along built for interpretation

The downloadable package contains:

  • the complete recording featuring Doug Harper;

  • a drumless version with continuous click;

  • a drumless version with count-in click only; and

  • a keyboard and bass score in PDF format.

The continuous-click version is useful for close work on placement and accuracy. The count-in-only version removes that support once the piece has started and asks the drummer to carry the time internally.

For teachers, the different versions provide useful material for discussing form, stylistic choices, dynamics and the relationship between technique and musical judgement. For students, the track offers an opportunity to create a complete part and then compare different approaches—including those taken by the competition finalists—without treating any one version as the prescribed answer.

One composition. Endless interpretations.

The Hunter is one track from Stefan Redtenbacher’s Drum Play-Along Collection, a series that I plan to build steadily over the next few months. The wider catalogue draws on music written for young drummer competitions across the UK, US, Germany, Austria and Switzerland, but the collection is being released independently for drummers, teachers and students more widely.

The historical connection explains where the music came from. This is not an official competition or Zildjian product, and no endorsement is implied.

The purpose is straightforward: to make substantial music available without drums and invite players to bring their own musical identity to it.

One composition. Endless interpretations.

Watch and play along

Watch The Hunter and follow the Drum Play-Along Collection on YouTube.

Download The Hunter complete drum play-along package from Bandcamp.

Musicians

  • Carter Arrington — guitar

  • Doug Harper — drums

  • Andreas See — saxophone

  • Stefan Redtenbacher — bass

Production credits

  • Written by Carter Arrington, Stefan Redtenbacher and Andreas See

  • Arranged and produced by Stefan Redtenbacher

  • Mixed and mastered by James Welch

  • Filmed and edited by Leo Mansell

  • Artwork by Neil J Hart

  • Recorded and filmed at Masterlink Sessions

  • Released by RSB Records

  • Catalogue number: RSB57002

Masterlink Sessions brings invited artists and musicians together for performances captured live in the studio, just outside London. We believe in shining a light on all involved.

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