2004 UK National Drum Fair

As the UK National Drum Fair continues to grow the 2004 event saw a new larger venue, with more stalls, more visitors, more special guests and more excellent drums than ever before. This year's event included the very finest vintage drums from around the world as well as the cream of cutting-edge modern drum production. The Premier drum company brought along some of their modern classic drums and used the event to launch their new Craviotto-shelled Modern Classic snare drums. Johnny Craviotto himself was on hand talking about his life in drum making and the future of the Craviotto Drum Company. Smaller manufacturers were well represented and the presence of the Jalapeno, KD and HighWood drum companies is a testament to the strength of the UK custom drum scene.

Steve White showed once again why he has such a special place in the heart of the UK drum community putting on a virtuoso demonstration of groove drumming and taking plenty of time out to talk to fans, sign autographs and speak with the traders. The 2004 NDF was also a magnet for the leading percussive authorities with Rob Cook flying in from Chicago especially for the event, Winnie Mensink taking a few days out of organising the Amsterdam show and Geoff Nicholls leading the UKs contingent of drum experts and enthusiasts.

One of the highlights of the 2004 UK National Drum Fair was the donation of a custom-built snare drum by Johnny Craviotto. The prize was drawn at the end of the show on Sunday and the winner - who attended on Saturday - was Byron Cook. Graham Smith from the NDF committee travelled to Wales to present the drum to to a very happy Byron.

Photos courtesy of Winnie Mensink, Andy Youell and Dave Hughes from realscenes.com.