playing, his clarity. Back in the early '70s he seemed to be an articulate drummer with a lot of soul in his playing. I loved his power and strength and the way he articulated his phrasing. I loved his approach." In a Modern Drummer magazine article of June 1999, Donati prefers playing with traditional grip. He says there, "I grew up playing traditional grip and persevered with it even under the physical duress of rock bands. I decided that it's just how I wanted to play. Now it's very natural for me. Besides, I've surmounted all the problems of being able to play with enough power. Traditional grip does not limit me in any way. There are certain movements around the drumset that feel good with traditional, and believe it or not, there're certain things I'll play that feel better in my left hand than in my right. That said, I would not necessarily recommend traditional grip. Frankly, I think the disadvantages involved with traditional grip outweigh the advantages. It is a far more difficult grip to maintain and to develop power with. Any student starting out would be better off focusing on matched. But for some reason, maybe just because it just used as much any more, traditional grip seems to be more hip." Reception Virgil Donati is widely regarded as one of the most technically advanced drummers of all time. Bassist Bryan Beller, after performing with Donati and Mike Keneally, described him in a blog post with the following words: "Imagine the technical accuracy of Mike Mangini, the off-the-rails phrasing of Vinnie Colaiuta, the beat-displacement of Dave Weckl, and the rock sensibility of Tommy Aldridge, and that's pretty much Virgil Donati—all of it, all at once, all the time. Talk about being taken along for a ride". Ex-Dream Theater drummer Mike Portnoy called Donati "super, super technical" and cited him as a drummer he "can't replicate", saying that "[he] does things that I physically can't do." Donati's piano playing can be heard on his 2016 album 'The Dawn of Time' as well as in various online videos where he's playing the like of Debussy and Ravel. Discography Solo Stretch (1995, Musos Publications) Just Add Water (1997, Thunder Drum Records) Serious Young Insects (On The Virg band) (1999, Vorcity Music) Made in Australia (Gambale, Donati, Fierabracci) (2007, Wombat Records) In This Life (2013, Self-released) The Dawn of Time: Orchestral