V-Drums World Championship 2 Finals

A New V-Drums Champion is Crowned at the 2013 Musikmesse in Germany

V-Drums World Championship 2 winners at the Frankfurt Musikmesse

During the recent 2013 Musikmesse music fair in Frankfurt, Germany, Roland held the international finals for the V-Drums World Championship 2. From a field of top drummers representing 16 different countries, Issah Contractor from Canada grabbed the crown with a masterful performance blending impressive drumming chops and a thorough command of the modern technology in Roland’s electronic percussion products.

The V-Drums World Championship 2 Explained…

Roland’s annual V-Drums World Championship gives drummers everywhere a unique opportunity to showcase their skills and compete against other Roland electronic percussion players. This year’s contest was the biggest yet, with nearly 5,000 participants competing during national preliminary rounds in countries around the world. The grand finale took place on April 11, 2013 at the prestigious Südbahnhof music club in Frankfurt, with well-known German drummer Dirk Brand serving as the host for the evening. The event was also streamed live to Internet viewers around the globe on the V-Drums World Championship international website.

The night featured inspired drumming by players from the United States, Sweden, Italy, Mexico, Hungary, Switzerland, China, Turkey, Brazil, the Netherlands, Japan, United Kingdom, Russia, Germany, Spain, and Canada. Each earned a trip to the finals by winning national V-Drums competitions in their home countries. In Frankfurt, every finalist played an original drum performance using the TD-30KV V-Pro® Series V-Drums, OCTAPAD® SPD-30 Percussion Pad, and SPD-SX Sampling Pad.

A group of seven judges assembled for the finals included noted drummers Brand, Craig Blundell, Tommy Snyder, and Florian Alexandru-Zorn, plus music journalists Mark Van Schaik, Rich Chamberlain, and Axel Mikolajczak. They scored the contestants’ performances in areas of technique, style, stage presence, overall creativity, and creative use of technology.

See the V-Drums World Championship 2 slide show

V-Drums World Championship 2 winner: Issah Contractor

Naming a winner was a tough call, as all the players delivered jaw-dropping displays of drumming prowess. When the smoke had cleared, Issah Contractor came out on top with a performance that featured looping on the SPD-30, sample playback from the SPD-SX, multiple meter shifts, impressive double-kick chops, and unique playing of melodies with the V-Drums’ pads.

V-Drums World Championship 2 runner-ups Jaime Edwin de la Rosa & Lars Nijman

Second Place went to Jaime Edwin de la Rosa from Mexico, while Third Place went to Lars Nijman from the Netherlands.

In an interview after his win, Issah talked about how he’s excited to use the powerful technology in V-Drums to forge a new melodic direction in drumming. “One cool thing about the TD-30 is the step sequence function,” said Issah. “I believe that can be utilized very uniquely in the future. I’d like to see if I can push that boundary. It could be really something that is groundbreaking. Although there are notes on the drums, it feels a little devoid over the harmony aspect, and I think the V-Drums would be awesome for trying to put that forward.”

If you’re a drummer based in the United States and want to enter for the V-Drums World Championship 3, check the V-Drums contest page at RolandUS.com.

Check out our V-Drums World Championship 2 playlist on YouTube to see final performances from all the contestants, plus interviews with the top three players.

V-Drums World Championship 2 Performances

Do you agree with the judges? Tell us who you think the winner should be.

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