MEET THE ARTIST

Bernie Dresel

Drummer, percussionist and bandleader whose work connects the Brian Setzer Orchestra, Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band, Hollywood recording sessions and his own orchestra, The BBB.

A great big-band drummer shapes the whole conversation. Dresel gives the ensemble a center of gravity: enough command to land every punch, enough freedom for the soloists to breathe.

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Bernie Dresel · photograph via Gon Bops

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WHY YOU SHOULD KNOW THEM

Three ways into the sound.

BEHIND THE PICTURE

You may have heard him before you knew his name.

His soundtrack work includes The Simpsons, Family Guy, Ratatouille and Star Trek. The musician behind the scene steps into full view here.

THE SETZER YEARS

Swing with a rockabilly pulse.

Dresel spent fifteen years with the Brian Setzer Orchestra. That experience gives another point of entry into his feel for propulsion and ensemble accents.

THE BBB

The orchestra begins at the kit.

The BBB is led from the drum chair. Follow the accents across the brass and reeds and hear how the rhythm section shapes their arrival.

THE STORY

From Ringo to the room.

Bernie Dresel makes a large ensemble feel immediate: a precise entrance, a gathering swing pulse, then a release that fills the room. His career connects the Brian Setzer Orchestra and Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band with the studio craft behind film and television scores. He leads The BBB from the drum chair, bringing that breadth of experience into music built for live discovery. The story began with hearing Ringo Starr as a child in Pennsylvania. Formal lessons followed, then classical percussion study at the Eastman School of Music and a move to Los Angeles. The combination matters: disciplined technique and the physical pleasure of a groove have remained in the same musical conversation. At Campus JAX, The BBB's earlier broadcasts from October 23, 2025 and January 11, 2026 offer a way into that conversation. October 4, 2026 adds the next chapter. Listen for the spaces around the accents as well as the force of the accents themselves.

CAREER & COLLABORATIONS

A musical life across stages and screens.

Dresel's collaborators have included Maynard Ferguson, Brian Wilson, David Byrne, Chaka Khan and Andy Summers. His big-band chapters with Setzer and Goodwin sit alongside a broad career as a studio drummer and percussionist.

EDUCATION & TEACHING

Technique passed forward.

Dresel studied at Eastman and has taught drum set at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He also co-wrote the Big Phat Band Play-Along Series for Drums with Gordon Goodwin.

LIVE AT JAX

The Room Comes Alive.

START HERE · LIVE PERFORMANCE · CAMPUS JAX APPEARANCE · Oct 4, 2026

The BBB Featuring Bernie Dresel — Live from Campus JAX

JAX HISTORY

Bernie Dresel at Campus JAX

A selective history of live performances and appearances, preserved across visits to the room.

FROM THE ARCHIVE

Previous JAX moments

REPLAY · Oct 4, 6:30 PM

The BBB Featuring Bernie Dresel

Blistering big band jazz with rockabilly fire