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Rod Morgenstein

b. 1953

American drummer

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About Rod Morgenstein

Born 1953. Rod Morgenstein is an American jazz musician, music educator and musician.

Rod Morgenstein (born April 19, 1953) is an American drummer with rock bands Winger and Dixie Dregs.

He also played with Fiona, Platypus, the Steve Morse Band, and Jelly Jam. He has also done session work with Jordan Rudess including his ventures with the Rudess/Morgenstein Project. He also toured with Jazz Is Dead. He has also been awarded Modern Drummers "Best Progressive Rock Drummer" five years (1986-'90), "Best All-Around Drummer" (1999) and was inducted into magazine's Honor Roll.

He worked for twenty years as a professor, teaching percussion at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. Morgenstein continues to tour with the band Winger. He has also been a columnist for Modern Drummer magazine.

Morgenstein is known for his versatility of playing many styles of music.

Equipment Morgenstein currently uses Premier drums, Evans Drumheads, Sabian cymbals, Vic Firth drumsticks, and LP Percussion. He has, in the past, also used Remo drumheads and Paiste cymbals.

Drums: Premier signia series (also uses the genista series): 22" x 18" bass drums (x2) 10" x 9" rack tom 12" x 10" rack tom 13" x 11" rack tom 16" x 16" floor tom 18" x 16" floor tom 14" x 6.5" snare 14" x 4" piccolo snare

Drumheads: Evans: Snare: G1 Coated or Power Center Reverse Dot/300 Snare Side Toms: EC2S Clear or G1 Clear (top and resonant) Bass: EQ4 Clear/EQ3 Black Bass Reso

Drumsticks: Vic Firth: Vic Firth Rod Morgenstein signature drumsticks (Length 16.12", Diameter: .610")

Cymbals: Sabian: AA regular hi-hats 13" HH china kang 10"/AA splash 10" (stacked) AA splash 12" AA splash 10" AA splash 8" AAX stage crash 18"/cymbal disc 12" (stacked) AAX stage crash 16" (or studio crash) AA splash 10" Signature tri-top ride 21" HH china 20" HH thin crash 18"

Paiste cymbals (circa 1984): RUDE 14" hi-hats Formula 602 11" splash RUDE 16" crash/ride RUDE 18" crash/ride 2002 18" medium RUDE 20" ride/crash Formula 602 22" heavy 2002 20" china type Sound Creation 22" dark china

Cymbals circa 1988: 3000 14" sound edge hi-hats Formula 602 11" splash 3000 17" thin crash 3000 18" thin crash 3000 19" thin crash RUDE 22" ride/crash Sound Creation 20" dark china

Discography with Dixie Dregs The Great Spectacular (1976) Free Fall (1977) What If (1978) Night of the Living Dregs (1979) Dregs of the Earth (1980) Unsung Heroes (1981) Industry Standard (1982) Full Circle (1994)

with The Steve Morse Band The Introduction (1984) Stand Up (1985) High Tension Wires (1989)

with Winger Winger (1988) In the Heart of the Young (1990) Pull (1993) IV (2006) Karma (2009) Better Days Comin' (2014) Seven (2023)

with Fiona Heart Like a Gun (1989)

with Rudess/Morgenstein Project Rudess/Morgenstein Project (1997) The Official Bootleg (2001)

with Platypus When Pus Comes to Shove (1998) Ice Cycles (2000)

with The Jelly Jam The Jelly Jam (2002) The Jelly Jam 2 (2004) Shall We Descend (2011) Profit (2016)

with Jazz Is Dead Laughing Water (1999) Great Sky River (2001) Grateful Jazz (2015)

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Important facts

Birth century
Nationality
Education
Nassau Community College
Employers
Berklee College of Music

People in Rod Morgenstein's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Rod Morgenstein's

Frequently asked questions

Who is Rod Morgenstein?

American drummer

When was Rod Morgenstein born?

Rod Morgenstein was born on 19 April 1953 in New York City.

What is Rod Morgenstein's occupation?

Rod Morgenstein is a jazz musician, music educator and musician.

What nationality is Rod Morgenstein?

Rod Morgenstein is American.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Rod Morgenstein

· Wikidata: Q1361389

· DBpedia: Rod Morgenstein

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Rod Morgenstein. https://biography.guide/rod-morgenstein/

MLA: "Rod Morgenstein." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/rod-morgenstein/.

Chicago: "Rod Morgenstein." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/rod-morgenstein/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-22 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

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