Todd Sucherman | His Playing, Gear and Career | Sonor & Sabian

Todd Sucherman is best known as the drummer with Styx, but that description only covers one part of a remarkably broad career. He is a first-call session player, an award-winning educator, a solo artist and a drummer admired for combining the scale and power of arena rock with fine dynamic control, detailed orchestration and a deep respect for the song.

This Graham Russell Drums profile looks at Todd Sucherman's background, his work with Styx, the qualities that make his playing distinctive and the equipment behind his sound, including his return to Sonor drums, his current Sabian cymbal relationship and Todd-linked gear available from GRD.

From a musical family to a first-call session drummer

Todd Sucherman grew up in Chicago in a deeply musical family. His father, Arnold Sucherman, was a doctor by day and a big-band drummer by night, including work as house drummer at Chicago's Chez Paree. Todd was fascinated by drums from infancy, could read music by the age of five and played his first paid engagement at six with his brothers Paul and Joel as The Sucherman Brothers.

He continued studying throughout school and spent a year at Berklee College of Music, where he studied privately with respected teacher Gary Chaffee. After returning to Chicago in 1988, Todd established himself in the city's recording scene. His CV now stretches far beyond rock: Sonor's official profile credits him with more than 1,000 radio and television spots and work connected with artists including Brian Wilson, Peter Cetera, Brian Culbertson, Michael Bolton, Don Felder, Antoine Fafard and Spinal Tap.

Todd Sucherman and Styx

Todd's association with Styx began in 1995, when he was called in to record while the band's original drummer, John Panozzo, was unwell. Following Panozzo's death, Todd's position became permanent. He has since powered Styx both live and in the studio, bringing technical precision and a commanding sound to music that demands weight, detail and strong vocal awareness from every player.

His recordings with the band include Brave New World, Cyclorama, Big Bang Theory, The Mission and Crash of the Crown, alongside numerous live releases. The Mission earned Todd a Modern Drummer Readers Poll award for Recorded Performance, while Sonor credits him with ten Readers Poll wins across categories including Rock Drummer, Progressive Rock Drummer, Classic Rock Drummer, Live Drummer, Clinician and educational releases.

What makes Todd Sucherman's playing distinctive?

• Power with detail: his drums carry the authority required for arena rock, but the notes remain clear and carefully placed.
• Musical orchestration: fills move around a large kit as composed phrases rather than displays added on top of the song.
• Dynamic control: he can make a broad drum and cymbal setup sound controlled, balanced and vocal rather than simply loud.
• Relaxed technique: his teaching repeatedly returns to efficient movement, ergonomics and mental relaxation as the route to consistent performance.

Education has become a substantial part of Todd's career. His Methods & Mechanics releases won multiple awards, and his Rock Drumming Masterclass for Drumeo reached players in more than 60 countries. In 2020, he also stepped forward as a singer-songwriter with his first solo album, Last Flight Home, showing a different side of a musician usually seen behind the kit.

Todd Sucherman's Sonor drum kit

Todd returned to Sonor in January 2025, reconnecting with the drum sound that had first caught his attention as a young player. Sonor introduced his return kit as a new SQ2 made with heavy beech shells, an African Marble High Gloss veneer and 24-karat gold-plated fittings.

That description matters because SQ2 is Sonor's fully custom drum system, not one fixed catalogue shell pack. A player can specify the wood, shell thickness, sizes, interior and exterior veneers, finish, hoops and hardware plating. Todd can therefore use different drum sizes or layouts while retaining the beech-shell character and build quality he wants. The dependable answer to “What drum kit does Todd Sucherman play?” is a custom Sonor SQ2, with his return setup centred on heavy beech and African Marble.

A close SQ2 comparison available at Graham Russell Drums

Our Sonor SQ2 20-inch Thin Beech Drum Kit in African Marble High Gloss is not a replica of Todd's setup: it uses thin beech tom and snare shells, a medium beech bass drum and different fittings. It is, however, a useful shop-stock example of the same SQ2 custom system, the same beech family and the same African Marble High Gloss finish.

This five-piece configuration includes 10 x 7 and 12 x 8-inch rack toms, a 14 x 13-inch floor tom, a 20 x 15-inch bass drum and a matching 14 x 5-inch snare. It demonstrates how different an SQ2 can become when shell thickness and sizes are tailored to another player's requirements.

For a closer look at the range, read our Sonor Professional Drum Kits Buyer's Guide, which compares the Vintage Series, Momentum and SQ2, or browse the complete Sonor range at Graham Russell Drums. Players earlier in their journey can also use our Sonor Beginner Drum Kits Buyer's Guide.

Todd Sucherman's Sabian cymbals

Todd's Sabian setup is designed around contrast: dark complexity, bright cut, clean definition and short effects voices all have a place. Sabian's current official artist profile highlights two crash families developed with him. HHX Redlight Crashes combine dark complexity with the clarity needed to speak through a full rock mix, while AA Spotlight Crashes are designed for bold live projection with a musical response.

Sabian currently lists the following as Todd's go-to cymbals:

• 18, 19, 20 and 22-inch HHX Redlight Crashes
• 18, 19, 20 and 22-inch AA Spotlight Crashes
• 14-inch Artisan Hi-Hats
• 14-inch AA Medium Hi-Hats in Brilliant finish
• 8-inch AA Splash
• 6-inch AAX Splash

GRD currently lists the 14-inch Artisan Hi-Hats and 14-inch AA Medium Hi-Hats. The AA product page does not specify the Brilliant finish, while no exact GRD listing is currently live for the 8-inch AA Splash or 6-inch AAX Splash.

Todd also names the 20-inch Artisan Crash in Brilliant finish as a personal favourite. The variety explains a great deal about the sound of his cymbal setup: broad, expressive crashes can sit beside faster, brighter accents without every cymbal occupying the same part of the mix.

Sabian 22-inch Todd Sucherman Sessions Ride

One exact Todd-developed cymbal currently listed at GRD is the Sabian 22-inch Todd Sucherman Sessions Ride. Created as his recording ride, this medium-weight B20 cymbal is heavily hand hammered, hand lathed to produce multiple thicknesses and hammered again. The result combines strong stick definition with a complex spread, a usable crash and a bell pitched above the cymbal's main note.

You can also explore the wider Sabian cymbal range at Graham Russell Drums.

Todd-linked sticks and drumheads at GRD

ProMark Todd Sucherman SD330W Signature Drum Sticks

The ProMark Maple Todd Sucherman Wood Tip Drum Sticks use a maple shaft, a long thin neck and an acorn-shaped tip. Maple keeps the stick relatively light, while the long taper helps rebound and the tip supports clear articulation across drums and cymbals.

Remo drumheads

Remo's current official Todd Sucherman profile lists Clear Ambassadors, a Coated Ambassador, an Ambassador Hazy snare-side head and a Clear Powerstroke 3 bass drum head. Exact GRD matches include the Remo 14-inch Ambassador Hazy Snare Side and the Remo 22-inch Powerstroke 3 Clear Bass Drum Head. Other sizes can be found across our full drumhead range.

Technique in service of the music

Todd Sucherman's equipment is impressive, but the useful lesson is why it is there. A configurable Sonor SQ2 gives him the drum voices and physical layout required for the music; a broad Sabian palette provides separation and colour; and his sticks and heads support articulation without losing weight. The setup serves a player whose technique is highly developed but whose priorities remain timing, sound, dynamics and the shape of the song.

Career and equipment details were checked against Todd's official Sonor artist profile, Sonor return announcement, Sabian artist profile and Remo artist profile, alongside the linked Graham Russell Drums product pages.

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