A mutual friend of our Music director is both a singer and drummer. He has his own "Sinatra" show, sings in the mixed choral group, and occasionally plays drums for them. Our MD mentioned that the drummer takes "a long time" to set up his drums the way he wants them before a performance.
Next time I'm in a Guitar Center salivating over a set of Roland drum pads, I'll play around with a regular drum set to have a better appreciation of what you just experienced.