Two pieces of media have recently come across our desks here at PDS and they've really been enlightening and encouraging.
The first is this article about Harry Conick Jr.'s experience on American Idol. Please read the entire article, but the jist is that Connick wasn't amused in the least at the Idol singers' lack of knowledge or respect for the songs they were singing.
Allright, let’s wrap u
p this recycle session. For those of you who haven’t been following this little series, we’re taking a basic exercise from one of the first books I ever worked out of, Combination Study 5 from Understanding Rhythms by Michael Lauren. So far, we’ve worked on our stick control by playing the exercise as softly and quickly as we can and we’ve gone to the other spectrum by playing the exercise on double bass drums while playing a simple groove over the top with our hands. Now, we’re gonna travel to the R&B world and get a little work done on our hi-hats.
So, here’s the two ways we can work this out. In either case we want to go at a silky smooth tempo around 75-80 bpm, and we’ll just play a simple groove of kick on 1 and 3 and snare (or cross-stick if you’re really feeling the R&B vibe) on 2 and 4.
Well, there you go. Three lessons on three vastly different drumming ideas all based around one tired old exercise. Have fun folks!
This week we’re gonna take our leftover exercise and spice it up by applying it to double bass drums. How many times do you go to play double bass, but all you can come up with is straight 16th notes? And let’s be honest, there’s only so much dugga dugga dugga we can take.Again we’re going to use Combination Study #5 from Michael Lauren’s Understanding Rhythm book. And again the concept is fairly simple to start. We’ll play a simple quarter-note ride pattern on the hi hats or ride cymbal with 2 and 4 on the snare – you’re most basic rock groove. Now try to play the exercise on the bass drums while you keep the groove with your hands.Once you’ve mastered that idea, you can bump up the tempo or change the ride pattern to keep your exploration going.You ever find yourself wanting something to practice, but you’ve already worked through all your book and don’t want to go buy another? Here’s some ideas to recycle your old exercises into new ideas for the drumset.
For this series, we’re gonna use Combination Study 5 out of Understanding Rhythm by Michael Lauren. This is the kind of exercise that’s really easy to recycle ’cause its relatively simple and bland. But let’s explore how we can add some hot sauce to spice up these leftovers.
I’ve been working on this deal since last August, so please believe me when I say that I am majorly stoked to announce that I just signed a deal to be an Educational Endorser with Sabian Cymbals! The reason I chose Sabian is almost the exact opposite of why I chose Vic Firth for my drumsticks. I’ve always played Sabian. Since 1998, I’ve a very few other cymbals. I’ve even tried to get away from Sabian before. I looked at all the other cymbals companies out there and I never found one that had everything I wanted. Some had great hats and rides, others had great crashes, and still others made killer effects cymbals. But I’ve never found another cymbal company where I could build an entire set-up and love every cymbal I put on the kit.
But that’s exactly how I feel about Sabian: I love every stinkin’ one of my Sabian cymbals. I love the dark, raw energy from the HHX. The cuts-like-a-knife quality of the AAX. The old-school sound of the AA. And the classic, mellow vibe from the HH. And then there’s the Signature and Vault cymbals that get really crazy cool! I just love everything I’ve ever played with a Sabian logo on it. Heck even the entry-level stuff like the B8 or B8Pro have a great quality to them! It’s just awesome.
If you’ve got questions, I’d be glad to answer ‘em. I’m just pretty humbled right now that two major percussion companies think this kid from Wichita is worthy of a business partnership!
Not only is Gregg Bissonnette a monster on the drums, he’s also one of the nicest guys I’ve ever had the pleasure to meet. He started his career as a jazz musician, but has also played rock and pop gigs too (including a stint with David Lee Roth).
Drumline Check Patterns
In drumline, we use check patterns to assure that we are 100% accurate and precise with our note placement. We also make sure that we use standard sticking patterns like right hand lead.
Drum Set check Patterns
On drum set, we can do the same. First, try playing the drumline exercise on your snare, and then try moving to different drums on each beat. Once you’ve mastered that, try adding bass drum to all of the rests, like in example A & B in the drum set exercises. You can also work on your four-way coordination by adding left foot hi-hats on the quarters. Then try playing the same exercise on the hi-hats while you keep a basic groove on kick and snare. Give it a try!
The long-time drummer for Dave Matthews Band is a flat-out beast on the drums. From blazing fast tom rolls, to sick ghost note grooves, and amazing coordination, Carter has it all!
Next up on our journey of taking standard drumline exercises and applying them to drum set, let’s take a look a Tap / Accent, the exercise used to develop solid two-height playing. On the field, the difference between a good drumline and a great drumline is the difference between solid two-height playing and well . . . not so solid. The same thing applies to the drum set. Check out guys like Steve Gadd or Carter Beauford for examples of just how much taps and accents make a groove sooooo much better.
Here’s the drumline version. Remember when you practice this to keep your taps low. It’s easier to communicate the difference between a tap and an accent when the tap is nice and low.
Now look at what happens when we apply these ideas to the drum set. Exercise one keeps the taps on the snare and the accents move around the toms. The second exercise uses a repeating pattern around the drums with changing accents. That’s harder! Finally exercises #3 and #4 put the accents on the hihat over top of a simple groove in the kick and snare. Play #3 with one hand on the hihat and #4 with two hands.
Jim Riley is a drummer who’s getting recognized more and more lately – not only because he’s the drummer and bandleader for Rascal Flatts, but also for his dedication to education. Checkout these clips to get a sample of Jim’s work.
Oh . . . and did I mention that he’s going to be at Midwest drum and Percussion THIS SATURDAY for a clinic! Don’t miss it! Click the picture <– to learn more!
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