I'm listening to a friend's playing on an instructional CD. This guy is a great player, and his tracks here are very impressive. I absolutely love what he's doing. So I'm envious -- no surprise there. And I'm also feeling a bit guilty. Guilty? Now why would that be?
Read moreMiles Ahead - A look back at Canada's Milestone Percussion
The Milestone shells -- each one lovingly hand formed by Clapham and Co. -- were made from a range of 'formulas', each one selected for tone and resonance. Type 2 and 4 made for great bass drums. Toms were available in formula 3 and formula 6. Snares came in formulas 5 and 8. To my ears, there are subtle but discernible differences between the formulas.
Read moreThe Most Important Sticking Ever?
Watch any drummer in any situation -- especially during a drum solo -- and you'll probably see a rather ordinary figure. And you'll see it a lot. That's because the sticking is simple, versatile, easily executed, and very effective … and it‘s a lot of fun to play. It's this one: RLL (or LRR if you prefer).
Read moreIs It Time To Come Clean?
If you'd like to get an interesting discussion going with a group of drummers, ask them how often they clean their cymbals. You're bound to get a plethora of opinions, and possibly a few dirty looks
Read moreDo Not Open until Christmas
In case you get bored after opening all your gifts. These were inspired by Pancho Branas.
Read moreComing to Grips with Grips
You’ve no doubt heard about the various alternatives for the lead hand (both hands in the case of matched grip): German, French and American. You may even have gotten into arguments about it. These variations are relevant to tympani and mallet players, but should drum set players be concerned as well?
Read moreShould We Bring Back The Internal Tone Control?
“After the rock heyday of the ‘60s, internal tone controls began to fade away and are now rather hard to find. (A lot of the vintage drums I’ve seen have had them removed -- and too often lost. Contending with ring is always an issue for many drummers, so let's examine the field of available 'damping'* options.”
Read moreTake the 'N' Train
There are some interesting aspects to entrainment. For example, if you set a few metronomes at different tempos and then put them on a surface that can move a bit, the metronomes will entrain to one tempo regardless of the tempo setting (don't know if anyone's tried this with parrots).
Read moreHaving fun with this one
3 over 4 overkill
Read moreThis got me over the hump
I’ve always had a slightly strained relationship with 12/8, so I decided to work on a lot of variants to gain some control. Results turned out to be better than I’d hoped for.
Read moreSimple But Challenging
Here’s a set of exercises for those of us who want to develop faster bass drum technique but don't use a double pedal. I find this type of graduated arrangement yields greater freedom when applying it to music.
Read moreDon't-cha-wanna-dance?
No, actually, I don't. This came into focus for me some years ago. It was one of those wonderful, serendipitous, off-the-cuff remarks that ended up being a defining moment. I was at the wedding of a close relative and one of the bridesmaids came over to me and tried to get me to dance. I politely declined (I’m even less into dancing than I am into singing). Her comeback was rather convincing: “When you hear the music, don’t you just want to get up and dance?” My response was even better: “No, I want to sit down and hit things!”
Read moreis this even a rudiment?
It occurred to me recently that I’d never seen anything on Double Paradiddle-diddles. Don’t even know if they’re a thing, but interesting nonetheless. I started by doing them hand-to-hand.
Read morePutting Your Finger On It - Part 2: The Thumb
My teacher used the expression "Feel the money." It was a reference to using the thumb the way you would to count out paper money. In effect, you use the thumb to help push the stick forward, causing it to arc around the first finger. If you're looking for pinpoint control and articulation on the cymbal, this is the way to do it.
Read morePutting Your Finger On It, Part I - "Regular Grip"
A lot of drum instruction focuses on hand and wrist movement. While it's important to understand these broad strokes, it's also important to look inside hand technique to see what's really going on. Each digit has a role to play in the grip and the stroke, and understanding what each finger is capable of can make a big difference in your playing.
Read moreThe Collector
Strolling Through History - I like to do research, and I can tell you a little bit about each of the drums in my “collection”. Aside from the details of the drums, I've learned a lot about history, culture, tradition ... even economics and interpersonal relationships. It's also broadened my understanding and appreciation of the history and culture behind drums.
More Fun with Stick Control
I like to mix things up with Stick Control. Here I’ve moved the figures to the snare and bass and laid a ‘funk’ ride pattern over top. These can all be played at the same tempo but the feel changes depending on where you put the hi-hat.
The Latin Clave* Demystified
It's difficult these days (maybe even impossible) to turn on a music station and not hear a Latin clave pattern. Dig deeper and you'll find clave rhythms or some derivative just about everywhere: the clave 'clap' of hip-hop, the bossa bass drum in Rosanna, the venerable Bo Diddly beat … it's all clave.
Read moreBeware The Thick Black Line
Consider for a moment the following bits of wisdom:
• At a wine tasting: “We only drink merlot”
• From an online ad for a 16-inch cymbal: “I won't play it 'cuz I only play 18 inch crashes”
• And how about this morsel from years ago: “There’s no place for the saxophone in jazz”
It crops up all the time: the invisible, immovable line that divides the acceptable from the unacceptable.
Read moreWhat Weaker Side?
Hmmm ... there seems to be some sort of problem with this thing called the weaker side. While I agree with the general concept that our non-dominant side is often less adept than our natural side, there are other factors to consider in this issue outside of equality.
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