EDGEWOOD HIGH SCHOOL BAND

SPRING 2021
PERCUSSION ONLINE CURRICULUM

Our goal to begin second semester is to continue to work on your individual playing. This is the opportunity to challenge yourself and see a lot of growth.
Percussion is set of instruments with very specific skill sets. My goal is to teach you the percussion vocabulary so that you have the knowledge to figure anything
out.

What do you need?

This packet
Drum Pad
Snare drumsticks (Vic Firth 5A)
Metronome
Search youtube for BPM (any number you need)
Download an app on your phone, my favorite is Pro Metronome and it’s free

The following books were used for class:

Alfred’s Drum Method, Book 1 by Sandy Feldstein & Dave Black
Advanced Percussion Methods by James Yakas
Stick Control for the Snare Drummer by George Lawrence Stone

A few important things to note:

1. Always use your metronome. I will give you a target tempo. Always try slower and faster.
a. If you are having a difficult time with something, slow the tempo down to 60 and work your way back up
2. Some things may seem really easy, but we are laying down really important groundwork.
3. I challenge you to think about playing snare drum differently.
4. Do your best! Most of you know this already, but if you try you’ll be fine!

Snare Drum Concepts:

• Monotone Strokes
• Accent to Tap
• Rolls
• Flams
• Rudiments

1
 DRUM PAD
Step 1 Posture: String on top of your head
Mechanics: Arms, Wrists, Fingers
Arms – paint the fence
Distance from the body, center of torso, lower (a little) than parallel to the ground
Wrists – door knocking
Hand in center of arm, beads less than 1” apart, beads less than 1” from head
Fingers – balance point on stick (hold the stick 1” to 1.5” below), fingers across, keep on contact with stick
Approaching the instrument: Stand tall, go to the instrument, center of body, height of drum (forearms are just below parallel)
Rebound: Play around with looseness to manipulate rebound
Playing Strokes – Monotone Stroke: You are creating the same sound between R & L hands.
Set Position – always to start, 1” from drumhead
Low to Low – let the stick rebound, but keep closer to drum, small wrist movements
High to High – let the stick rebound, using wrist

Quarter Note = 82
• A/B/C: High-High Strokes
• A/B/C: Low-Low Strokes

2
• A/B/C: m. forte, m. dim.
• A/B/C: m. piano, m. cresc.
• D: Start with R hand lead, all R on drum, all L on leg. Make sure your R is even. Switch. To loop play the last beat as a paradiddle.

ASSIGNMENT: RECORD yourself playing 1 A, B, C, & D high-high (2x per line). You should have a metronome on. The camera should be
pointed at your drum pad and hands.
Stay relaxed and focus on wrist movement.

3
Step 2 Paradiddle: para (pair of) diddle (RR or LL) RLRR & LRLL
Quarter Note = 60, 72, 84, 92, 96, 100. How fast can you go?

Accent to Tap: High-Low/Low-High Strokes

Accent starts higher
Metronome = 82

1: Set your left stick at low

and use it as a guide.
Right hand lead then left-
hand lead.
Say out loud: High to Low,
Rest, Low to High, Rest
Say out loud double time:
High to Low, Low to
High, High to Low, Low
to High, etc.
2: Set one stick at low and use
it as a guide.
Right hand lead then left-
hand lead.
3: Play only accents, then add
in all the notes. RH lead
then LH lead.
4: Play right hand on drum
and left hand on leg.
Make sure 8th notes are
even, add in left hand.
Then switch to left hand.

ASSIGNMENT: RECORD yourself playing 1, 2, 3, 4 RH & LH lead (2x per line) & Paradiddles at your fastest comfortable speed.
You should have your metronome on. The camera should be pointed at your drum pad and hands.
Stay relaxed and focus on wrist movement.

Step 3 How to lengthen a note? Flam, Drag, & Roll

Rolls: Illusion of sustain, rhythmic base, & quality ornament (multiple bounces) added to the rhythmic base
4
 Closed = Buzz (multiple bounce)
Wrist for attack, arm for length/sustain, fingers buzz
Allow to bounce as much as possible
1. Metronome = 82. Relax. Start with RH. Go to LH

Open = Double
(two bounces)

Throw
Catch

4.
Metronome = 82, 88, 92, 96. Feel throw catch. You finally get to use your fingers.

ASSIGNMENT: RECORD yourself playing 1 (RH & LH) & 4 (2x per example). You should have your metronome on. The camera should be
pointed at your drum pad and hands. Stay relaxed.

5
Step 4 Flams: Lengthen a note (not too far apart that it sounds like a rhythm, not hitting at the
same time, CHUT).

Flam ready position: one stick at low, one stick at high.

Flam accents:
Quarter Note = 60
• Start with air
movements
(wrist & arm)
• Play just main
sticking
• Play flams

ASSIGNMENT:
RECORD yourself
playing 1 & 2 (2x per
example).
Steps should be: air
movements (say
stickings), main sticking
(say stickings), play
flams.
Quarter note = 60.
Metronome should be
on.
Center camera on
hands and practice
pad.

6
Step 5 Review
• Monotone Strokes: All sound the same, high to high or low to low.

• Accent to Tap: Introduces High to Low and Low to High

7
• Rolls (1. Closed/Buzz vs.
4. Open/Double)

• Flam
Start with air movements (wrist & arms)
Play just main sticking
Play flams

ASSIGNMENT: Choose one of those four that

challenge you (2x through). Make sure you have the
metronome on. Try a few different tempos all around
quarter note = 82.

8
 METRONOME: Quarter Note = 72, 84, 92, 100, 108, 116, 120
Go line by line, make sure right and left sound the same.
Play each line 2 times. If you make a mistake. STOP – count, maybe write in the counts, tap, and play

9
 SOLO REPERTOIRE

METRONOME: Quarter Note = 72, 84, 92, 100, 108, 116, 120

Go line by line, make sure right and left sound the same.

Play each line 2 times. If you make a mistake.

STOP – count, maybe write in the counts, tap, and play.

The notes that are X’s mean hit the rim (on a drum pad, hit the
side of the pad).

The X looking thing means repeat the measure before.

10
 METRONOME: Quarter Note = 72, 84, 92, 100, 108, 116, 120
Go line by line, make sure right and left sound the same.
Play each line 2 times. If you make a mistake. STOP – count, maybe write in the counts, tap, and play

If you have a hard time with the rhythms – COUNT IT OUT LOUD. 1 e + a 2 e + a 3 e + a 4 e + a

11
 SOLO REPERTOIRE

METRONOME: Quarter Note = 72, 84, 92, 100, 108, 116, 120

Go line by line, make sure right and left sound the same.

Play each line 2 times. If you make a mistake

STOP – count, maybe write in the counts, tap, and play.

If you have a hard time with the rhythms –

COUNT IT OUT LOUD.
1e+a2e+a3e+a4e+a

Think about what you see?

Monotone Strokes
High – High
Low – Low
High to Low
Low to High
Accent to Tap
Flams
Rolls
Paradiddles

12
 DRUM PAD
Step 6 Review Monotone Strokes
Metronome Quarter Note = 82
Check out the last beat (Paradiddle to
get you to alternate R to L or L to R).

Sticking: This uses

alternated sticking
based off of the 1e+a
shell. Example if we
assume # and + are
R, e/a are L. If we
switch to L lead, #
and + are L, e/a are
R.

ASSIGNMENT:
RECORD yourself
playing 2 & 3 (2x per
example). You
should have your
metronome on. The
camera should be
pointed at your drum
pad and hands. Stay
relaxed.

13
Step 7 Review Accent to Tap (High to Low, Low to High)
What makes the accent?

Metronome quarter note = 82 (or you can slow it down more 72)
You are going to move before you play this
1. Left foot on 1 and 3
2. Right foot on 2 and 4
3. Count with your voice
4. Clap for only accents
Do steps 1-3, but this time play on the drum pad edge
PLAY!

14
Metronome quarter
note = 82 (or you can
slow it down more 72)

You are going to move

before you play this
1. Left foot on 1
and 3
2. Right foot on
2 and 4
3. Count with
your voice
4. Clap for only
accents
Do steps 1-3, but
this time play on the
drum pad edge
PLAY

ASSIGNMENT: RECORD
yourself playing #8A&B
(2x per example). You
should have your
metronome on. The
camera should be
pointed at your drum
pad and hands. Stay
relaxed.

15
Step 8 Review Rolls: Closed/Buzz vs. Open/Double

This is
helping you
gain the
mobility to
play
doubles.
These are
the
beginning of
open stroke
rolls.

8 is showing the difference. The slash and 2 dots are showing that they want an open/double stroke roll. The double slash is the buzz stroke roll.
We can all buzz and have probably been using buzzes to roll. Open/Double rolls are going to challenge all of us! Metronome quarter = 72/76

16
Buzz = double
slash
Diddle =
single slash &
two dots

The first two measures are how you would count the buzzes. Anytime you have a roll, you subdivide sixteenth notes. Try this with open (double)
and closed (buzz) rolls.

ASSIGNMENT: RECORD yourself

playing #9 (2x through). Your
metronome on. Start at 72 and if
you need to slow it down or speed it
up you can. You might need to
rewrite in which are double bounces
and which are buzzes.

17
Step 9 REVIEW: Flams

Metronome
Quarter note = 82 (if you
need to slow it down, try 72
or 60.)

Step One: Air Movements

Step Two: Only play the main

sticking

Step Three: Play the flams

They should be one

movement and should sound
like “CHUT.”

If you are having a difficult

time with any line. Break it
down to a few notes at a
time and find a pattern.

18
Note-Flam-Drag-Ruff

Step One: Air Movements

Step Two: Only play the main sticking

Step Three: Play the flams & drags.

A drag is a flam with a (2) buzz OR a double

bounce on the closer stick.

A ruff is a flam with a (3) buzz OR fast

alternative strokes on the closer stick.

Notice there are a few different sticking for a

ruff.

ASSIGNMENT: RECORD yourself playing #4 &

#6 (2x per example). You should have your
metronome on. The camera should be
pointed at your drum pad and hands. Stay
relaxed.

19
 Understanding Rolls

We already learned that all rolls can

be open (double) or closed (buzz).

Each roll will have a rhythmic

base or a subdivision.

The last note is not rolled, it is

one note. Also notice that it is
accented.

Notice which correspond, they

are in the same order.

20
 Rudiments

The Percussive Arts Society chose 40 rudiments as

the 40 National rudiments.

They are in the follow categories:

Rolls
Diddles
Flams
Drags

Here are a few common ones with them broken

down.

21
 ROLLS

Read through the Roll. Is this teaching open (double) or

closed (buzz) rolls?

Do you usually play with open or closed rolls?

I always play with closed rolls and just learned that open
rolls exist. It is very difficult to build that throw-catch in
your hand. It requires repetition!

They are both used, but it depends on the situation.

22
 MORE ROLLS

5 Stroke Roll vs. 9 Stroke Roll

Notice that you are subdividing the 16th notes.

Try all closed as open and closed.

METRONOME: Quarter Note = 72, 84, 92, 100, 108, 116, 120

23
 SOLO REPERTOIRE

METRONOME: Quarter Note = 72, 84, 92, 100, 108, 116, 120

Go line by line, make sure right and left sound the same.

Play each line 2 times. If you make a mistake

STOP – count, maybe write in the counts, tap, and play.

If you have a hard time with the rhythms –

COUNT IT OUT LOUD.
1e+a2e+a3e+a4e+a

Think about what you see?

Monotone Strokes
High – High
Low – Low
High to Low
Low to High
Accent to Tap
Flams
Rolls
Paradiddles

24
 SOLO REPERTOIRE

METRONOME: Quarter Note = 72, 84, 92, 100, 108, 116, 120

Go line by line, make sure right and left sound the same.

Play each line 2 times. If you make a mistake

STOP – count, maybe write in the counts, tap, and play.

If you have a hard time with the rhythms –

COUNT IT OUT LOUD.
1e+a2e+a3e+a4e+a

Think about what you see?

Monotone Strokes
High – High
Low – Low
High to Low
Low to High
Accent to Tap
Flams
Rolls
Paradiddles

25
 SOLO REPERTOIRE

METRONOME: Quarter Note = 72, 84, 92, 100, 108, 116, 120

Go line by line, make sure right and left sound the same.

Play each line 2 times. If you make a mistake

STOP – count, maybe write in the counts, tap, and play.

If you have a hard time with the rhythms –

COUNT IT OUT LOUD.
1e+a2e+a3e+a4e+a

Think about what you see?

Monotone Strokes
High – High
Low – Low
High to Low
Low to High
Accent to Tap
Flams
Rolls
Paradiddles

26