LEARN TO PLAY THE DRUM SET by PETER MAGADINI This book is dedicated in memory of Carl Elmer. INTRODUCTION ‘study the drums, you’ve chosen an instrumem that is €x- tremely versatile and one that is heard almost daily by Back cover photo by: Joyce Woo drum sey in the shostest amount of time and will ‘Plain how the drum set functions in many styles of con- temporary music. In addition to learning the basics of reading and improvisation, you'll also learn the coordina- tion of hands and feet. .all in a practical but fun-filled manner. So, if you're learning on your own or with the help of a teacher, the results will be an exciting and reward- ‘ing musical experience. T: book was written to teach you the basics of the CONTENTS 2 THE DRUM SET Basic Four Piece Setup 3 Basic Five Piece Setup 4 TUNING (TENSIONING) THE DRUM SET 5 ARRANGING YOUR SET 6 THE PRACTICE PAD ‘THE DRUMSTICK 7 HOLDING THE STICKS The Conventional Grip ‘The Matched Grip 8 STARTING TO PLAY Exercise For The Hands 10 SOME BASIC MUSIC ELEMENTS The Staff Tite Values Reste 11 Bar Lines And Measures The { Time Signature outing And The Single Stroke Repeat Signs 39 Quareess And Eighths 14 PLAYING AROUND THE SET 16 EIGHTH NOTE PATTERNS ON THE DRUM SET Rock Pattern in { Time 17 A“Fifties” Sigle Rock Pattern 18 Rock Pattem With The Bass Drum In Eighth Notes 19 A “Motown” Rhythm And Blues Beat 20 “Disco” Beat 21 Bass Drum On The Upbeats 22 Playing A Drum 23 THE DOUBLE STROKE ROLL ‘The Open Roll 24 SIXTEENTH NOTES {© 1960 HAL LEONARD PUBLISHING CORPORATION Made a USA. Talemationl Copyright Secured AIRS Reserved 25 ‘Sixteenths And The Drum Set 27 Bighth And Sixteenth Combination Strokes On The Snare Drum 2 SIXTEENTH AND EIGHTH NOTE ROCK PATTERNS, ‘A “Funk" Pattern With Sixteenth Notes On The Bass Drum 29 A “Funk’” Pattern With Eighth Note Upbeats On The Bass Drum 30 Double Time Sixteenth Note Pattern On The Bass Drum 31 ‘'Salsa’” Feel Bass Drum Pattern 32 A Drum Fill In Sixteenth Notes 33 THE TRIPLET 34 THE RIDE CYMBAL AND Jazz (SWING) Basic Drum Set Jazz Swing Paucern in ¢ Time 36 The Shuffle Rhythm “Kansas City” Shuffle 37 INDEPENDENCE AND THE RIDE CYMBAL 49 Counisy "Two Beat” Swing Pattem 41 Nashville Country Rock 42 A Drum Fill In Triplets Slow Blues Beat 49 Slow Blues Beat With A Sixteenth Note Fill 44 VALUABLE SNARE DRUM RUDIMENTS The Flam The Closed Roll Or Buzz Roll 45 The Five Suroke Rall 46 THE PARADIDDLE USING THE HIHAT CYMBALS AEP a eearsvensingcarpratin 777 We Ba Ri 0, HE MSTHE BASIC FOUR PIECE SETUPSL.92 More recently, many drum authorities (myself included) consider an added tenor tom-tom mounted on the other side of the bass drum as a contemporary basic set-up. BASIC FIVE PIECE SETUP ‘crash Many drums {including an additional bass drum) can be added to a basic set-up. However, it's my opinion that adding drums at a later stage of development is much less of @ problem once you learn to ‘master. various techniques on a basic set-up. Therefore, ve designed the contents of this book to generally apply to either the basic four piece or basic five piece drum set. two tenorTUNING ennonins HE DRUM S Drums are not actually cuned to a specific pitch. If they were, they’d have to be retuned with each different piece or even every change of chord. They are tuned (some drummers prefer the term tensioned) so that the drums being played range from higher to lower without emphasis being placed on actual pitches. ‘The following instructions explain how to tune the bass drum. The same procedure should be followed for all the other drums. Keep in mind that the ¢om-toms are tensioned so they sound from high to low as you move from left to right while playing. The snare drum, as a rule is tensioned tighter than the bass drum and the tom-toms. Clockwise, work your way around the drum turning each tuning rod a few times. Do this until the head becomes evenly tensioned all the way around (there should be no ripples anywhere on the surface). You may also gain the same results by criss-cross tuning. When the head is sufficiently tight, take one hand and put it palm down in the middie of the drum head. Place the other hand on top and press firmly on the head with both hands. Do not be disturbed if you hear a cracking or popping sound. This is merely the new head adjusting itself to the added tension. Once this is done, the head will hold the tension consistently wherever you set it. This is called seating the head. As stated previously, the same procedure should be followed on sll drum heads.an Qu Now that you've tuned your drums, it will be necessary to set them up so that you can achieve the maximum results with the minimum amount of motion. Since no two drummers are the same shape or size, here are some simple suggestions to follow: Adjust your seat so that your legs are straight out from your hips and are parallel to the floor. Your knees should be bent at approximately a 90° angle and your feet should feel comfortable on the pedals. (Your left foot should be on the hi-hat pedal and your right foot on the bass drum foot pedal.) ‘The snare drum should be directly in front of you and approximately belt buckle high. The tenor tom-tom should be above and to the left of the snare drum. It should be tilted downward toward the snare drum at a 40° angle. NOTE: If two tenor tom-toms are used, the second one should also tilt toward the ‘snare drum. The floor tom should be placed as close as possible to your bass drum leg and just @ bit lower than the height of the snare drum. ‘The hi-hat cymbals should be set 6 to 10 inches higher than the snare drum. The space ‘between the hi-hat cymbals should be approximately 1/2 to 1 inch. The stands which hold the ride cymbal and crash cymbal should be placed as closely to the set as possible and approximately 6 to 12 inches above the tenor tom-toms. The cymbals should tilt a bit toward the snare drum head. They must be close enough to reach with ease but not so close that they interfere with the sticks as you maneuver around the set‘The practice pad and the practice pad set are logical substitutes for the real thing. In many cases, practice on the live set is impractical or impossible due to the close proximity of neighbors and family. Therefore, a Practice pad set may be a necessary Practicing tool depending. upon your own personal situation The drumstick is your tool. Without it, drum set playing as we know it would be impossible. If possible, 1 suggest you get some professional help in picking out the proper drumsticks for your hand, If no professional help is available, try to find drumsticks of a medium weight. Roll the sticks on the countertop to make sure they are not warped. A straight stick is an absolute requirement for maximum playing results.HOLDING THE STICKS ‘The first decision you have to make as a new drummer is which grip to use to hold the sticks. There are two. . the Conventional grip (also called the over and under grip) and the Matched grip. Following is an explanation of both. ‘The Conventional Grip In this grip the right hand (the opposite if you're left handed) is held with the thumb and index finger holding the stick just behind the lettering which appears on it. Think of a pin going through the thumb, stick, and index finger in a straight line and the stick pivoting at that point, ‘The other fingers all gently rest om the stick and follow the motion of the drumstick. With the Conventional grip the right hand moves from the sérist in an up and down motion, With the left hand, the stick fs held at the point where the thumb and index finger join the hand, The top two fingers (index and middle) rest over the toy of the stick while the remaining two fingers are under the stick. he hurl is positioned over the stick and gently rests on the Index finger. With the Conventional grip the left wrist moves much the same as when you turn a Soorkneb. The Matched Grip The other popular grip is the matched grip. With this grip, both hands are held like the right hand arip (described in the conventional grip copy). ‘There are two distinct advantages to the matched rip: (I) both hands are held exactly the same and require only one wrist motion; (2) many ‘drummers find it easier to maneuver around the drum set. Try both grips. Choose the one that seems to fit you the best.