The possibilities of the “Stick Control” by G. L. Stone are endless. Here’s a drumset application using the exercises 5 to 8 of page 5, to create different grooves based on paradiddles.
The right-hand plays on the ride cymbal and the left hand on the snare with the ghost notes, accenting the 2 & 4. To complete the groove, add the bass drum on 1 & 3 and the accents on the ride bell as shown in the figure below.
Once you’re comfortable, you can add various left-foot hi-hat combinations: on the downbeat, upbeat, and on every eight notes. Practice with different bpm and repeat each bar at least four times.
The next step is to read the pages I-A to V-B of the legendary book “The New Breed” by Gary Chester. You can focus even just on the I-A to II-B exercises, reading with the bass drum and playing also with different hi-hat combinations.
You can play also the right hand on the hi-hat. Don’t forget to “apply” these grooves in a music context, playing along with songs (here’s a suggestion). Improvising with all the 4 paradiddle grooves, moving the accents and orchestrating on the toms, you can develop a groove drum solo. The combinations are endless, in the next weeks I’ll post the second part of this lesson.
If you are interested here you can DOWNLOAD THE PDF of the exercise. Keep on drumming!
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