In this fourth episode, I introduce a new drum fill I developed. The drum fill is based on sextuplets, starting with two notes on the bass drum and moving with an alternate sticking between the floor tom and rack tom. We start off playing the drum fill slowly to memorize the orchestration. Once comfortable, we … More A Fill for Every Season #4
In this third episode I’ll share two drum fills I developed myself, which you can apply in various styles. The drum fills are primarily based on 16th and 32nd notes, starting from the second beat and ending with an accent on the snare at the end of the fourth beat. I arranged the drum patterns … More A Fill for Every Season #3
In this lesson, I introduce a series of exercises to develop coordination and independence. We will apply rudiments to create hand-foot combinations and play jazz comping ideas inspired by Elvin Jones’ drumming style. We start with a preliminary exercise, playing a single stroke roll, double stroke roll, and paradiddle-diddle in 8th note triplets on the … More Jazz Comping Ideas – Hand/Foot Combinations: single, double, paradiddle-diddle
In this quick lesson, I introduce a variation in 16th note triplets of the drum fill idea shared in my previous article A Fill for Every Season #2. Just changing the subdivision, keeping the same sticking, we open up the fill to new applications. Compared to the initial idea in 8th note triplets, we have: … More 16th Note Triplets Drum Fill Idea
Here we are with the second episode of this new series, something I’m sure will inspire you. With the first episode, I shared a drum fill played by Carlos Vega on “Oasis” by Dave Grusin. This time I’m glad to share a drum fill I developed myself, which can be used in a great variety … More A Fill for Every Season #2
The hi-hat is the element of the drum set that with subtle variations and embellishments can greatly affect the groove. Drummers like Stewart Copeland, Jeff Porcaro, Dennis Chambers, and Steve Gadd, to name a few, expanded the rhythmic possibilities of the hi-hat playing timeless grooves. With this lesson we explore the one-handed 16th note hi-hat … More One Handed Hi-Hat 16th Notes – Accents Combinations
Some of the main rhythms in West Africa are based on 6/8 feels and the essential concept of clave. The application of Afro-Cuban 6/8 on the drumset opened the way for new rhythms and ideas, involving coordination, independence, and polyrhythms. With this article divided into two parts, I introduce a lesson to develop your coordination … More Exploring Afro-Cuban 6/8 Vocabulary Using Ted Reed’s Syncopation
Things are not as harder as we think if faced with the right approach. Polyrhythms can drive you to new rhythmic destinations, increase your knowledge, improve your timing, your independence, and inspire you with new ideas. In this lesson I introduce a series of exercises to “displace” the bass drum-snare pattern, a rhythmic solution played … More Groove Displacement – Polyrhythmic Independence 4 over 3
It’s always time to practice, transcriptions can give you new ideas to develop your drumming. Inspired by a drum lick played by Carlos Vega on the drum solo of “Oasis” by Dave Grusin and Lee Ritenour, here’s a drum fill that can be applied in a great variety of styles. Something that will inspire you. … More A Fill for Every Season #1
In the previous post, I talked about creativity in developing the left foot hi-hat to create new rhythmic solutions and grooves. In this article, I’ll show you how to create new grooves starting from rhythmic patterns in 16th notes. The same idea can be applied in 8th notes triplets and odd meters. In this first … More Creating New Grooves on the Drums
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