Drumset quick tuning how to

Never had to tune your drums very, very fast? A video with some good tips on how to fast tune your toms. Click here for fast tuning how to

Correct posture on the drumset with Alexander Tecnique

Wondering how to sit properly behind your shells? Find it here

Learning from the giants: drums transcription Steve Gadd, Billy Cobham, Steve Smith etc…

Learning from the giants is the best way to improve tecnique, musicality and skills, searching for our voice.
Here a pdf file with some trascriptions from drums master, made by one of the best educators, italian drummer Franco Rossi, featuring Steve Gadd, Alex Acuña, Mike Clark, Jeff Porcaro, Peter Erskine, Billy Cobham, Omar Hackim, Alphonse Mouzon, Simon Philips, Steve Smith, Steve Ferrone, Bill Bruford, Ralph Humphrey, Rod Morgenstein, Harvey Mason

GO TO DRUMS TRASCRIPTIONS

Guide to standard drums notation

Drumset scores are not so standardized as other instruments: every drummer, publisher or notation software can decide and declare is own mapping of the drum kit elements to the staff. Drumset itself is different from drummer to drummer, so it’s difficult to standardize the notation.
There are, anyway, some more standard symbols: snare is quite always the c 1 octave higher from the central, cymbals are marked as an “x” and so on.
Percussionist Norman Weinberg is credited for most important attemp to standardize the notatio. His “Guidelines for drumset notation” are used in drums scools and software. Here’s the document: 15 mb .pdf file, but it worth downloading.
Another good drumset notation scheme is on this .pdf document for the Audiograffiti software.
For who use Lilypond to write sheets, the standard and custom percussion staves are discussed in this document.

Some tips on how to improve your sheet music reading skills:
1. Read sheet without music, ‘playing’ voices in you mind and loud
2. Read the sheet while listening the song
3. Read the sheet playing it, without music, on the drumset (with and without click)
4. Play the song and read the sheet

Linear drumming: circles and limb coordination

Using linear drumming (the ‘one beat – one sound’ style) we can practice limb coordination in many ways. We can design simple schemes on the set (circles, x, squares etc) defining schemes that help us to develope independence, coordination and timing.
A first, simple, set of exercises is Linear drumming circles: 4 sounds (one for each limb), a circle played clockwise and counterclockwise where sounds shift from pattern to pattern. A good practice to help our brain to coordinate all those stuff

Download Linear drumming circles (part 1)

Limbs coordination on the drumset

A very interesting article by Mike Mangini, teacher at Berklee college of music, showing how to develope the Clockwise – Counterclockwise limb system. Good to train all body, good to open mind. The system raise control, coordination and independece between the four limb. The article has video and score.

Coordinare gli arti inferiori e superiori sulla batteria, sviluppando l’indipendenza, gli incastri e le combinazioni possibili. In questo articolo di Drumhead Magazine online viene illustrato un interessante sistema basato su rotazioni orarie e antiorarie dei pattern suonati dalle braccia e gambe. L’articolo è corredato di video e partitura.

Stretching before drumming: warmup exercises

On Drumhead Magazine there’s an interesting column on how to avoid injuries in drumming. Column is written by dr. Gregory Werner, chiropractor specialized ‘in assisting professional musicians, entertainers and sports figures’. Good idea to read and, most of all, taking some time for warm up before gigs or practice.

Here’s the article with some stretching exercises for fingers

Double bass drums independence and coordination, part 3. Triplets

Some unisono exercises to pratice the single stroke roll on snare drums and double bass played. Rolls are either alternate and consecutive
Download score : double bass drum independence and coordination, part 4. Triplets
(for other stuff check the double bass drum category)

Per la versione in italiano di questo post

Double bass drum exercises: triplets

A combination of single and double stroke rolls on snare and bass drum, playing triplets and duplets in 8th notes
Download score: double bass drum, part 3
(for other stuff check the double bass drum category)

Per la versione in italiano di questo post

Rudiments warm up: single rolls and paradiddles with flams

I like flams. As much i hated in past. Flams are good in warm-up as they are in execution. Don’t abuse, as usual, ‘cos too much notes are only too much notes and, as great musicians say, “less is better”. But when you’re practicing sometimes “much is better”. I wrote down some basics exercises i like to play on practice pad as well on the snare: rudiments full of flams. Not so hard, just a warm up.

Download Flams games file (.pdf file)

Acciaccature o ‘flams’: si tratta di abbellimenti molto utili dal punto di vista musicale, ma ancora di più nello sviluppo della tecnica delle mani (e della doppia cassa) sia sui tamburi, rullante in particolare, che sul practice pad. Ho trascritto qualche esercizio basilare che mi piace fare come riscaldamento e che propongo agli allievi.

Scarica il Flams games file (.pdf file)