If you think that playing drums merely involve banging the drum every now and then, think again. Playing the drums is not as easy as it looks TV and during concerts. Always remember that playing the drums require timing and skills on your part. Learning these skills will take a lot of time and practice. In fact, many accomplished drummers such as those who are playing in the drums and bugle corps spent hundreds of hours practicing their drumming skills before they were able to perfect their playing.
To learn to play the drums perfectly, it would be a good idea for you to take drum lessons. There are many music schools in the country that are offering drum lessons so you will not really have much problems finding one that is suitable for you. To find the best music schools, ask for referrals from friends and family members who are also into music. If you are still a student, you may also ask your teachers and school administrators for help in finding a good music school. Asking referrals from people that you know is very important because this can give you some ideas on what you can expect from a certain music school. Moreover, since these people know you and care about you, they will be more careful is giving you referrals and will make sure that you get the best education that you need. In event where you do not know anybody who can give your referrals to a good music school, it would be a good idea for you to conduct your own independent research. The library and internet can offer you a wealth on information when it comes to music schools.
When taking drum lessons, it would be a good idea for you to have your own drum set or drum kit. Note that a musician should feel comfortable with his or her own set of musical instruments so it would be best for you to practice using your own drums. Companies like http://Yourdrumset.com are offering a wide variety of drums, musical instruments and accessories such as, drum stand, cymbal stand, hi-hats, drum hardware, series, EX, ELX, masters, bass drum pedal, snare drum, sensitone, tympani, marimbas, chimes, drum sticks, drum thrones, drum racks, African drum, afro percussion, bongo drum and conga drum, so you need not worry about finding the right musical instruments.
Taking your time is choosing your musical instruments. If you are not sure what type of drums is suitable for you, it would be a good idea for you to discuss this matter with your music teacher. You music teacher will have some ideas on what suits you best so do not hesitate to ask him or her about her opinion.
The components of your drum kit may vary greatly from that of any other drummer based upon the genre in which you play as well as your personal preferences and financial resources. Transportation issues may also play a part since you need to have a vehicle large enough to transport the drum set, and the more equipment that you have, the more room it will need for transportation. The venues where you perform may also have a bearing on the components of your set. If you are continually playing small clubs, the stage may not be large enough to accommodate a large number of drum components, so in spite of your genre and personal preferences, you may need to reduce your drum kit out of necessity.
Throughout history, using two bass drums has been a normal part of the drums for jazz bands, but recently many drummers, especially those in the hard rock and heavy medal genres have used dual bass drums. Since the 1980s it has been commonplace for drummers to use electronic drums either individually or as part of a standard drum set. Sometimes cowbells, gongs, tambourines, and other percussion instruments are also utilized in drum kits. A drummer may also have his own personal preferences in spite of those dictated by his genre, and therefore, creating a sound that is slightly different from every other performer in that genre. Some drummers also choose both snares and toms, and though they may not use them on every song, they become part of the drum kit to be utilized whenever needed or desired.
Though genre sometimes indicates the type of drums that are included within a kit, there is no hard and fast rule on it, In fact, even hard and heavy metal bands sometimes tone down a few songs on a CD, and thus the need does not exist for the harder sounds. Even some rock and roll bands from the past who had hard hitting drum sounds occasionally slowed it down through the use of just a bass or snare, allowing the guitars to carry most of the musical sound. After all, when you’re talking about a ballad, you may not want the hard-hitting drum sound, but just a slow beat and occasional cymbal sound is all that is necessary.
The key to knowing what you need in your drum kit is in the type of music you will play, the venues where you will be performing, your budget, and your transportation resources. Personalize your kit based upon what you can transport and the size of the stages where you will perform rather than what you feel you should have or what you want. Even if you can afford it, it’s senseless to buy something you can’t use except for practice.
Learning to play the drums is not as easy as it may seem. If you can’t get yourself to play by ear, then you will need to go through the basics of playing the drums. When you are learning how to play the drums, you need to remember that it is very important to learn about the grooves and beats. However, it is also important to know the rudiments of drum playing.
So, what are the drum rudiments? For starters, you need to keep in mind that this is one of the most important things to learn when you are learning how to play the drums. This is basically the reason why they are called rudiments.
You have to remember that the drum rudiments are the foundation to anything that you will play on the drums. To master the drum rudiments, you will need lots of time and also a lot of practice. Also, after developing a great rudiment technique, you still need to practice it often.
All in all, there are 26 American rudiments. You need to learn the flam, three stroke ruff, flam tap, paradiddle, five stroke roll, and the ratamacue just to name a few. These are just some of the few rudiments that you will use frequently when you are playing the drums. By practicing the drum rudiments, you will gain speed and endurance when playing the drums. Also, they are great for practical use.
When playing the drum rudiments, it is highly recommended that you practice three of them for one week in order for you to master them. On the next week, play another three drum rudiments and practice the three rudiments you mastered a week before, and so on.
Whenever you are practicing the drum rudiments, try to practice them by starting out slow and gradually gain speed when playing them. By practicing the drum rudiments this way, you will be able to condition your hand and also practice in building your vocabulary of the rudiments. Mastering the drum rudiments will enable you to play just about any song you will want to play.
Practicing the drum rudiments will not even require you to practice them on an actual drum set. You can practice them just about anywhere. You can practice them in the office, in your car, in school, and even while you are sitting on the couch watching TV. In fact, you don’t even need to have sticks to practice them. But, practicing with the sticks is much better as you will know how the sticks will feel in your hand when playing the drum rudiments.
Using the drum pad is a great way to practice drum rudiments. It’s not as loud as the real drums, and it is also very portable. The drum pad will also let you feel like you are playing with the real thing.
Always remember that without learning the drum rudiments, there wouldn’t be any drumming. So, by practicing and mastering the drum rudiments, you will eventually have an easier time playing the drums. Remember these tips and you will eventually start playing the drums like a pro in no time at all.
Drum Tips – Dealing with Bass Drum “Creep”
Bass drum creep does NOT refer to the scary guy with the bass drum, it’s the term used to describe the frustrating situation when your kick drum starts sliding further and further away from you with each stroke of your bass drum pedal.
Setting up your kit on a good thick rug or a carpet that the spikes at the end of your bass drum legs can sink their teeth into will generally help keep bass drum creep at bay. (If your bass drum legs don’t have spikes, replace them with ones that do. Any decent drum shop will carry replacement bass drum legs at a reasonable price.)
Make sure your carpet is large enough to fit your whole kit, including your throne. The weight of your body on the throne will help keep the bass drum from sliding away with the whole carpet.
Adjust the bass drum legs so that the front of the drum is an inch or two off the ground and the drum is resting at a slight angle. This shifts more of the drums weight onto the legs themselves and helps the spikes dig in more effectively, which should put an end to most bass drum creep problems.
Sometimes, especially for those of us kicking the drum pretty hard in loud situations, setting up on a carpet is just not enough!
Here is an additional little trick that will END bass drum creep problems.
Take a three foot long 2”x4” piece of wood. I have some nice fabric glued around it to make it look pretty, provide some protection to the drums, and prevent splinters. Now mark your carpet where you want the front of your bass drum to sit. Drill three quarter inch diameter holes through the wood – one hole in the middle and one near each end.
Using some nice, big, 2 inch washers and 1/4 inch thick bolts – actually bolt the wood to your carpet at the front edge of your bass drum. Make sure to put the flattest part of the bolt on the under side of the carpet so that your carpet still lays pretty flat. I also like to put a layer or two of gaffer’s tape over the end of the bolt so that it does not scratch up any nice wooden floors that happen to be underneath the carpet.
Now when you set up just slide the front of the bass drum right up against the piece of wood you have bolted to the carpet, and it will not slide any further!
It works best if you get the wood wide enough that the legs themselves actually bump up against the wood block although it will work fine with the rim of the drum against the wood block – just be sure to cover the wood with foam or thick fabric to prevent the wood from damaging the rim and lugs of your drum!