Learn How to Read Drum Quarter Notes

Drum quarter notes are a fundamental building block in drum beats for any drummer. They are the smallest unit of time that can be counted in a bar of music and they lay the foundation for counting other rhythmic sub-divisions like eighth notes and sixteenth note triplets. Drummers usually use the same symbols to notate a note, rest or articulation and as a result learning to read drum music is relatively easy for most drummers.

One of the first things you will notice is that each drum note has a proper circle note head and others have small Xs or other symbols. The proper circle note head signifies a drum and the Xs or other symbols represent cymbals. These symbols are used to convey different things about the note such as its duration, articulation or that it is tied together with another note (more on this later). It is helpful for beginners to use associations early on when learning drum notation. For example, the word “pizza” is often used to help remember what an eighth note looks like.

The next thing you will notice is that the drum quarter note is solid in the measure and other notes have a stem coming up from them. It is important to understand how these notes relate to each other in terms of the overall tempo or beat of the music. The simplest way to do this is by choosing a tempo that you want to work with and counting the quarter notes in unison with the click of your metronome. For most drummers this will be in 4/4 time, where each bar is four counts long and the downbeat is on one.

If you want to work on a quicker tempo, try a shuffle feel in 2/4 time, where the downbeat is on two and four. This will make it easier to hear the underlying pulse of the music. You can also use a metronome to work on other types of beats such as 6/8 time or funk style grooves in 34 time.

Eventually you will start to see that some notes have no stem or flag and these are known as rests. The rest symbol simply means to be silent for the same length of time as a quarter note. If there is a rest at the end of a line, then it is important to play that bar in unison with the metronome and the other bars following it.

Eighth notes have their own special symbols and these are used to indicate certain articulations. For example, a slash through the stem of an eighth note indicates that it should be played with a bounce, while a double slash signifies a buzz or closed roll. In addition, if an eighth note is to be played with a short stroke it should be written with a ‘z’, while longer rolls are noted with a ‘x’.

There are other more complex articulations that can be used but for the purposes of this article we will focus on the basic quarter note rhythms that are commonly found in most music. As you progress in your drumming career it will become more useful to learn more about the many nuances that can be added to these simple beats to add more character and interest to your music.