Tag: bass drum

Percussion Magazine: The Percussion Circle – Issue #1

James Christian2 Comments

We have been promising some big things for a while now. Well, this one is pretty exciting! We are now regularly publishing a percussion magazine. Allow us to introduce… (drum roll, please)… The Percussion Circle!

Each issue is full of sheet music, exercises, practice tips, contests, and more! This magazine is being released completely free to the entire percussion world. It is especially designed as a resource for percussion instructors and their students, but there is enough material to keep any percussionist happy for many hours.

Videos of the exercises in the articles will gradually be released after publication, so check back frequently. Better yet, subscribe to our e-mail list and follow our social media channels to make sure you never miss any updates.

To view the magazine in full screen, use the viewer below. Click on the square in the bottom right corner. You can zoom in and out from there. You can also print copies for your convenience. (This feature is currently only available on Chrome browsers. We are looking to expand this option.)

Finally, we want to give a special thank you to Keiser Southern Music and HingeStix for their efforts in making this first issue possible. Please show them some appreciation and visit their sites. (If you want to advertise with us, send an e-mail to advertise@rudimentaluniversity.com, and we will send you the details.)

Without further ado, here is the very first issue of The Percussion Circle: Read more “Percussion Magazine: The Percussion Circle – Issue #1”

New Section for Drum Line Cadences – Downloadable Sheet Music

James Christian

A new cadence section has been created in the Free Stuff section at the top of the page.  Check out these new cadences posted for your listening and playing enjoyment.  More will be added in the future, but here are three to get you started.

Some of the cadences are free, and some of them cost a little bit. Overall, we want to keep these affordable and accessible for any drum line that wants to play them. Generally speaking, the free ones have a simple structure and are just fun to play. The ones available for purchase are a little more involved and took more effort to create. If you like this site and the music, please consider supporting it through purchasing one of the cadences. Thanks!

Great White – FREE

Great White drum cadence

Difficulty: 2.5 – This catchy cadence gets faster and faster on each repetition. This requires some control on accented singles, 6-stroke rolls, and syncopated 16th note rhythms. It should be accessible for an average high school or good junior high drum line.

Click here to download as a PDF.

 

Rocky Beat – FREE

Rocky Beat drum cadence

Difficulty: 1.5 – This simple cadence consists of a three-measure groove followed by a four-count solo, each time performed by a different drum line member. The solos here are just examples. They can be easy or difficult. It’s a fun opportunity to show off some improvisation and creativity! The snare line needs to be able to play a basic rock groove, which requires a little bit of independence coordination between each hand, but it should be fairly quick to learn for most percussionists who have been playing for at least a year. This cadence should be accessible for an average junior high drum line. (A high school can also have fun with it by making the solos flashier and harder!)

Click here to download as a PDF.

 

Bad bASS – $4.97

Bad bASS cadence

 

Difficulty: 4.5 – You may recognize this cadence as the “soundtrack” for many other videos on this site. It starts confidently with a hard-thumping bass groove and showcases some fun feature moments for every section. The snare and tenors need to be able to play their flam rudiments. Flam taps, pataflaflas, and flamacues are just some of the rudiments you’ll encounter. The bass line has split 16th note triplets and 32nd notes, some syncopated 16th notes splits, and double stroke rolls in the top two parts. The recording features five bass drums, but an alternative four-bass part is included with the purchase. (If you have six bass drums, just double the bottom part.) The cymbal part is written for two or more players, but one person can combine the parts if needed. This cadence has drive. It has attitude. It’s bad a$$. This cadence should be accessible for an average college or good high school line.

Click here to purchase.

Three Ways to Use Tempo When Practicing Music

James Christian

 

Struggling with speed, accuracy, or pulse?  James describes three ways you can use different tempos to maximize your practice sessions. The following is a transcript of the video above (slightly reworded for readability):

 

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Hello, everyone.  This is James Christian with RudimentalUniversity.com. Today I would like to talk about three different ways you can use tempo to help you when practicing a piece of music.

I’ve been thinking about this topic for a while, and this last week several ideas came together.  I Read more “Three Ways to Use Tempo When Practicing Music”

Bass Drum Splitting Exercise: 12 Bucks

James Christian
Click on the image to enlarge…
…or click here to download in PDF format.

 

This fun bass exercise can be played with the snare and tenor exercises posted yesterday, or it can stand alone as a good splitting workout for five players.  As the title indicates, there are 12 sections, and each has a specific focus:

  • Sections 1-2:  Unison one-handed accented 8th notes.  Focus on maintaining a clear distinction between accents and taps.  Keep your taps controlled and close to the drum.  Make sure your accents are strong, not wimpy.  Matching stick heights and angles will help in staying together.
  • Sections 3-4:  Unison alternating accented 16th notes.  This should follow the exact same technique as sections 1-2, except the opposite hand is now “filling in” the 16th notes.  All taps should be consistently at the same height and volume.  Keep the accents strong and the taps consistently softer.
  • Sections 5-6:  Split 8th note patterns.  Focus on precise note placing.  Mentally subdividing the beat is essential.
  • Sections 7-8:  Split 16th note patterns.  Make sure the 16th notes are placed exactly in time, so that the transitions from player to player are smooth.
  • Sections 9-10:  Split 16th note triplet patterns.  Once again, take care to maintain precise note spacing.  Be careful not to “crush” or “stretch” the triplets.
  • Sections 11-12:  Split 32nd note patterns.  As the note speed increases, technique becomes even more important.  Maintain control without becoming rigid.  Stay relaxed without becoming sloppy.  Take care to achieve clarity on every single note.

Happy splitting!

Drum Set Exercise: Triplet Limb Independence #2

James Christian
Click on the image to enlarge or click here to download in PDF format.

It’s coordination time again!  In our last drum set exercise, we focused on different limb combinations with triplets.  This week, we take the same concept further and increase the coordinative complexity a bit.  (Note:  This assumes a traditional kit setup, in which the ride cymbal and bass drum are played with the right hand and right foot respectively, and the snare drum and hi-hat are played with the left hand and left foot respectively.  Adjust this exercise to work the same concepts according to your setup.)

Measures 1-2: triplets in left hand and left foot (3 notes each), quarter notes in right hand and right foot (lead with hand)

Measures 3-4: triplets in right hand and right foot (3 notes each), quarter notes in left hand and left foot (lead with hand)

Measures 5-6: triplets in left hand and left foot (3 notes each), quarter notes in right foot and right hand (lead with foot)

Measures 7-8: triplets in right hand and right foot (3 notes each), quarter notes in left foot and left hand (lead with foot)

Measures 9-12: repeats the previous patterns of measures 1-4 with triplets alternating single strokes between limbs

Measures 13-16: repeats measures 9-12, except the order of hand and foot is reversed on the single stroke triplets

Measures 17-18: a “tag” ending to wrap it up

Measures 19-36: the entire exercise repeats with the opposite side leading (right hand becomes left hand and vice versa, right foot becomes left foot and vice versa)

Between this exercise and the previous exercise, just about every combination is covered.  If you can play both exercises smoothly and consistently, your coordination will increase significantly.

Holiday Percussion: “The Nutcracker” & “Frosty the Snowman” (University of North Texas)

James Christian

All this week, we are featuring percussion arrangements of Christmas and holiday music.  These two performances by the drum line and percussion ensembles at the University of North Texas are from a December 2016 concert.  Enjoy music from “The Nutcracker” and “Frosty the Snowman.”

 

Bass Drum Splitting Exercise: Triplet Split Patterns

James Christian
5 players
To view the exercise, click on the image to enlarge or click here to download in PDF format.
4 players
To view the exercise, click on the image to enlarge or click here to download in PDF format.
3 players
To view the exercise, click on the image to enlarge or click here to download in PDF format.
2 players
To view the exercise, click on the image to enlarge or click here to download in PDF format.

This exercise has been tailored for different bass line sizes—2 players, 3 players, 4 players, or 5 players.  (If you have a larger bass line, simply take the version for 5 players and have two players double one of the parts.)

It covers numerous combinations of sixteenth note triplet split patterns, a skill all bass lines must master.  The constantly shifting patterns will keep everyone on their toes.  I would recommend practicing each two-measure pattern (indicated by the double bar lines) separately at first.  Play each two-measure pattern over and over until your whole section has it down.  Once you have each pattern down smoothly, practice the entire exercise from start to finish.

When practicing, be careful to maintain correct note spacing.  Usually players tend to err on the side of spacing the triplets too tightly (crushing them), and extra care must be taken to space each note evenly.  Sometimes players overcompensate and spread the notes too widely, so be careful to avoid the opposite error as well.  Use a metronome to help with pulse control.  If possible, get someone with good timing to listen to the exercise and give feedback.  If your line works it up, feel free to post a video and link to it in the comments section below.

Happy splitting!

Drum Set Exercise: Triplet Limb Independence

James Christian
Click on the image to enlarge or click here to download in PDF format.

This triplet-based exercise is a great test of your independence between limbs.  Triplets are constantly trading off between two limbs while the other two limbs are keeping steady quarter notes.

Measures 1-2: triplets in hands (3 notes each), quarter notes in feet

Measures 3-4: triplets in feet (3 notes each), quarter notes in hands

Measure 5-6: triplets in right hand and left foot (3 notes each), quarter notes in right foot and left hand

Measures 7-8:  triplets in right foot and left hand (3 notes each), quarter notes in right hand and left foot

Measures 9-16: repeats the previous patterns with triplets alternating single strokes between limbs

Measures 17-18:  a “tag” ending to wrap it up

Measures 19-36: the entire exercise repeats with the left side leading instead of the right

A lot of combinations are covered here.  Have fun with this one.  Check back in two weeks for Triplet Limb Independence #2!

Drum Set Exercise: Bass Drum 16th Patterns

James Christian1 Comment

drum-set-0001-bd-16thsClick on the image to enlarge or click here to download in PDF format.

This exercise takes a basic rock groove and goes through all 15 possible 16th note-based patterns on the bass drum.  For beginning players, you should play each measure several times in a row until you have it down solidly.  This will help you build a strong sense of 16th note timing on the bass drum.  For more experienced players, this exercise will serve as good practice for changing bass patterns quickly.

The final line serves to give a satisfying conclusion to the exercise.  The final three beats are written with slash notation.  You can either give yourself a rest or create your own fills as you repeat the exercise.

To make this exercise groove, it’s essential to keep steady time.  The final few measures are certainly the most difficult, so it’s important that you do not start the exercise too fast—or your foot will struggle to keep up at the end.  Pay careful attention to keeping every note in alignment.  Ultimately, each measure should groove, and you should have fun with it!

Bass Drum Splitting Exercise: Shifting Paradiddles

James Christian

bass-0001-shifting-pima-paradiddlesTo view the exercise, click on the image to enlarge or click here to download in PDF format.

So far this week, we have had exercises for snare drum and keyboard percussion.  They have all been variations on the “Shifting (P.I.M.A.) Paradiddles” exercise.  Today we come to the bass drum variation.  (It can be played by as few as two people or expanded to work for any size line.)  The acronym in the title—P.I.M.A.—stands for:

Paradiddle — Inverted paradiddle — Mill — Alternating quad

Of course, a standard paradiddle has the sticking RLRR LRLL.  An inverted paradiddle is like starting on the second note of a paradiddle: LRRL RLLR. A mill (think “single flammed mill” without the flams) is like starting on the third note:  RRLR LLRL.  Finally, an alternating quad is like starting on the fourth note:  RLRL LRLR.  (Of course, this final set is like a quadruple grouping of singles, simply alternating the starting note.  Hence its name.)

In this variation, two players go back and forth between a basic 16th note check pattern and then split these different P.I.M.A. patterns.  The first time through is all on the right hand.  On the repeat, it should be played off the left hand.  The best way to practice is with a metronome.  Take it slowly, carefully subdivide the 16th notes, and focus on playing the rhythms smoothly with an absolutely steady pulse.

Tomorrow we will feature a variation on this exercise for timpani!