Tag: drum

The Percussion Circle – Issue #4: All Paradiddle Issue!

James Christian

 

Paradiddles abound in issue #4! Scroll down to read.

This is our summer issue, and it’s all about the paradiddles! As always, the music and articles are free to print and copy. (If you missed previous issues, you can read them here.)

In this issue, every article contains exercises—all centered around the paradiddle family—that can be played individually or as an entire drum line. If you practice diligently, you’ll find that these doing a great job of building your coordination and chops. These would be great for your entire section to practice during the summer.

Be sure to share this issue with students, percussion teachers, and anyone you know who might find it helpful. Enjoy!

Here is issue #4 of The Percussion Circle:

Read more “The Percussion Circle – Issue #4: All Paradiddle Issue!”

The Percussion Circle – Issue #3

James Christian

Spring percussion is in the air!
     The Percussion Circle #3 is in your care.
Enjoy music for marimba and snare;
     If you like it, be sure to share!

It’s our spring percussion issue! (Read previous issues here.) We have some great articles, exercises, and music prepared for you—with some new twists. As always, the music and articles are free to print and copy. Be sure to spread the word far and wide. Share it with students, friends, music teachers, and fellow percussionists!

Please let us know your thoughts on this issue, and don’t forget to order your t-shirt of this issue’s cover! Enjoy!

Here is issue #3 of The Percussion Circle:

Read more “The Percussion Circle – Issue #3”

The Percussion Circle – Issue #2

James Christian1 Comment

 

The second issue of The Percussion Circle is here! (If you missed issue #1, check it out here.) As always, this is free to copy and print. Please share with students, friends, and complete strangers. (Trust us. They’ll appreciate it.) Check out the “Name the Letter Column Contest.” Be sure to order your t-shirt of this issue’s cover. And write to us and let us know what you like, what we can improve, and what you’d like to see in the future.

Last but not least, we wish you a very happy New Year!

Here is issue #2 of The Percussion Circle:

Read more “The Percussion Circle – Issue #2”

How to Play Marching Tenor Drums, part 6 of 7: Cool Stuff You Should Know

James Christian

When I released the first video in this marching tenor drums series, I gave a broad overview of what each video would cover.  I listed video #6 as “Essential Vocabulary.”  But honestly, doesn’t “Cool Stuff You Should Know” have a better ring to it?  Either way, this lesson covers the essential tenor vocabulary not previously covered.  After watching this, you will Read more “How to Play Marching Tenor Drums, part 6 of 7: Cool Stuff You Should Know”

How to Play Marching Tenor Drums, Part 5 of 7: Sweeps & Scrapes

James Christian

It’s time to work on sweeps and scrapes! Check out the newest video:

 

Sweeps, scrapes, split doubles–whatever you prefer to call them, this video breaks them down in detail.  You’ll find a lot here. Learn the differences between adjacent sweeps, non-adjacent sweeps, spock sweeps, outward sweeps, inward sweeps, and push-pull sweeps.  A full transcript of the video is below, along with links to the solos mentioned.

I would really, really like to hear your feedback on this particular video.  I think the terminology descriptions have the potential to revolutionize the Read more “How to Play Marching Tenor Drums, Part 5 of 7: Sweeps & Scrapes”

How to Play Marching Tenor Drums, Part 4 of 7: Crossovers

James Christian

It’s crossover week! Check out the newest video:

This 7-part series becomes more interesting as crossovers–a true staple of tenor drumming–are explored in a variety of ways. This video covers 13 crossover patterns, including a long “Crossover Builders” exercise that goes through all 18 crossover positions.

The “Crossover Builders” exercise and a transcript of the video are included below.  Just a reminder:  If you don’t already have Read more “How to Play Marching Tenor Drums, Part 4 of 7: Crossovers”

How to Play Marching Tenor Drums, Part 3 of 7: Building Fast Singles

James Christian

Today we focus on building fast singles!  In part 1, we covered playing zones and basic movement.  In part 2, we covered basic around patterns.  Now, we build upon this foundation and start Read more “How to Play Marching Tenor Drums, Part 3 of 7: Building Fast Singles”

How to Play Marching Tenor Drums, Part 2 of 7: Around Patterns

James Christian2 Comments

In part 1, we started with general movement principles, and we now come to basic around patterns with standard drum rudiments. This is the material I usually show first-time players on day one (exercises included below).

If you have been playing tenors for any length of time, these patterns should Read more “How to Play Marching Tenor Drums, Part 2 of 7: Around Patterns”

Multi-Tenor Drum Etude #19: “Fibonacci”

James Christian

This “nerdy” tenor solo is dedicated to math geeks everywhere! This is multi-tenor drum etude #19 from The Art of Multi-Tenor Drumming. The main theme is derived from the Fibonacci sequence, and it focuses on developing sweeps, a.k.a. scrapes, around the drums.

Here are the performance notes from the book:

I originally thought of titling the next three etudes Sweep Fest #1, Sweep Fest #2, and Sweep Fest #3. (I ultimately settled on that title for etude #21 alone.) The idea was that each of the three etudes would focus on sweep patterns, but they would increase in difficulty. This idea still generally holds true, but a few ideas came to me based on mathematics, and they lent themselves to sweeps quite well. I think this gives the following etudes a very interesting structure, much more interesting than what I would have created if I was simply trying to write a sweep etude from scratch.

I was reading how the Fibonacci sequence is used in the music of Bartók, Debussy, Satie, and others. This gave me the idea to do a few experiments. The main theme of this etude, Fibonacci, is derived from the Fibonacci number sequence. In short, Read more “Multi-Tenor Drum Etude #19: “Fibonacci””

How to Play 24th Notes, 40th Notes, and More!

James Christian

 

Do you know how to count 24th notes, 40th notes, or 48th notes? James walks you through some terminology that may just revolutionize your understanding of rhythm.  The following is a modified transcript of the video above:

 

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Hello, everybody. This is James Christian with RudimentalUniversity.com.

Today I want to talk about rhythm terminology. Most musicians don’t frequently deal with this particular concept I’m going to discuss, but drummers and percussionists deal with it all the time.

We’re used to whole notes, half notes, quarter, notes, 8th notes, 16th notes, etc.  And we also have tuplet patterns, such as half note triplets, quarter note triplets, 8th note triplets, 16th note triplets, and so forth. In this article, I’m going to talk about the way we discuss tuplet patterns and how we can make it a little bit easier.

This method is especially easier when you’re writing on the Internet and typing.  It also makes your terminology more consistent, regardless of the type of note you’re discussing. When you’re writing, this method will save space, and it’s just a nice shorthand for your terminology.

So here it is… Read more “How to Play 24th Notes, 40th Notes, and More!”