Drums And Drumming

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Learn how to play the drums. Right NOW.

It's not all that hard. You just need to know the parts of the drum, what they do, follow these simple tutorials and practise, practise, practise!

Parts of the Drum kit 


A five-piece drum kit usually consists of the following: Snare, Bass Drum (aka Kick Drum), Tom Toms: usually two mounted toms and a Floor Tom.

In addition to this you have cymbals: HiHats, Crash, Ride, Splash (not shown in this illustration).

Drums 

The Snare drum is the one that gives the CRACK or SHOT in a song. The Kick drum gives the very bassy BOOM which sits at the bottom of a beat. The Toms are usually used for a fill and the average five-piece kit has two mounted toms and a Floor Tom.

Extra drums can be added to a kit depending on the style you are playing, whats sort of sounds you're after and if your budget allows it.

You might add an extra Kick drum so you have a Double Bass Kit. Or a cheaper alternative (depending on the brand of drums) is to get a Double Kick Pedal. Though Double Kick Pedals are regarded as Hardware.

You can add more toms to your set up whether they are mounted or if they are floor standing. If you get a rack (see hardware) you can attach extra or all of the toms to the rack. You can also mount toms with brackets onto cymbal stands.

 

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Cymbals 

The average starting kit has HiHats, a Crash cymbal and Ride cymbal. Though depending on the price of the kit you may have only got what is known as a Crash/Ride which is a cross between the two.

Different sized cymbals and thicknesses give different sounds. So you could have a 14 inch Crash and 16 inch Crash and they won't sound the same. But even two 16 inch Crashes will have variations depending on the thickness. Different cymbal makers too have differences in sound quality.

Starting out you'd only want one Ride on your set up. It should be quiet heavy and thick.

You could have one or two Crash cymbals, preferably very different in sound from each other.

A Splash cymbal gives a very nice splashing sound (as the name suggests) and the smaller the better for one of these. Splashes are not as overpowering as Crashes and give a nice colour to even the simplest of beats without getting too fancy.

The China Boy is an odd shaped cymbal which is quite loud when hit properly. Best used for big gigs and a large stage. Fellow musicians tend to hate the overpowering effect it has on their ear drums, so use it sparingly.

There are plenty of other odd shapes and hybrids that Cymbal Manufacturers develop in the pursuit of new and exciting sounds as well as greater profits.

Think long term so consider buying a cymbal as an investment. It is better to buy one good quality cymbal than two or there cheap ones. Cheap won't last, and you can hear the difference. Quality costs, but provided the cymbals are used properly and not abused they will last you forever. And when you upgrade to a new bigger or better kit you can just take your cymbals with you.

Hardware 

Cymbal stands are regarded as hardware. So too are snare stands, racks, pedals, brackets or anything that's usually attached or free standing or holds things or is shiny, and therefore wanted by drummers who are nothing more than collectors of expensive equipment.

Stands come as braced and double braced. Double braced stands are sturdier and less likely to break. Stands also stand up straight or have a boom (example must be shown).

The drum stool (aka The Throne). It's best to have a good sturdy and solid throne because your comfort is important.

Percussion 

Drummers are also percussionists and can add things like shakers, clave and hand drums to their collection of colours and sounds. Some can be mounted as a part of your set-up, but that is up to the drummers discretion and what its function is for.

Drumsticks 

Made of wood and with a tip that is part of the turned stick or a nylon tip glued on. Drumsticks come in different lengths, diameters, weights and woods. It's good to start with a just a few and find what you are most comfortable with. Your collection will grow as you try different drumming styles and techniques. It's also a good idea to buy a set of brushes.

Drumsticks break, but don't purposely set out to destroy a set of sticks, because if you aren't using them right you will also damage cymbals, drum skins, the shells and even yourself.

Drum Lesson: Drum Tab 

The following is not an official standard or an approved way to transcribe drum music. But it is the best way that I can think of for a beginner to understand the parts of the drum kit and what to hit and when.

I shall call it the "Squidoo Drumming Method".

In the early stages we are only concerned with the parts of the drum kit that will allow us to hold a steady beat. The use of toms in the latter stages is for fills. Usually used to connect one part of the song to another (eg: when going from a songs verse to a chorus).

Complex beats can also be accomplished with toms but they can only attempted once a person has a firm grasp and feel for the simplest of beats on the barest of equipment.

Here are the parts of the drums we will be using and the abbreviation that I use in the Drum Tabs...

C = Crash Cymbal
Rd = Ride Cymbal
H = HiHat Cymbal
S = Snare
B = Bass

Here are the parts of your anatomy that you will use when playing the beats...

* = right hand
x = left hand
o = right foot

For the purpose of these tutorials you will use your left foot to hold down the Hi Hat cymbal. You may leave it a little bit loose for a fuller sound, but for now don't go using your left leg, train it to sit still.

Drum Lesson: The Beat, and a Bar 

We have four beats to the bar. Here are four bars of four beats. Try it while counting to yourself.



The simplest of beats can be transcribed to one line, however when adding variations such as a crash, an extra kick or snare might come in on bar 3 or 4.

It is a good idea to follow the music while playing, so you can get used to reading by sight, before you attempt to play the beat from memory. But alternate between the two when you are following one of the transcribed exercises.

In the upcoming exercises do one, all the way through, for as many times as you see fit. Then try the other.

Or do one until you can do it really well, then doing it from memory until you get that right too.

The author of this lens playing a half sized drum kit

Quick Test: Where is the beat sitting on the bar? 

On this next illustration we have a HiHat on the 4th beat in the 2nd bar.

We also have a Snare on the 3rd beat in the 3rd bar.

What is the beat and bar for the Bass Drum?

What is the beat and bar and the name of that part of the drum for the last example?

Cheap Alternative... 

But by the looks of it, these would be perfect for using with the lessons I've written.
MiJam Drummer

MiJam Drummer

Amazon Price: $39.99 (as of 07/10/2009) Buy Now

Now onto the Drum Lessons! 

So you've read all this? Excellent.

Now on to Lesson One!