Hey
- if you are a veteran drum instructor - this thread is for you.
- if you have just started teaching someone to play - this thread is for you.
- if you have never taught anyone to play, but you have some good ideas - this thread is for you!

Some of my favorites (that tend to help out younger students, especially)

1. Having the student learn to count out loud - after a while, it becomes second nature (and can be transferred to the head lol)

2. Learning to hold the sticks not too tight, or too loose - a lot of beginners tend to tense up when they have to play a fast or difficult passage - this alleviates that problem.

3. Watching out for that pinky finger - it has a tendency to point straight out from the stick on the non-dominant hand - I've noticed this especially on rolls/bounces.

Anybody else have any tips/tricks that you'd like to share?

Update: This website was suggested by one of the members here at music4drums. . .it teaches some musical concepts/ideas, and may be helpful for students (or instructors). http://jakemandell.com/

Basic snare rudiments, triplets, quadruplets, flams, the one with the fast double stick hit on off-hand to the main stick beat {can't remember what that's called}, sort of a 3-stroke roll, but not it. {Maybe a double-flam?} 3-5-7-9 stroke rolls in individual beats, not doubling each stick as two strokes. Basic beats, 2/4, 4/4, 6/8, 3/4, 5/4, all the more intricate beats usually work or expand off of these five basic beat patterns.

Like you said MJS, stick control, I'd say more fingertip control, and wrist exercises to be fast and fluid without wearing out or tensing up the hands. Think rudiments. {Helps keep you fresher if you are playing a 4-hour bar gig, LOL.}. Now this next suggest is more practice and feel, but use the palm of the stick hand as a control stop and rebound area to help bounce the stick back.

Breath control, often overlooked, breathe!!!!!!!!!! My best way was to train my breathing to the beat, every measure got an intake breath, even if short. Usually, at the start of every 2nd measure, more important {and also harder to train to do} if you have a fast tempo.

After that, finding the right stick size is crucial, IMO. Trial and error there, but I disagree with the need for 2B's to pound with when 7A's can do essentially the same, and faster. But, that's just me.

follow a bass drum pattern by itself, just kick the pedal along, nothing else, get steady to the beat. Start with a simple 1/3 kick on a 4/4 song, get steady and on the beat. Same with high-hat on the 2/4 end of the same measure, coordinates both legs together. Tap your stick on your leg with the highhat beat, also works great for soft spots to help you count the beat off until you come in again.

Experiment and get used to brushes and mallets, at least.

Anyway, there's more, but that's good enough for now.

I thought more about your pinky-finger comment. Good point, bro., I examined my hand-finger posture, well, had someone watch me playing with particular attention to that finger. They noticed, and I felt it, that I kept my pinky in, and used it as a back-balance control for stick rebound/stop. Yeah, I agree there, never really thought of that, it just was always tucked in and used as a control, along with my palm.

Even if I don't practice on my kit, I do pick up my sticks and twirl to keep my fingers/wrists limber and in shape, at least. leads to the following~~~~~~~

Speaking of fingers, and this is somewhat visual flash {like some members show in their videos}, but also a very practical exercise for wrist and fingers, is the stick twirl. Most all of us use the main method of holding the stick between two fingers, usually index and third, and spinning the stick by rotating those two fingers around, making a figure-8 pattern, along with some wrist movement {Tommy Lee of Motley Crue was a great twirler}. Sort of like baton-twirlers, but we use more fingers than wrist.

Another, more difficult twirl method, hard to describe, is to flip the stick over-then under-then over each finger until the stick rotates either to the grip {thumb and index} or to the "pinky". Best way I can describe is some old gangster movies where the guy flips a coin over and under his fingers. Rotating the coin/stick over his hand/fingers, not like the two-finger twirl, but much more effective as a limbering exercise, and one most drummers don't seem to use anymore.

This is even harder to describe, it really needs to be seen, but using basic rudiments like flams, triplets, etc., using those notes amongst a couple drums, not just one drum {usually the training is all on a snare at first for the sticking and smoothing out of the rudiment}. For just one of many examples, show a triplet where the snare is one, the upper tom or some other tom is the second, and choice of tom/bass/cymbal, such as that, is the third beat of a triplet. Bonham of Zeppelin was a master of this sort of style, using rudiments to get his "ripple-ruffling" sound. Zildjian's video sort of shows that, most of your guy's videos also show that, though you may not have thought of it in this way.

Sorry if I get overly into a topic, or verbose, just trying to share stuff with people.

Glad I was able to help a bit - yeah, my very first drum instructor (many years ago) suggested that I watch my fingers - the pinky on the non-dominant hand tends to be the worst offender.



Yep, I'm a guilty culprit - using stick twirling in my video - I do some other twirls and flips, but I find that too much of that, and my overall playing suffers. The twirl that I mostly use if with my first three fingers, i.e., minus the thumb and pinky. It works well for me, but I've met guys that don't like it and use another method - do what works for you!



I understand exactly what you're saying - and yes, I purpously incorporate those rudiments into solos. . . as in:

singles between hand and foot (right foot, right hand, right foot, right hand, etc.)
double between hands and foot (right foot 2x, right hand, left hand, or right foot 2x, right hand 2x - or any variation)
triplets between hands and feet (right foot, right hand, left hand, or right foot 2x, right hand or left hand - all variations)
or other cool beats - (right hand, left hand, right hand, left hand, right foot 2x etc)

The possibilities are endless, but it will take several years of dedicated practice to be able to seamlessly switch gears between any of the above exercises. I won't use a double pedal, so I have to be good at those to approach any kind of blazing speed. . . If you want a good example of such licks, watch any Dave Weckl or Vinnie Coloutia solo - the masters do it best!

PPR rule, you just stated it!!!!!!! {even though I don't think you knew it, that's cool}. There can be so much more involved, as with any instrument, but we have to use our body more so as drummers than anyone else.

Meh, a stick twirl {above the practice point I made} is a great move to make, it helps catch and draw audience attention to you as a drummer, no harm there, right?????????? But, I agree, do it in limited areas, it can throw you off, it has me.

>snip<
Yep, I'm a guilty culprit - using stick twirling in my video - I do some other twirls and flips, but I find that too much of that, and my overall playing suffers. The twirl that I mostly use if with my first three fingers, i.e., minus the thumb and pinky. It works well for me, but I've met guys that don't like it and use another method - do what works for you
<unsnip>

Nah, nothing to be guilty of, some flash is always cool, shows how cognizant you are while drumming, unless you lose the focus, {not specifically about you, bro., but for those newer members who read this post}. I am just trying to reinforce that part of what you said.

I can never get the whole stick twirling thing
personally ive never felt the need, but what the heck, i may as well try something new out.

It can be a fun twist to a solo, or while you're being introduced on stage - practically, it adds nothing to your actual drumming, and can be rather distracting. . .

But yes, by all means, give it a go. . . you might be a natural at it.

Good drummers to watch on that would be Thomas Lang, Virgil Donati, and JoJo Mayer.

thanks MJS, ill give them a look

If you can find some old Tommy Lee of Motley Crue, he does a great horizontal twirl, or did, LOL. My point was more for keeping the fingers and wrists limber, in that, twirling is a great practical exercise.

Added benefit of focus and concentration, thinking "outside" the box a bit, and yeah, somewhat just a bit of personal "showmanship". Which, IMO, is all good!!!!

yeah lol
tommy lee solid showman
i understand about the wrist strengthening excercise
thanks tam