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Friday, April 28, 2006
Sing It, and Then Play It
The very best way to learn a new drum fill, beat, or rhythm is to simply
sing it out loud. When you do this enough times with the same fill, beat, or rhythm you will be amazed how the body soon follows
and duplicates it. Try it.
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Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Do Your Cymbal Stands Buzz?
If this is happening, you can fill the hollow tubing of your stands with
cotton, cloth, or anything similar. That will stop the buzzing noise
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Monday, April 24, 2006
Keep Your Cool
Just like any other musician, drummers can be moody. If you disagree with
your band mates about something, just be cool! Stay in control and approach the situation with great thought before
you speak. You don't want to say something you'll regret.
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Sunday, April 23, 2006
Take an Inventory of Your Equipment
It's a real good idea to log all of your drum equipment for security
reasons. Also, take lots of pictures of your drums, cymbals, and hardware.
I post a bunch of other great stuff in my
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Saturday, April 22, 2006
Get a Good Set of Ear Plugs
Drums are obviously a loud instrument to play and ongoing exposure is detrimental
to your hearing. It is a responsible thing to protect your ears! Most musicians take this for granted. Invest in a good set
of ear plugs and use them if you're going to crank up the volume.
I post a bunch of other great stuff in my
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be posted here, so make sure you sign up!
Friday, April 21, 2006
Keeping Your Drums and Equipment Safe
Always keep your drums hidden or covered in your car or van! Take extra
precautions when you're out and about because there's always someone waiting for you to let your guard down. Never
underestimate a thief, so keep your stuff hidden and make sure someone is always around when you're not there!
I post a bunch of other great stuff in my
weekly newsletter. Most of which will never
be posted here, so make sure you sign up!
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Good Drumming Posture
Many times when playing we don't pay proper attention to our posture.
This is one of the most overlooked facets of drumming. We want to be sure to sit up straight when playing the drums so our
back is aligned properly. If your back gets weak from the strain of poor posture it WILL affect the quality of your drumming.
I post a bunch of other great stuff in my
weekly newsletter. Most of which will never
be posted here, so make sure you sign up!
Friday, April 14, 2006
Set Up Tip Using a Drumset Rack
It's nice to have someone help set up your drum kit. The problem is, no
one knows how you want it set up.
Here's a tip for those of you that use a drumset rack... Use white gaffers
tape or masking tape and mark each section where a stand goes with a number. Put the stands in sequential order and anyone
can help you set up your kit more easily.
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Thursday, April 13, 2006
Invest in a Portable Handcart
The worst thing I used to hate about playing out
somewhere was hauling my drum kit around. I
found that if you invest in a small portable handcart
for your drums you can save a lot of time and
trouble when the set up location is far from your
vehicle.
I post a bunch of other great stuff in my
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Saturday, April 8, 2006
Effective Sound Checks
Whenever I'm out playing somewhere I like to keep a low profile before
showtime. Even when I do soundchecks I hit the drums one by one and then play a slow steady 4/4 beat. The sound person usually
only needs a line level.
Lots of drummers do their soundchecks by doing some type of drum solo.
That's completely unnecessary. The sound person will get much better levels on you if you stay cool. You can prove yourself
in the performance.
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Cleaning With Compressed Air
I used to get really frustrated with all the dirt, dust, and muck that
got behind my lugs and all those other hard to reach places on my drum kit.
I found that a can of compressed air works great to keep things looking nice. To make it work most effectively is to spray the compressed air
in all those hard to reach spots frequently.
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Thursday, April 6, 2006
My "Bring It" List
Whenever I go out to play a gig somewhere, I always begin making a "bring
it" list that very morning. There's not much worse than forgetting something like a snare stand or hi-hats. My list will insure me that I never have one of those gut-wrenching moments when
I realize I left something at home miles and miles away.
I post a bunch of other great stuff in my
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be posted here, so make sure you sign up!
Sunday, April 2, 2006
Are You an Organized Drummer?
What does it mean to be an "organized"
drummer?
When your band plays a song, do you play that
song the same way every time? If not, you
should. Here's why...
It can all be summed up into one word called
"predictability." So many drummers will
never play a song
the same way twice. This,
many times, throws the other musicians off,
potentially causing a drag in timing or
increasing
the chances of a mislead cue.
As the drummer in a band it is your
responsiblity to provide the foundation for
the music. This meaning that
everything you
do behind the drum kit is vital. Anything you
do out of the ordinary, or something the
other musicians
are not used to hearing you
play in a particular song really has the
potential to screw things up.
Experimenting is definitely a good thing, and
that's why we practice, but there just comes
a time when experimenting
is over. You must
decide what you're gonna do and then stick to
it. Never throw in something that the other
musicians
are not expecting or you can end up
with some serious choas.
Predictability is a must! The other musicians
must know what you're going to do before you
do it. An outstanding
drummer is predictable,
prepared and organized, ready to bring his or
her goods to the table. Personally, it has
always
bothered me when a band mate would
come to play and he or she would just not be
ready. Situations like that are just
not fair
to everyone else who is ready.
It's been said that when prepardness and
opportunity meet, success occurs. I don't
know what kind of "success"
your hoping for,
but one thing is for sure, you will more
likely meet with it by being organized when
opportunity
knocks.
I post a bunch of other great stuff in my
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be posted here, so make sure you sign up!
Practice New Drum Fills Until They're Second Nature
It's not enough to just practice a new drum fill a couple of times.
We have got to get these things down! There have been times where I thought I had something down, but in reality,
when it came time to demonstrate, I blew it! It's never enough to just "think you have it." To get these things down we have
to practice them to the point where we can play them without even thinking about them any more.
I post a bunch of other great stuff in my
weekly newsletter. Most of which will never
be posted here, so make sure you sign up!
Listen to the Drumming in All Styles of Music
When you listen to different styles of music pay particular attention
to the drumming. With so many different personalities and styles out there, every drummer can really benefit by expanding
their creativity by being open minded to another drummer's style.
By studying another drummer's style, you will be making yourself more aware of how to impliment these styles if there
ever comes an opportunity within your band.
I post a bunch of other great stuff in my
weekly newsletter. Most of which will never
be posted here, so make sure you sign up!
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Danny Brown Author and Publisher PO Box 865
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