Is it possible for drummers to sound musical? We create beats and set the tempo for others to follow, but there's much more to our craft than meets the eye.
To become a musical drummer, you don't need a degree in music, decades of listening to multiple drummers, or several years of playing experience. There is no secret sauce, just a simple understanding of four key areas. At Drum Ambition, we call them the Four Steps to Drum Set Musicality, and they are understanding rhythm, developing control, adding dynamics, and applying rudiments.
Whether you are playing the drums or any other musical instrument, understanding rhythm is an essential step to developing musicality. We learn rhythm by comprehending basic music notation and learning how to count music.
The common misconception is that learning music notation is the giant scary monster of becoming proficient on any instrument. The reality is somewhat different. Understanding basic music notation is quite attainable if approached in small, organized, and manageable steps.
Our music notation videos in Course 1 are the perfect supplement to our drum beat and drum fill exercises. Counting music and understanding notation will give you a solid background in understanding rhythm.
While you are learning music notation, we will introduce you to the concept of sticking. Simply put, understanding sticking concepts helps clarify which hand plays specific notes.
This is essential for building control because it will allow you to orchestrate drum fills (meaning playing creative drum fills across your toms in a controlled manner), build speed, and set a great foundation for applying the drum set rudiments. This will help you develop your overall technique in other areas, such as holding your sticks and fine-tuning your posture.
In the most basic terms, dynamics refers to how hard, soft, or anything in between we play a beat, fill, or even individual notes. We achieve this by applying dynamic strokes to our playing.
These are four main strokes covered comprehensively in Course 1, Lesson 20 of Drum Ambition. When used appropriately, these four strokes (down, tap, up, and full strokes) transform your drumming from one-dimensional beats to balanced, musical grooves and slick and creative fills, facilitating smoother beats at higher tempos.
The drum set rudiments are a series of 26 sticking patterns that can add some superb musical options to your playing. That number can seem quite daunting, particularly when mastering each rudiment is an investment in time and practice.
Fortunately, you can fine-tune your musicality with a good understanding of just four drum set rudiments, and at Drum Ambition, we call these the Core Four. They are single strokes, double strokes, flams, and drags. Subscribers can access Course 6 for in-depth explanations of the Core Four, practical applications, and practice tips.
Adding a controlled rudimental stroke to a groove or drum fill can transform a basic pattern into a graceful, musical lick.
We don't want to understate the four main points above. Becoming proficient in these four areas will require practice, repetition, and a commitment to learning important fundamentals that takes time, patience, and perseverance. But with the proper guidance, structure, and a good practice plan, you can open the door to drum set musicality.
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