Drum Lesson Blog

Learn How to Play Interesting Triplet Drum Fills and Practice Your Speed Drumming

Drum Lessons — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 17:21:25 -0500

This video presents a fundamentally simple fill pattern that has many variations and can therefore keep you busy for a long time. The fill is based on a 16th note triplet Left-Right-Left-Right-Bass-Bass pattern. Remember, 16th triplet notes are the ones that are played 3 in the same time that two 8th notes are played. The drummer in this video has some extremely fast moves, but explains things slowly at first. Don't be intimidated by the speed or think that you must play that fast from the get go. Start practicing slowly to get the pattern down. Since this pattern includes two successive bass notes, it supplies ample opportunity to practice those double stroke bass drum kicks as well.

Please leave a comment and tell everybody what you think of this video. What do you like about this fill pattern? What do you hate about it? Was it easy or hard to practice?

How to Play Ghost Notes

Drum Lessons — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 00:40:42 -0500

Ghost notes are subtle, low volume notes played on the snare. Used properly, they can add a lot of character, and make a beat more interesting. They are used quite liberally in jazz. This video lesson will shot you how to incorporate ghost notes into your playing.

Practice Your Rudiments

Drum Lessons — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 15:44:30 -0500

Practicing drum rudiments helps drummers of all levels grain better control of the sticks. Vic Firth's Web site does an excellent job of breaking down the basic 40 rudiments with drum notation, sticking marks, and audio-play along files.