Drum Week - Technique
This is a post about my particular views on stick grips and drumset techniques.
**STICK GRIP** - Match vs. Traditional
I endorse both Match and Traditional grip. I think they both have great purposes. I do suggest that all beginning drummers start with Match grip. The reason being that it translates to all the other percussion instruments. Traditional grip is used only for snare drumming and drumset so getting the Match grip started is important as it translates to mallets, aux percussion, and other things. I find that the traditional grip is great for playing brushes on a drumset for the 'stirring' hand, and I also believe that the traditional grip is helpful in another way. If I'm trying to control my volume and really subdivide without actually playing, the hitches in a traditional snare stroke plus the disability to get a ton of power out of the stroke control volume and enhance 'the groove.' I actually have a really great article articulating grip in about 8 paragraphs, including how to hold a match grip stick and how to hold a traditional grip stick. However, I believe a picture is worth a thousand words so I'm going to give you two photo's from Vic Firth's website demonstrating proper grip.
Left Hand (for traditional only)
**STICK GRIP** -French, American, German
...Now, stick grip does not end there, oh no it does not. There is also the French, German, and American styles of griping the stick. This if for the match grip, or the right hand in traditional grip. And it has to do with the rotation of the hand in relation to the drum head. Again, I could explain it but again, a picture is better. This is from snarescience.com which has a ton more explanation if you want to read further.
I use all three of these grips for specific instruments and styles of music. I prefer the French for Timpani. It requires a lot of finger strength and considerably limits the range of motion of the wrist which is not good for drumset. It is, however, great for bounce; specifically controlling bounce. I find myself using the American grip for most everything else. It's allows me to use my back three fingers for extra speed and accent but still get great control and power from the wrist. I use the german a lot if I need to use a Moeller stroke which is a topic that doesnt' need to be covered. However, when starting out, start with the german or the american grip.
**SITTING AT THE KIT** - Cross Your Arms
Obviously people get away without this (including one of my favorite drummers, Carter Beauford), but I am convinced that the best thing you can do for yourself is to cross the arms, using the right hand to play the high hat, and the left hand to play the snare. There are a couple of reasons.
-In most cases, if a player uses his left hand to play the high hat, it causes them to pull their hand back towards their body un-naturally and it causes them to raise their entire arm which does two things. It turns the hand out into the french grip which I already noted limits the wrist motion, and with the raised arm, it limits the wrist motion even more. That's bad for the wrist, and can cause tendonitis and other serious problems down the road.
-Unless you put the ride cymbal on the left side as well (ala Carter Beauford), you still have to use your right hand to play the ride so that means you have to switch. Yes, this does promote a bit more independence if both hands can play the snare and ride patterns. But the hands, especially for beginners, are not matched in terms of power, so there will be a significantly different snare sound when you switch hands. On that topic, if you do cross your arms, don't use a wrist stroke when you're arms are crossed and then when they're uncrossed to play the ride, you start swinging for the fences. I know a lot of sound guys who used to hate me for that...maybe still do.
Now you may be saying "But Jeff, I'm left handed. I need to use my dominant hand on the high hat. Either that or set the kit up backwards." First of all, you'll get no sympathy from me. I'm left handed and I don't do either of those things. Nor do many of the left handed players I know. In my and many others opinions, you're actually at an advantage. Not only is your left hand stronger, but you have more fine muscle control in that hand. That means that you can let your 'dumb' hand do the boring repetitive hat and ride work. Then your good hand can play the intricate snare patterns that include off beat patterns, buzz, duple and tap strokes, crossshots, and other fun little things.
**SITTING AT THE KIT** -Rock music puts you on the edge of your seat...literally.
When you're putting your feet on the pedal, there are two schools for how you position them. Some will say you should put your heel down on the back of the pedal and keep it there. Others will say that you should keep your heel off the pedal (except when resting) and use only your toe in the middle of your pedal. Some people say you have to do one or the other. Here's my thoughts.
-Toe only is great for rock and really fast doubles. Toe also drives the pedal into the head and keeps it from resonating. For rock, this is just fine and actually desirable. Mainly because rock players use triple ply hydraulic heads that have muting built into it. Ringing is not the sound you're going for, just a slappy thump. And if you're playing through a decent sound system, even if you play with a style that allows the bass drum to ring, the mic's usually aren't made to pick it up and most sound guys will gate that out anyway. Dealing with sound guys in a topic for another post. Dave Weckl made a great instructional video about 15-20 years ago (You'll have to excuse his hair and his outfit) about all kinds of techniques, here is his toe method of playing.
-I prefer heel down for acoustic sets and jazz/latin playing. Latin music often requires a lot of slower doubled notes over the course of the entire song. You do that with your toe the whole time and that tendon in your ankle is going to start to hurt after a bit. Heel down is a bit more natural. It also allows you to play without pressing the pedal into the head and deadening the sound. ALSO, I 'crash' the high hat with my left foot a lot. That requires a stroke where I leave my toe completely off the pedal, and kick the very end of the moveable portion of the pedal with my heel. It jars the pedal just enough to hit the hat's together without holding them shut and deadening the ring.
**STICK GRIP** - Match vs. Traditional
I endorse both Match and Traditional grip. I think they both have great purposes. I do suggest that all beginning drummers start with Match grip. The reason being that it translates to all the other percussion instruments. Traditional grip is used only for snare drumming and drumset so getting the Match grip started is important as it translates to mallets, aux percussion, and other things. I find that the traditional grip is great for playing brushes on a drumset for the 'stirring' hand, and I also believe that the traditional grip is helpful in another way. If I'm trying to control my volume and really subdivide without actually playing, the hitches in a traditional snare stroke plus the disability to get a ton of power out of the stroke control volume and enhance 'the groove.' I actually have a really great article articulating grip in about 8 paragraphs, including how to hold a match grip stick and how to hold a traditional grip stick. However, I believe a picture is worth a thousand words so I'm going to give you two photo's from Vic Firth's website demonstrating proper grip.
Right Hand (or Both for Match grip)
Left Hand (for traditional only)
**STICK GRIP** -French, American, German...Now, stick grip does not end there, oh no it does not. There is also the French, German, and American styles of griping the stick. This if for the match grip, or the right hand in traditional grip. And it has to do with the rotation of the hand in relation to the drum head. Again, I could explain it but again, a picture is better. This is from snarescience.com which has a ton more explanation if you want to read further.
I use all three of these grips for specific instruments and styles of music. I prefer the French for Timpani. It requires a lot of finger strength and considerably limits the range of motion of the wrist which is not good for drumset. It is, however, great for bounce; specifically controlling bounce. I find myself using the American grip for most everything else. It's allows me to use my back three fingers for extra speed and accent but still get great control and power from the wrist. I use the german a lot if I need to use a Moeller stroke which is a topic that doesnt' need to be covered. However, when starting out, start with the german or the american grip.**SITTING AT THE KIT** - Cross Your Arms
Obviously people get away without this (including one of my favorite drummers, Carter Beauford), but I am convinced that the best thing you can do for yourself is to cross the arms, using the right hand to play the high hat, and the left hand to play the snare. There are a couple of reasons.
-In most cases, if a player uses his left hand to play the high hat, it causes them to pull their hand back towards their body un-naturally and it causes them to raise their entire arm which does two things. It turns the hand out into the french grip which I already noted limits the wrist motion, and with the raised arm, it limits the wrist motion even more. That's bad for the wrist, and can cause tendonitis and other serious problems down the road.
-Unless you put the ride cymbal on the left side as well (ala Carter Beauford), you still have to use your right hand to play the ride so that means you have to switch. Yes, this does promote a bit more independence if both hands can play the snare and ride patterns. But the hands, especially for beginners, are not matched in terms of power, so there will be a significantly different snare sound when you switch hands. On that topic, if you do cross your arms, don't use a wrist stroke when you're arms are crossed and then when they're uncrossed to play the ride, you start swinging for the fences. I know a lot of sound guys who used to hate me for that...maybe still do.
Now you may be saying "But Jeff, I'm left handed. I need to use my dominant hand on the high hat. Either that or set the kit up backwards." First of all, you'll get no sympathy from me. I'm left handed and I don't do either of those things. Nor do many of the left handed players I know. In my and many others opinions, you're actually at an advantage. Not only is your left hand stronger, but you have more fine muscle control in that hand. That means that you can let your 'dumb' hand do the boring repetitive hat and ride work. Then your good hand can play the intricate snare patterns that include off beat patterns, buzz, duple and tap strokes, crossshots, and other fun little things.
**SITTING AT THE KIT** -Rock music puts you on the edge of your seat...literally.
When you're putting your feet on the pedal, there are two schools for how you position them. Some will say you should put your heel down on the back of the pedal and keep it there. Others will say that you should keep your heel off the pedal (except when resting) and use only your toe in the middle of your pedal. Some people say you have to do one or the other. Here's my thoughts.
-Toe only is great for rock and really fast doubles. Toe also drives the pedal into the head and keeps it from resonating. For rock, this is just fine and actually desirable. Mainly because rock players use triple ply hydraulic heads that have muting built into it. Ringing is not the sound you're going for, just a slappy thump. And if you're playing through a decent sound system, even if you play with a style that allows the bass drum to ring, the mic's usually aren't made to pick it up and most sound guys will gate that out anyway. Dealing with sound guys in a topic for another post. Dave Weckl made a great instructional video about 15-20 years ago (You'll have to excuse his hair and his outfit) about all kinds of techniques, here is his toe method of playing.
-I prefer heel down for acoustic sets and jazz/latin playing. Latin music often requires a lot of slower doubled notes over the course of the entire song. You do that with your toe the whole time and that tendon in your ankle is going to start to hurt after a bit. Heel down is a bit more natural. It also allows you to play without pressing the pedal into the head and deadening the sound. ALSO, I 'crash' the high hat with my left foot a lot. That requires a stroke where I leave my toe completely off the pedal, and kick the very end of the moveable portion of the pedal with my heel. It jars the pedal just enough to hit the hat's together without holding them shut and deadening the ring.
posted by Jeff Myers at 5:20 AM
2 Comments:
I'm adding this to my students reading assignments as well.
5:20 AM...you are crazy.
As a drummer who has NOT learned proper technique or rudiments, I can only echo Jeff's words and say LEARN the basics and you will be SO much better off in the long run. Jeff, thank you for your inspiration and posts on this.
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