Notes
Work on one part of your playing: control the hi-hat, finish a fill, read a chart, or adjust the kit for the room. Pick a topic below.
Dynamics
Control the hi-hat before changing the whole groove
Separate the length of the hi-hat sound from how hard you strike it.
Making the chorus feel bigger
Choose a chorus change the band can hear without losing the tempo.
Dynamics inside the bar
Shape the notes within the groove instead of making every stroke louder.
Fills
Fills that land on beat 1
Practice the return to the groove as part of the fill.
When a crash helps the arrangement
Give each crash a musical reason and listen to what follows it.
The room
Playing drums in a small room
Use the room sound to decide how much drum and cymbal the song needs.
Where to look while playing
Set up a clear view of the people who can change the song.
When the click stops
Know who keeps the song moving if the reference disappears.
Build the drum part around the vocal phrase
Hear the whole vocal phrase before choosing where to add movement.
Practice
Make a practice hour useful
Give the session one musical problem to solve.
Which rudiments should you learn first?
Learn a few sticking patterns well enough to use them in time.
Learn the chart, then look up
Use the chart to track the arrangement while your ears follow the band.
Playing the same part consistently
Find out which part of the repeat changes before trying to fix everything.
Groove
Add ghost notes without losing the backbeat
Make the quiet notes distinct from the main snare hits.
Playing behind the click without slowing down
Keep the pulse steady while listening to where the snare sits.
The kit
What to bring to the kit
Pack for the parts you need to play and the equipment already in the room.
Adding electronic sounds to an acoustic kit
Choose the sound the arrangement needs before adding hardware.
Set up a kit you can play comfortably
Start with your playing position and build the kit around it.