- These exercises will help build your dynamics control. Good dynamic control is vital to creating good sound, feel, texture and groove.
Exercise 1
- Play 16th notes between the Hi-hat and snare.
- Play all the snare notes as ghost notes (written with brackets) – as quiet as you can. Hold the snare drum stick no more than 2 inches away from the head.
- The snare notes fall on the off beat 16ths – the e’s and ah’s.
- Accent on the beat with the hi hat.
- Once you feel comfortable with this, play variations of bass drum patterns
Exercise 2
- Add a back beat on the snare – on beats 2 & 4.
- You may have to omit the ghost notes surrounding the accented notes to make it easier to play.
Exercise 3
- To build control playing loud and soft notes consecutively practice the doubles exercises.
- Accent the first on the double stroke, then accent the second note.
- Play to a metronome and alternate every 1 bar, 2 bars, 1/2 bar.
Exercise 4 – More accent control
- Play 16th note single strokes – R L R L – Accenting 1st 16th note of every beat.
- Then move the accent to the 2nd note, 3rd, note, 4th note.
- Then play combinations.
- Write out all the combinations on paper, if your unsure of what it should be.
