Looking Back, What's The Most Important Exercise?

[joeybeats]

I was sitting and practicing and had a great three hour session. No effort involved, just fun and the time passed very quickly. You all have had great practice sessions, I'm sure you know what I mean.

One thing I noticed was the huge improvement I had in other areas, from just doing the 30 minutes a day single stroke exercise. I mean, now that I've built up a bit of endurance and speed with my left hand, it has spilled over to other areas, like triplets in jazz, better hits around the kit, easier paradiddles (though mine are horrible), better doubles ... just an all around improvement, and I think it is from the 30 minute singles. So I was wondering, looking back at the years of practice for you guys, what in your experience is the single best exercise for a player in their first year or two of drumming? I want to add it to my schedule. Thanks in advance. Joey

[Vic_Rattledeth]

Practicing my rudiments everyday was what helped me improve the most my first 2 years of drumming. I would just turn on the metronome and practice all the different combinations of rudiments and making up my own. There was one excercise that I did everyday that has helped me alot...it went something like this
Singles>Doubles>Flam taps>Singles>Paradiddles>Flamadiddles
This helped me grow acustomed to switching stickings and incorporating flams

[joeybeats]

Thanks! I'll give it a try. I haven't spent much time on the flam rudiments yet, I guess it's time. I'll get them in there. Thanks again. Joey

[schist]

Probably singles, paradiddles and flams.

[MaT]

When my teacher wrote down every single beat combination from Stick Control (the first 2 pages) I was stunned!

I studied them on mi first drummin' year (along with grooves and other stuff). So, I guess playin' those exercises startin' slowly and kickin' up the metronome would be a great way to improve your technique.

Now, after years of practicing, I found out a better way to warm up for practice and to keep developing my hands.

50 bars of 16th's counting out loud "1, 2, 3, 4; 2, 2, 3, 4, etc." Then 50 more but, in my case, with left hand lead. I start at 80bpm. Once I've played 50 RH and 50 LF lead, I kick up the metronome 8 beats.

Now, even though my teacher exercises were cool, I believe this one is great, beacuse you develope both hands easier and faster.

[Pete Stoltman]

Interesting question. I guess that it makes sense that singles would be the most important excercise since that makes up such a huge percentage of what we do as drummers. Overall I find that combinations of singles and doubles (paradiddle variations etc.) work very well for me. I also like to play a lot of accented excercises especially those that place accents in unusual places. The other thing that helps me is to change which hand has the lead.

[joeybeats]

Thanks MaT. I will give it a spin. My left hand is horrible. In fact, as my mind spins around while I'm doing these 30 minute drills, one thing came to mind the other day. One advantage to playing trad is that you don't have to sit there thinking how your left compares to your right.

I mean, I'm righty and not close to being ambidextourous. This is the first time in a long time that I am doing anything with my left. In match, I sit there and think, wow, I'm holding the left a bit toighter, or more to the leftof that knuckle, or not using the same squeeze, or using more pinky and less of the ... you get the idea. Using trad, I just work on getting it going and don't have to think about that stuff. Hope that makes sense.

Pete, thanks to you, also. I do your ideas. Another thing about the left hand, I am so bad, that when I am up at my higher speeds, say 160, there is no way I can start or do anything with a left hand lead. The difficulties start at around 140, but get much worse as we go higher. I just noticed that the other day. I've probably gotten better, the more relaxed I have become over the past few months, but without a doubt, my left hand is horrible. Stronger it gets, the better I will be. Anyway, I will try your suggestions out, they sound like a good ideas. Joey

[zambizzi]

My ritual starts w/ rudiments on the snare, every night. I like to start by warming up w/ the individual rudiments and then combining them, much the way Vic is talking about. My control, technique, and speed improved *significantly* once I started doing this...and it was one of those "why didn't I start doing this sooner?" realizations.

While doing this, I force myself to be conscious of changes in dynamics and tempo, as well. I'll start slow and low to the head...then speed up the tempo and raise the volume...then back down to low-and-slow. Also, vice-versa...loud and slow, then low and fast.

[jonescrusher]

The singles-double-paradiddles drill is a classic, that is useful from novice to pro.

Joey, i've had to address the problem of my weaker hand, my right, perhaps more urgently because i've chosen to play a right handed set up since starting playing. My best advice to improving your left hand is to make the conscious effort to lead with your left during every practice routine on every rudiment. It's obvious but requires patience.

Also obvious but very useful is to always be playing strokes with your left hand whilst at the computer (right hand on the mouse). This is a more relaxed way of ensuring the weaker hand is getting the extra attention needed.

[joeybeats]

Thanks, guys. Great input. I appreciate the feedback and plan to try them all. I think it's great that after all of your playing and studying, each of you have different ideas on what was the single most important exercise in your development ... provides a road map for many of us new to drumming. Actually, quite inspiring. Joey

[thesoleman123]

for me the most important exercise is eight on a hand. Starting it slow gets the blood flowing and teaches good wrist control. Burning it at the 200+ bpm tempos allow for finger control. I practice it in American grip and I am working it up on the French grip using just fingers. Fast fingers as you know are great for jazz and eight on a hand helps me accomplish that. Also I marched in high school and eights were a life saver to saving your chops. Various flam and diddle exercises are great too, but nothing does it for me like eight on a hand.

[Spreggy]

For me, I had an epiphany on the set after doing paradiddle drills that went like:

Over bass on 1 & 3 and hat on 2 & 4, play paradiddles (all 4 inversions) on ride and snare.
Same thing over bass on all 4 and hat on 2 & 4
Same thing over a gallop.

It seemed to launch a flurry of new ideas and language for me.

[Deltadrummer]

Probably singles, paradiddles and flams.

Add doubles, many people say that there are only two rudiments, doubles and singles; the others mix both. I guess those people never played a flamadiddle. But there is some truth to that.

I would say doubles are the most important thing in the early stages of drumming, then flams then paradiddles. Flam paradiddles are good as are ratamacues. Singles may be least important to developing good technique.

If you have good doubles, you have good technique. If you don't; you need to work on it. :)

I would also second the Morello exercise singles, doubles, paradiddle.

[Class A Drummer]

Probably singles, paradiddles and flams.

I agree, but a would put a huge emphasis on paradiddles. You can expand them so much around the set/cymabals. You can make them so funky if you want.

[foursticks]

Listening, listening, listening followed by rudiment, rudiments, rudiments - digest and repeat.

[Alexdrum75]

I was sitting and practicing and had a great three hour session. No effort involved, just fun and the time passed very quickly. You all have had great practice sessions, I'm sure you know what I mean.

One thing I noticed was the huge improvement I had in other areas, from just doing the 30 minutes a day single stroke exercise. I mean, now that I've built up a bit of endurance and speed with my left hand, it has spilled over to other areas, like triplets in jazz, better hits around the kit, easier paradiddles (though mine are horrible), better doubles ... just an all around improvement, and I think it is from the 30 minute singles. So I was wondering, looking back at the years of practice for you guys, what in your experience is the single best exercise for a player in their first year or two of drumming? I want to add it to my schedule. Thanks in advance. Joey

To me, the most difficult exercise I've played, and the most discouraging at first, is playing unisons, with the hand first and then with both feet on a double pedal.
It's extremely difficult to not flam in the long run...

[Deltadrummer]

To me, the most difficult exercise I've played, and the most discouraging at first, is playing unisons, with the hand first and then with both feet on a double pedal.
It's extremely difficult to not flam in the long run...

This is a great point, though not really on topic, and probably one that is not given enough attention.

[zambizzi]

By "unisons" do you mean harmonizing? As in; playing two notes simultaneously w/ two or more limbs?

As I'm practicing rudiments right on my snare now, sitting at my kit, as opposed to sitting at a practice pad - my rudiments practice has gotten more interesting. I'll get my left foot...or left and right foot going in patterns while doing rudiments. This is another one of those things I wish I had done more of, sooner...it's helped greatly w/ coordination.

[Alexdrum75]

By "unisons" do you mean harmonizing? As in; playing two notes simultaneously w/ two or more limbs?

As I'm practicing rudiments right on my snare now, sitting at my kit, as opposed to sitting at a practice pad - my rudiments practice has gotten more interesting. I'll get my left foot...or left and right foot going in patterns while doing rudiments. This is another one of those things I wish I had done more of, sooner...it's helped greatly w/ coordination.

Just playing two notes simultaneously with any four limbs.
For example, playing unisons with the hands only on a pad: I get a much better flam sound because it's not "disguised" by the snare buzz.

I know instantly when I get a perfect unison: is when the rebound of both sticks is lowered because they hit the drumhead simultaneously.