Cant practice. Whats a good instrument to switch to?

imnotonfire

Junior Member
its been a year since i have gotten real drum practice. I have been trying hard to be able to but something/someone always ruins it and I cant sound proof anything either. AAAAAAND I dont want to have to practice with mutes or on an elec.kit becuase I dont want to loose the feel of an acoustic set. This seriously sucks.

So whats a good intstrument that not insanley loud like a drumset that I can apply my drumset skills on so it dosent seem like i have wasted 5 yeas of my life?

And no im not interested in playing guitar or bass.
 
Congas.
Cajon.
Tar.
...and keep your stick chops up with a practice pad.

When you come back around to playing on a kit, you'll hopefully notice a deeper sense of groove, touch, finesse, and orchestration.
Practe pad? I dont know if I can do that. Im kinda addicted to the drums. So if Im gonna quit I have to quit thinking about it completley as well. You know what I mean?
 
Something here doesn't seem logical to me. I mean, you want to keep playing drums, but it seems like you're not willing to play drums under any condition other than playing drums at full volume...

Honestly, I'd go with muffles on the drums. It's the closest thing to actually playing an acoustic drum acoustically without actually doing so. It seems like you're already not playing acoustic drums, so what more do you have to lose? I know it's not the answer you're looking for, but in the face of a logical fallacy, I do what I can.
 
I agree, this doesn't make sense.

You claim you want to keep playing drums, but you don't want to practice on pad, you don't want to practice on mutes, you don't want to deal, you don't want to switch to bass.

It just more sounds like you don't really want to play drums or music period.
(not that there is anything wrong with that)
 
I've always been of the mind set that if you really wanted to practice, you'd find a way.......and you'd practice on anything.

Space confinements mean I don't have a kit set up all the time, yet I can't wait to get home from work and get going on the pad. I actually have a few pads set up as a makeshift kit. When I am able to get behind the kit, it's such a bonus......it makes all the pad practice worthwhile IMO.

Ask yourself. How serious are you?
 
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its been a year since i have gotten real drum practice. I have been trying hard to be able to but something/someone always ruins it and I cant sound proof anything either.

A year is a long time to go without playing. What/who are these somethings/someones who are "ruining" it? You say that you've been trying hard but it seems that over the course of a year you could have worked out some solution, no?

Could there be a motivation issue here? If you really want to play the drums you have to, you know, get your sticks in action even if that means working out on a pad for a couple of hours.
 
Get a practice pad and go nuts.
I had a looooong spell of drum-less-ness (due to being in the army). I used a practice pad, wood floor, and the side of a bradley for practice. I was able to develop better hand control and improved on my sense of time.....
 
Conflict of goals and objectives, it sounds to me. Focus on, what you WANT to do.
Either pick up the drum-sticks or put them down. You choose, choose wisely!
 
Several years ago I suffered a huge health problem and coupled with losing everything I owned in a robbery, I had no drums for some time. I kept my drum set chops up by playing air drums and a practice pad. When I finally was healthy several years later I ventured into a drum store. The manager having not seen me for ages asked me to play a kit. Out came years of drumming frustration. And all the drummers applauded and I felt I could finally return to drumming. And people at this forum urged me to return.

I do not mention the above as a matter of ego. It is simply this: I was able to keep my chops up to a certain point through air drumming and the practice pad. I was already a pro so I had a head start. But I really loved the drums and did not wish to part ways with it.

If you want to drum you will find a way. If you don't you wont. Either is fine and up to you. Maybe kit is not your instrument. There are many percussion instruments to try. Perhaps find a samba group and begin playing with them?

Good luck either way.
 
When people tell me they can't practice or don't have anywhere to practice, I find it hard to believe. I was a over the road truck driver for years and I still drive from Chicago to Oklahoma every week. I'm home 4 nights a week but the other 3 nights I needed to find a way to practice. I got a knee practice pad like the one that Steve Smith uses. But about a year ago I figured out how to get practice and make it a bit more fun then just a pad. I got a rhythm coach, kd8, and a Cy-8 and put them in my truck. I got a cable make by Roland just for this kinda of set up. The rhythm coach has a lot of learning tools on it and is easy to carry with you on the road.They work great and can fold up small enough that they aren't in my way. It took a little bit of money but as drummers we know this hobby isn't cheap. You wanna play a cheap instrument, play the washboard.
 
You can always go back to playing drums even after many years off.
I know many members on this board including myself who came back to drums after ten years or more of not playing.

I actually study harder and play better now than I ever did when I was younger.

I would say that the piano is the most versatile instrument to play.
I am currently learning the piano for the first time at age 53.

I know that I may not have the health to play drums for many more years that is why I am learning the piano.
I just began a few weeks ago.
I am finding the piano a real challenge!
The most difficult thing that I have ever attempted.
 
Well, since all the good advice has already happened, even questioning your mental condition regarding the initial question, I'd say go get yourself a Chapman Stick or a Warr Guitar. It'd be like playing percussive piano on a stringed instrument that you can wear.

You could get all the Stick gigs in your hometown. Or you could make your own music without a band on a street corner.

Or you cold find a way to continue to play your drums. That's what I'd do.
 
Keyboards. They have a percussive element and heaps of fun.

+1 to keyboards...only because they're fun. Unfortunately, keys and drum kit are way different instruments.

So if you want to still stick with drumkit practice:

  • Muffle any existing drums (it can be done without loosing the feel of an acoustic kit)
  • or..."Drumkit" made from an array practice pads...
    OeHfHwLJPeZHXaU.jpg
  • or...I mostly recommend...that you use drumming brushes with either a drumkit or with practice pads (quiete, and the bonus is that when you get back to playing a real kit the brush-playing will make your drumming with sticks stronger)...
    Regal_Tip_UltraFlex_Drum_Brushes.jpg
 
Piano. Piano players always have really good hand coordination (my brother was good at the drums, and he never played them. He could play eighth notes over quarter note triplets with his hands both ways). Also, the piano players in my percussion section are some of the best, and they don't even practice drums all the time
 
Get it on with the brushes if you really want to keep playing. If you don't already use them it is an entirely new skill to learn. If you already know how to use them you can always improve. Brushes are a whole world in themselves. They are also quiet and will have a positvie impact on your stick drumming too.
 
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