whitecatcafe
Senior Member
So for some reason, about 2 weeks ago, I got the crazy idea to try traditional grip in my left hand. I have worked on traditional grip on and off in 2011 and 2012, then gave up because it wasn't really working out. Anyway, when I came back to it 2 weeks ago, it felt awkward at first but then it got better and better.
I know this might sound crazy but playing traditional grip with my left hand felt very 'natural' to me. This is weird because holding the stick that way is very unnatural, in essence. I then went on a YouTube marathon, watching as many clips of Tony Williams I could find, because I like the way his left hand looks and moves. I came across a 3 part Tony Williams drum clinic from 1985, and something he said during the Q & A section immediately resonated within me;
"They say, well, they want both hands to be the same. Well, I don't believe that. I like the fact that I have a left hand and a right hand, and that my left hand has to be coordinated with my right hand. It's like life; if you have 2 people that are the same, you're gonna get bored. People, you know.. I mean, you need spice in life. So using the traditional grip in the left hand.. and uh.. this grip in the right hand (matched grip) means that I have to coordinate these things and I get a sense of a 'right' and a 'left'. I'm not playing with two right hands and I'm not playing with two left hands. So that has a lot to do with my technique and philosophy also, umm.. Umm, the matched grip, is, is not some.. I mean I.. what it means is that if you don't play.. if you're not able to play with traditional grip in the left hand, it's like saying you wanna be a piano player but you never wanna play with the black keys... or... something like that. So anyway, there's a whole vocabulary of things people have played for years using this grip (traditional grip), and if you don't wanna learn those things, it's sort of like saying you don't particularly wanna learn all there is to know about drumming. And good drummers, to me, are those that wanna take advantage of all there is to be played.... I can just tell you that the mind works in a certain way, in that, if you hold your hand this way... See, drumming is very sensory, and if I hold my hand in a certain way, my mind is going to think in a certain way. And if I hold it this way, (matched grip) my mind thinks in a way, and if I hold it this way (traditional grip) I'm not going to think of certain things, and if I hold it this way (matched grip), I'm not going to think of certain things. That's what I'm saying.. it's real simple."
I just had to write down everything he said, word for word, because it made so much sense to me, and I totally agree with him and can relate to what he said, especially when he talks about the grips influencing the way his mind works. I think that some drummers are more prone to matched grip while others will gravitate more towards traditional grip, and this depends largely on their character as a person and the way their minds work. I am convinced now that I'm more of a traditional grip type of person... maybe because my brain happens to operate that way?
I've been doing a bunch of left hand Moeller stuff as well as rudiments and surprisingly, I'm picking stuff up relatively quickly and easily. I mean, I have worked on some of this stuff about 2 years ago (and haven't touched on it since) but I feel like everything is finally coming together. My thumb, forefingers, wrist... they all seem to know exactly what to do, and they're moving exactly the way I want them to. It's a little crazy, because the traditional grip is essentially a lot more involved than the matched grip, anyone will tell you that.
I wonder if anyone else has gone through what I'm going through?
I know this might sound crazy but playing traditional grip with my left hand felt very 'natural' to me. This is weird because holding the stick that way is very unnatural, in essence. I then went on a YouTube marathon, watching as many clips of Tony Williams I could find, because I like the way his left hand looks and moves. I came across a 3 part Tony Williams drum clinic from 1985, and something he said during the Q & A section immediately resonated within me;
"They say, well, they want both hands to be the same. Well, I don't believe that. I like the fact that I have a left hand and a right hand, and that my left hand has to be coordinated with my right hand. It's like life; if you have 2 people that are the same, you're gonna get bored. People, you know.. I mean, you need spice in life. So using the traditional grip in the left hand.. and uh.. this grip in the right hand (matched grip) means that I have to coordinate these things and I get a sense of a 'right' and a 'left'. I'm not playing with two right hands and I'm not playing with two left hands. So that has a lot to do with my technique and philosophy also, umm.. Umm, the matched grip, is, is not some.. I mean I.. what it means is that if you don't play.. if you're not able to play with traditional grip in the left hand, it's like saying you wanna be a piano player but you never wanna play with the black keys... or... something like that. So anyway, there's a whole vocabulary of things people have played for years using this grip (traditional grip), and if you don't wanna learn those things, it's sort of like saying you don't particularly wanna learn all there is to know about drumming. And good drummers, to me, are those that wanna take advantage of all there is to be played.... I can just tell you that the mind works in a certain way, in that, if you hold your hand this way... See, drumming is very sensory, and if I hold my hand in a certain way, my mind is going to think in a certain way. And if I hold it this way, (matched grip) my mind thinks in a way, and if I hold it this way (traditional grip) I'm not going to think of certain things, and if I hold it this way (matched grip), I'm not going to think of certain things. That's what I'm saying.. it's real simple."
I just had to write down everything he said, word for word, because it made so much sense to me, and I totally agree with him and can relate to what he said, especially when he talks about the grips influencing the way his mind works. I think that some drummers are more prone to matched grip while others will gravitate more towards traditional grip, and this depends largely on their character as a person and the way their minds work. I am convinced now that I'm more of a traditional grip type of person... maybe because my brain happens to operate that way?
I've been doing a bunch of left hand Moeller stuff as well as rudiments and surprisingly, I'm picking stuff up relatively quickly and easily. I mean, I have worked on some of this stuff about 2 years ago (and haven't touched on it since) but I feel like everything is finally coming together. My thumb, forefingers, wrist... they all seem to know exactly what to do, and they're moving exactly the way I want them to. It's a little crazy, because the traditional grip is essentially a lot more involved than the matched grip, anyone will tell you that.
I wonder if anyone else has gone through what I'm going through?