I am learning drums since I was 5 years old. Now I have 11 years of experience on drums. I can play pretty much anything. I am currently doing Grade 8 in drums from trinity college London and I can pretty much play any song. But I haven't learned theory and I have 0 knowledge about drums styles and techniques. Most of the time find myself playing the same beats and fills and I have no knowledge about artists and renowned drummers. I can play double stroke rolls at 300 bpm but it looks like I am stuck and not making any progress since a long time. I have no idea what to do now. I need a structured drum path which I can follow. All resources I found online are either very high priced or the free ones are not organized and structured. I need suggestions for advancing further in drums.
Advanced Drumming
- Thread starter Saksham
- Start date
Eventually we become our best instructor...and your discipline and tenacity will determine the results.
Getting spot check-ups on your technique to help counter drift of your skills becomes the best use of exterior expertise.
The western approach to education is one of a passive learner and a lecturing teacher...now that you are out of the beginner weeds, try to break that mould.
Perhaps its time for a coach instead of a teacher?( ...or possibly both)
...and get out and play with the most experienced musicians you can as often as you can...thats where you will learn the stuff you can't get from an instruction book.
Getting spot check-ups on your technique to help counter drift of your skills becomes the best use of exterior expertise.
The western approach to education is one of a passive learner and a lecturing teacher...now that you are out of the beginner weeds, try to break that mould.
Perhaps its time for a coach instead of a teacher?( ...or possibly both)
...and get out and play with the most experienced musicians you can as often as you can...thats where you will learn the stuff you can't get from an instruction book.
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Al Strange
Platinum Member
When you say you can play pretty much anything is this across all genres? Like @Caz says, ask around and find a reputable teacher who can introduce you to a wider range of styles/players and take you to the next level in a structured way. We have some great guys on here who do virtual lessons and are well worth a look. Keep smashing it mate! 
ineedaclutch
Platinum Member
Thank you for your reply. I checked out the The Black Page and it was absolutely amazing. I do have a teacher but he is kind of a raw drummer who has tons of practical knowledge but very little to no knowledge about styles and other stuff. After I complete my Grade 8th, I will switch my teacher.Hey there, check out The Black Page by Frank Zappa
I'd advise finding a good teacher and approaching them for lessons - ask around other drummers and try to get the best teacher you can.
Good luck,
Caroline
Thank you. I completely agree with what you said about playing with experienced musicians. I have never been in any band or with any other experienced musician and I guess that is why I feel a bit lacking.
Yes, almost across all genres. I will definitely check out virtual lessons in here !When you say you can play pretty much anything is this across all genres? Like @Caz says, ask around and find a reputable teacher who can introduce you to a wider range of styles/players and take you to the next level in a structured way. We have some great guys on here who do virtual lessons and are well worth a look. Keep smashing it mate!
mikyok
Platinum Member
My best advice is to get out there and cut your teeth doing gigs. Learn to play with other musicians, how to handle yourself in good and band situations and how to be cool to hang with. You're young and by the sounds of your post you're in the look how fast I am phase. Been there, seen it done it and got the t-shirt like a lot of us here.
You'll progress to technique from here and then last but most importantly taste.
I studied moeller technique which sets you up to play for pain free for life but there's lots of amazing technique teachers out there that will bring the same outcome.
Also learn what the pocket is and get in it. You'll never be short of a gig if you can sit in the pocket and hold everything together for the rest of the band.
Jonathan Curtis
Silver Member
doggyd69b
Platinum Member
Then the next phase for you will be to try hard polyrhythms. Find a Messhuggah song and tackle it or re-invent known tracks and add your own flair on top of the existing track. (for example modify Hot For Teacher but keep most of the original intro intact.) Then, record your results and see how accurate your playing is. A lot of times when we are playing it sounds fine but after watching, we see all the mistakes. Video is not forgiving. Also play with a click track on tracks that have multiple tempo changes. The click track can be automated in a DAW so that it changes tempos as the music is playing (or even without music with a click track only). also Find a song or idea that you find or found challenging in the past, and try it now, if it is not challenging to you anymore, speed it up a lot and try it then. Music theory will probably be boring to you alone, (by alone I mean without context, and by context I mean knowing what the theory that you are learning is going to be used for). For example if you learn a certain pattern combination (perhaps a paradiddle or a rudiment) those alone might be ok for a new drummer, but for someone with some years they can be boring, but if you or your instructor use those in context, (with a song or an idea to develop musically sounding parts not just aimlessly making noise, then that exercise starts to make sense and can be a lot more enjoyable because you know what the reason to learn that is). A lot of people equate being able to play anything with being able to play fast... Just because I can play very fast blast beats, doesn't mean I can play everything else, there are a lot of songs that don't necessarily require speed, but more so endurance... this one requires both:
C
C. Dave Run
Guest
This right here:
A group of 7 in 3/4 time with a group of 3 inserted inside of it? My brain does not wrap that far around lol. Are those 10 notes played at a uniform spacing that fits in the space of 7, or is there a tempo shift involving those 3 notes?
Jonathan Curtis
Silver Member
No; imagine 7 evenly spaced notes. The first becomes two 32nd notes of twice the speed. The fourth 16th note becomes three 32nd notes within a triplet. So the two 32nd a notes at the start, and the three in the triplet in the fourth 16th note, both occur within the space of one 16th notes.
Jonathan Curtis
Silver Member
One suggestion: slap on a copy of AC/DC's "Back in Black" and learn every song on that album with the goal of perfectly replicating Phil Rudd's feel and swing.
That should keep you busy for a little while.
But with septuplets, right...?
yammyfan
Senior Member
Whatever it takes. Just get the feel right.
Black page
Junior Member
Let me throw this one in:
Seriously, You can play anything but know zip about styles. That's a contradiction. E.g. you can play left foot clave technically but don't master the style, then you can't play it. It's music first... Not? So you know what to focus on....
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Let's see.. started at 5 years old .. doing the math.. you are 16 now and looking for ways to improve your playing ability. I got thrown off by the 'I can play anything' yet have no knowledge of other drummers, technique or theory.. yet you have grade 8 Trinity college (I'm guessing it's similar to a piano grades system?).
Find a good teacher, learn to play covers of music and drummers you like and find a band..
Find a good teacher, learn to play covers of music and drummers you like and find a band..
1 hit wonder
Well-known Member
I wouldn't recommend spending a lot of time learning double bass Metal unless it's an actual interest to you and maybe you want to go all in on Metal for a time.
I see a lot of gigging bar cover bands locally and only 1 has a guy who plays much double bass. His dynamics are way intense but now he triggers everything and to me it's still not as appealing of a sound as compared to several other drummers with nothing but a kick mic. He's a passionate and polished heavy player, though. They got complaints of too much volume from club owners.
If you can master Jazz playing or Metal double bass playing you're doing something marketable and above the level of most drummers. My opinion is a master Jazz player is seen as more versatile to people hiring and paying, unless it's a Metal job. The master Metal guy has a skill not many can touch, and it's fun but mastering a simple half time shuffle is something many bar band drummers never bother learning and still get to play all they want. Metal guys around here do limited shows and lots more personal recording.
I see a lot of gigging bar cover bands locally and only 1 has a guy who plays much double bass. His dynamics are way intense but now he triggers everything and to me it's still not as appealing of a sound as compared to several other drummers with nothing but a kick mic. He's a passionate and polished heavy player, though. They got complaints of too much volume from club owners.
If you can master Jazz playing or Metal double bass playing you're doing something marketable and above the level of most drummers. My opinion is a master Jazz player is seen as more versatile to people hiring and paying, unless it's a Metal job. The master Metal guy has a skill not many can touch, and it's fun but mastering a simple half time shuffle is something many bar band drummers never bother learning and still get to play all they want. Metal guys around here do limited shows and lots more personal recording.
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jda
Diamond Member
Ok.
Listening is an important essential part.
Let's suggest going back to 1957 For a minute.
Max Roach, Art Blakey & Kenny Dorham - 1957 - Percussion Discussion
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2022 Jda
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Al Strange
Platinum Member
The more you know, the more you realise you don’t know…