Advice on marching snare drums ergonomics, carriers, technique

WaitForItDrummer

Senior Member
Hi guys,
So I'm getting into marching snare playing and need advice from anyone experienced.

It's actually joining a samba Bateria on snare. I've been to to first session with my Ludwig Acro and they let me borrow a strap. Had a Blast! :D
But not sure about the comfort/ergonomics of carrying a drumkit snare with just a waist strap. Also my right hand was killing me at the end of session (even though I'm told my right hand technique is good now. Left hand was fine (trad grip) which is also weird because my left hand technique tends to lag behind my right.

Anyway, questions to any experienced marching snare players:
- do I need a samba snare or marching snare? Or is using a drumkit snare make no difference? (Rather use what I have unless it's bad for technique)
- what snare carrier is best for long term ergonomics, technique? Waist strap? Djembe strap over the shoulders? Stiff marching snare carrier?
- do you use a different right hand technique when marching vs a kit? (On RH, I use matched, with intermediate level Moeller technique, but my hand was killing me after two hours. Not injured, not CTS, just tired and sore the next day)
I never get this on kit playing now, so something is different
LH (trad) was fine.

Any advice is most appreciated :)
Cheers,
Kate
 
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If you have to march around Rio all night, get a stiff snare carrier, but it won't hold a standard snare drum without some modification. You can adjust the height, but it will have to stay centred and level, better for matched grip. They're also expensive, although a cheap one will probably do fine.

If its only an hour or two, a strap around your waist and a shoulder strap might do. Keep it low for your right hand, or play to the side using traditional grip. If its at your side, it will bounce up and down as you walk.
 
The modern stiff stuff is way more practical and comfy. You can have it flat or tilt it to either side. But yeah, there needs to be an attachment on the drum itself similar to a strap lock.
 
Cheers, guys. This is great stuff.
Marching around Rio all night would be awesome. :D It's more likely to a few hours, but want to be comfortable.

I saw these cheaper marching snares with carrier:

14" X 12" Marching Snare Drum with Carrier by Gear4music https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B009X63ZJ0/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awd_HF2gxbT7G64YT

Are these any good?
Or not so much?
 
That's not a professional quality drumline snare, but would be perfectly good for your purpose. (I hate the sound of tightly tuned drumline snares anyway.)

However, you should find out if the other players are using deep or shallow snares. In my mind I picture thin, shallow sized snares for a samba school.
 
That's not a professional quality drumline snare, but would be perfectly good for your purpose. (I hate the sound of tightly tuned drumline snares anyway.)

However, you should find out if the other players are using deep or shallow snares. In my mind I picture thin, shallow sized snares for a samba school.

Thanks, Morrisman. Agree that's prob a beginner quality one.

The other players use 14x5 standard drumkit looking snares. Some have a samba snare, caixa, 13 or 12 in in diameter and a bit deeper than 5 in looking.

It comes across as quite an informal drum group, don't think they are aiming for uniformity, but I can ask!
 
Playing samba is a whole different thing than regular marching percussion. Normally with those groups you use a Brazilian-style caixa-- pronounced KY-sha. Usually they're around 12x6", or there's the caixa tarol that's ~14x3". You could get away with using your Acrolite. Usually they're carried by a strap, or in a raised position by the left arm. Usually they're played traditional grip, but it's a very right-handed instrument-- the left hand mostly just fills in quietly, and left hand technique is what we would consider to be "bad."

Here are some more videos of people who know what they're doing.

Samba is a lot of fun-- have a great time with it.
 
Playing samba is a whole different thing than regular marching percussion. Normally with those groups you use a Brazilian-style caixa-- pronounced KY-sha. Usually they're around 12x6", or there's the caixa tarol that's ~14x3". You could get away with using your Acrolite. Usually they're carried by a strap, or in a raised position by the left arm. Usually they're played traditional grip, but it's a very right-handed instrument-- the left hand mostly just fills in quietly, and left hand technique is what we would consider to be "bad."

Here are some more videos of people who know what they're doing.

Samba is a lot of fun-- have a great time with it.

Many thanks for all these links and advice,Todd. It's very much appreciated!
I'll try to come up with a comfortable way to play that also fosters good technique. Love the raising the drum over the shoulders but playing like that seems a like a whole different thing!
 
I'd spend money on a caixa or repinique if you are going to spend some of those pound thingys anyway. That would be more fun to play with than some weird carrier thing when you aren't doing the Samba thing.

Surdos are awesome too. Gotta have dependable folks on surdo or your Samba wont rock.

With one of the drums they use what we called whippy sticks. Thin flexible sticks, green, harvested off of a tree. I think that was on repinique.

Its been a while but I spent some time dragging a random floor tom and a freaking 1000 lb. Vistalite snare on nothing but a strap grabbed off of a shoulder bag around the waist with a folded up towel for cushion. 90 + F on blacktop for 90 minutes too. But yeah it was grooving and a blast.

Gotta do some Samba-Reggae.
 
Many thanks for all these links and advice,Todd. It's very much appreciated!
I'll try to come up with a comfortable way to play that also fosters good technique. Love the raising the drum over the shoulders but playing like that seems a like a whole different thing!

I couldn't play that way-- I'd have to play it somewhat like a normal drum. I used to just run a belt through the tension rods and strap it on that way-- the straps are too floppy for me, and it kept the drum more level for traditional grip. Here's the drum I used-- kind of ridiculously expensive to get them in the US/in Europe, they're such cheap drums. Maybe see if anyone in your group is going to Brazil soon-- maybe they can bring you back a drum.
 
Does anyone know what Don Fiasko's group uses?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVs1ph7-MD8

Is that a traditional caixa dressed up differently with some second line snare parts mixed in?

I see surdo and a regular wooden snare. You can hear the regular snares. Caixa are drier and don't have as many snares.

event_185416382.jpeg


Repinique has no snares.

90411_l.jpg


This knocks me out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3o30YJiWsc

Samba Reggae. Don't forget to pronounce your "r" as an "h".

Good size mallets on the surdo. Whippy sticks on the repinique. Regular sticks on the caixa.
 
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