My first drum teacher taught me how to play what he called "boodalas". That was his name for what a lot of people call "John Bonham triplets":
LRF LRF LRF LRF etc.
I decided that three-limb rolls (boodalas and the like) are not for me.
Lately, though, I've started practicing them at very slow tempos, not because I want to use them when I'm playing, but because they seem like great exercises for developing dynamic control.
I play them with a strong accent on the first beat of every triplet, listening to what my left hand is doing and trying to get a nice consistent series of notes with even volume. Then I try to play with all three notes at the same volume.
At the same time I'm trying to pull a nice tone from each drum instead of just scratching at the heads, and I'm trying to hit each drum dead centre.
I'm moving at a snail's pace, not trying to get any quicker, and not expecting the rolls to be anything I'd actually use in my playing.
This exercise seems to be improving the "tone" of my playing, not my chops.
Whaddayathink? Does it sound like something worth spending time on? I'm thinking it might become a standard warm up exercise for me, and it might be good for sound checks.
LRF LRF LRF LRF etc.
I decided that three-limb rolls (boodalas and the like) are not for me.
Lately, though, I've started practicing them at very slow tempos, not because I want to use them when I'm playing, but because they seem like great exercises for developing dynamic control.
I play them with a strong accent on the first beat of every triplet, listening to what my left hand is doing and trying to get a nice consistent series of notes with even volume. Then I try to play with all three notes at the same volume.
At the same time I'm trying to pull a nice tone from each drum instead of just scratching at the heads, and I'm trying to hit each drum dead centre.
I'm moving at a snail's pace, not trying to get any quicker, and not expecting the rolls to be anything I'd actually use in my playing.
This exercise seems to be improving the "tone" of my playing, not my chops.
Whaddayathink? Does it sound like something worth spending time on? I'm thinking it might become a standard warm up exercise for me, and it might be good for sound checks.