Pollyanna
Platinum Member
I've been here at the DW forum for a while now and I love it when people come up with some real gems of wisdom. I thought it would be nice to have a thread where we could compile the ones that really made a difference to you. Early on the push to go back to using a metronome helped for me.
A few more that come to mind:
Almost all of the Re: Tightness / Microtiming thread. There were some great comments but this very simple one hit the spot for me (because I can get too uptight and anal about my drumming):
There were some pearlers in the Re: Consistency of musical performance thread:
and
Another thread with lots of goodies was Something We All Should Know!, such as:
I tried this one out tonight at practice and it made a tangible difference.
Thanks to everyone who's pumped the product of their busy brain cells into this forum to turn it into such a mine of information
Any gems of wisdom here that made a mark on you?
A few more that come to mind:
Almost all of the Re: Tightness / Microtiming thread. There were some great comments but this very simple one hit the spot for me (because I can get too uptight and anal about my drumming):
I have the same problem with my playing it seems like. Don't buy a bunch of books or anything like that, it's mental. When I play it sounds good, but it doesn't quite flow perfectly. It's because I think about it too much. I think about everything i'm doing and making sure it's precise, but by doing this i'm taking away from my sound and feel. Just don't think about it. You have to know where you're taking the band so i suppose you do think about that. You have to feel, don't think. You'll be able to express yourself more also and that's what drumming is all about!
branflakes992
branflakes992
There were some pearlers in the Re: Consistency of musical performance thread:
In order to have consistency, we must practice consistency. I don't know how you practice, but often we flit about from this to that without a lot of focus and staying power. This results in half-digesting concepts and often we don't really own a lot of what we can play. It's these half-digested, unowned movements that will tend to be the first thing to go on a bad day. So in order to raise our median level, we need to choose some of these things and really work at them for long periods of time so that they become second nature - i.e. part of our median level. This means practicing things like consistent time, or practicing moving in and out of our favorite fills at all tempo ranges and with all manner of grooves. It might mean taking a beat that sounds great one day and pants the next and working on nothing but that for a week. We also need to practice physical and mental endurance, because in my experience one of the biggest causes of inconsistent playing is fatigue and a lack of focus. If your limit on your best days is intense playing for 30-40 minutes, then on your bad days you're going to have trouble playing a 40 minute set with ease.
Boomka
Boomka
and
See, the difference between that simple rock beat that was the first thing you ever learned and that Weckl 5/8 funk groove is that you have done that rock beat so much at every level and for so long that you never think about any part of it anymore because it is so internalised. It has literally become a part of you, to the point that even on a bad day you could still play it with your eyes closed and your mind switched off, whereas that funk groove has only been worked at a little bit and so on a bad day, you still need to think about it a lot and your limbs might be feeling sluggish, and your synapses aren't firing properly because of the booze you had the night before ....or whatever. That's the only difference.
So, you have to practice everything as you have that simplest of rock beats. Play everything slow, slow, slow up to medium, fast and super-fast. Then, add accents everywhere from slow, to super-fast, then play it backwards, sidewards, upside down, macro-cosmically and micro-cosmically.
Focus on a few things but master them completely. Then, and only then, will you rarely have bad days and even when you do have those bad days you will still play better than most people on their good days!
Jazzin'
So, you have to practice everything as you have that simplest of rock beats. Play everything slow, slow, slow up to medium, fast and super-fast. Then, add accents everywhere from slow, to super-fast, then play it backwards, sidewards, upside down, macro-cosmically and micro-cosmically.
Focus on a few things but master them completely. Then, and only then, will you rarely have bad days and even when you do have those bad days you will still play better than most people on their good days!
Jazzin'
Another thread with lots of goodies was Something We All Should Know!, such as:
The best way I've found to get a good tempo is to detach. Play the song like you're recording the 50th take of it, and just want to get it done and go home. Don't "get into it" just play your part and don't get emotionally caught up in the fills and how good it feels. As wrong as that sounds, the end result (from my trials anyway) is when I detach and play it without getting all in to it, it sounds like I am "getting into it". It's backwards. I look at it like, I'm not allowed to "get into it" so the crowd can (and the recording sounds better, and the bandmates are more relaxed when you're not champing at the bit to try and add unnecessary energy, you should just play the part).
Charlie Chaplin used to say that most actors overact. He would give them the scene, what he wanted them to convey, and right before the camera rolled, he'd say, "now play the part poorly" In other words, don't overact, don't do too good of a job. I think it parallels the point I'm trying to make. I used to be guilty of "overacting" Now it hardly ever happens thanks to my recorder, and I'm much happier on playback.
Larry
Charlie Chaplin used to say that most actors overact. He would give them the scene, what he wanted them to convey, and right before the camera rolled, he'd say, "now play the part poorly" In other words, don't overact, don't do too good of a job. I think it parallels the point I'm trying to make. I used to be guilty of "overacting" Now it hardly ever happens thanks to my recorder, and I'm much happier on playback.
Larry
I tried this one out tonight at practice and it made a tangible difference.
Thanks to everyone who's pumped the product of their busy brain cells into this forum to turn it into such a mine of information
Any gems of wisdom here that made a mark on you?