Larry
"Uncle Larry"
I also disagree with Watso about stick height. My accents come from the velocity of my stick. I can play quietly with a huge stick height, or accent with a relatively low stick height if I try hard enough. Of course if I'm playing really loud my sticks will be higher as a natural result, but that's because I'm using more velocity, I don't think "I will raise my stick height to play louder."
While Watso is generally correct, you are more technically correct.
Thanks guys for fighting my battles for me! Nice to have someone have your back!
Dynamics aren't talked enough about here. It is more than volume, it's feel. It's texture. Mainly, it's musical maturity. It's a tactic every drummer needs to do. Dynamics....happen on the bandstand. Like I don't go down to my practice room and say, OK I'm gonna work on my dynamics. It just doesn't happen like that. Dynamics are a result of both listening and knowing..... when to pull back, kick it up, or hold it steady as she goes.
It's also a team effort. A dynamic drummer with a band full of one volume players...is better than nothing lol! But my point is to really make dynamics work, everyone has to be on the same page musically speaking. Best case scenario whoever is leading the band has a refined sense of dynamics and signals any dynamic change. The band I'm in... literally can turn on a dime at any time, and that is sooo cool because everyone gets it and is paying attention to the leader, who is quite the capable musician. I'm spoiled in that respect, dynamics come easy for me because I'm not the only one doing them. But when a drummer has the control of their instrument...and the maturity to know that you don't have to play at 100% capacity at all times...then really wonderful things can happen, really wonderfully lol.