To your Surprise

Feeling the difference between a normal rebound and a double stroke. Once I could actually feel the difference, my doubles took off.

Being able to listen to the two separate sounds the lugs make when tuning. It took me hearing two guitars tuning to recognize what goes on when the sounds unify, but the process is the same when bringing them together.

The train beat. I suck at it, and probably always will, but it clicked a while back and I can do it now. Poorly, but I can still do it.
 
I can't read music OR write it but a lite bulb moment for me was when I (saw) a drummer do a lick that baffled me forever but thought was unattainable. It's this one..RL snare..B bass drum.R floor tom L mount tom B drum 3 times then repeat. When I first saw a drummer do this it was as if a magic genie appeared out of a lamp and granted a wish. I was mesmerized when I could do something I'd heard on record countless times but it was way out of my league UNTIL. I still think back on that.
 
MrInsanePolack said:
Feeling the difference between a normal rebound and a double stroke. Once I could actually feel the difference, my doubles took off.

Being able to listen to the two separate sounds the lugs make when tuning. It took me hearing two guitars tuning to recognize what goes on when the sounds unify, but the process is the same when bringing them together.

The train beat. I suck at it, and probably always will, but it clicked a while back and I can do it now. Poorly, but I can still do it.
Click to expand...
The double thing you mentioned may just be a key for me. That could be it all along. This will be on my mind now..ill be conscious of this while I'm down on the pad this week.
 
The moment I understood the difference between (limb) independence, and interdependence.

It wasn't a specific lesson, and I probably didn't know what interdependence really meant, but I was watching a clinic, and something the guy did suddenly clicked with me. He was demonstrating independence by showing his left hand playing a 3-2 clave, against his right hand playing a 3-2 clave. He made it seem like there was a lot of concentration involved, and I don't think he was trying to fool anyone. But while sitting there watching and listening, I quickly figured out what he was doing, and it was very simple.

At that moment, I realized that how the limbs working with each other was more important than how they work independently. I don't think I knew the term interdependence at that point, but when I heard it, I knew exactly what it meant. And I also learned that once two limbs learn to work with each other, any limb can work with another without the typical left-handed or right-handed limitations.

FWIW, I never did use a 2-3 vs 3-2 clave, but I demonstrate it whenever I mention that clinic, and it translates even without sticks or drums.
 
I had a light bulb moment listening back to the recording I made of the first band I tried out for as a drummer. I had owned and messed around with drums for many years at that point but was intimidated by the many "real" drummers I know who had all played since early childhood. I realized my perspective from having stood on the other side of the kit for years was actually an advantage for some things like balancing volume.
 
Mine was really early. I don't know how long I'd been playing a kit (I started on snare)--it might have been six months, it might have been over a year--but I was trying and trying and trying to get a kind of Motown pattern going: snare on 2 and 4, kick on 1 and &3, but with quarter notes on the hats. I could play the pattern no problem as long as I played eighth notes on the hats, but whenever I switched to quarter notes, my right hand would follow my right foot and play along with the kick, rather than staying consistent. It was so frustrating and I felt so stupid but I just kept trying and trying and I can still feel the rush of that very first time I separated the two limbs and achieved the most rudimentary limb independence. It was so freeing and I felt like I'd unlocked some magical mystery.

Of course, it's all been downhill from there.
 
Last edited:
Oh Wow moment ? When I realized that having my ride cymbal in close in a comfortable position was far more important than a bunch of rack toms. I rarely use anything but a four piece kit anymore . I own kits with more than one rack , rarely use them . I don’t like stretching or exerting more effort than necessary for playing cymbals . This goes especially for ride cymbal positioning .

One other “Oh Wow” moment was watching and learning the Moeller Method video with Jim Chapin . It changed the way I play , gave me more fluidity and the ability to relax and to play faster with less effort .
 
first OH WOW [1972ish] - hearing dad play along to Sing, Sing, Sing when I was 3 or 4
second OH WOW [1972ish] - dad teaching me to play Sing, Sing, Sing at age 3 or 4 <--- that was the most important one; I knew that I wanted to be a drummer for my life
third OH WOW [1978] - hearing Ohio States marching drums live for the first time
fourth OH WOW [1980] - hearing the drum solo in YYZ on the live version from Exit...Stage Left
fifth OH WOW [1980] - my first drum lesson
sixth OH WOW [1983] - first live gig in front of people in a club
seventh OH WOW [1997] - playing in front of more than 3000 people opening up for David Byrne;
eight OH WOW [2004] - getting to teach the son of one of my best friends who I did band with in high school; I carried him out of the hospital when they were discharged after him being born; I have now had the privilege to teach children of 3 of the people I was in band with, and one of my very first students as well
ninth OH WOW [2009] - winning my first championship with the high school indoor drumline group
tenth OH WOW [2015] - playing in a legit jazz band for the first time, and not getting fired...still going strong!!!
eleventh OH WOW [2017] - having a heart attack
twelfth OH WOW [current] - looking back and seeing that I got to be a drummer for a living, and still get to....
 
Playing a simple kick/snare/hats/ride kit. Liberating and intensely satisfying to play the groove and simple fills. Now when i listen to many recordings, it sounds like the toms are steping on the toes of the song.
 

Attachments

  • BDAA7BB6-A0DE-4A0C-84CB-7DA405FAFEAA.jpeg
    BDAA7BB6-A0DE-4A0C-84CB-7DA405FAFEAA.jpeg
    633.6 KB · Views: 1
Odd time signatures...I think "Black Dog" by Zep was my first experience with them. I was maybe 9 or 10, had no idea what I was playing, but I managed to play "Black Dog" in time while Yes and ELP just confused the heck out of me. In middle school band when I was 11, I got bumped up to intermediate band, and we learned about odd time sigs and how to count them and not get lost. That was my light bulb moment. Ever since then, I've had no problems with playing or figuring out odd time sigs...it's something I seem to be able to do fairly naturally...on bass and guitar. Almost got "Black Dog" up to par again but that durn ELP can still confuse the heck out of me sometimes, though :D
 
  • Like!!
Reactions: Tob
Playing a simple kick/snare/hats/ride kit. Liberating and intensely satisfying to play the groove and simple fills. Now when i listen to many recordings, it sounds like the toms are steping on the toes of the song.
 
JimmyM said:
Odd time signatures...I think "Black Dog" by Zep was my first experience with them. I was maybe 9 or 10, had no idea what I was playing, but I managed to play "Black Dog" in time while Yes and ELP just confused the heck out of me. In middle school band when I was 11, I got bumped up to intermediate band, and we learned about odd time sigs and how to count them and not get lost. That was my light bulb moment. Ever since then, I've had no problems with playing or figuring out odd time sigs...it's something I seem to be able to do fairly naturally...on bass and guitar. Almost got "Black Dog" up to par again but that durn ELP can still confuse the heck out of me sometimes, though :D
Click to expand...
It was confusing to Carl as well:
 
larryace said:
It's common courtesy for the OP to provide an example, you know to start the ball rolling.

So let's have it JG :)

My entry: 12 strands instead of 20 or more.

This qualifies because I was definitely surprised and actually said, "Oh Wow"

I'll be doing a thread on snare wires real soon.
Click to expand...
A wire on snare threads even?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top