"Wake 'n Break" Series

Today's wake 'n break is a typical samba pattern for pandeiro, but there is a finger roll replacing the traditional primeira note. Taking the thumb first, we have notes falling on 1 and 3. Next, our finger tips are playing notes on the "e" and "a" of 1, the "a" of 2, the "e" and "a" of 3, and on the "a" of 4 with finger rolls on 2 and 4. Lastly, our palm is falling on the "&" of beat. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1654 - Basic Samba Pattern For Pandeiro But Finger Rolls Replace The Premeira
 
For the past few days, I've had early gigs so I haven't been able to unpack my kit. This morning was another one of those early ones, so I managed to record this quick little diddy using four small mason jars, a pandeiro, and two butter knives. Go forth and create something, even when your instrument isn't on hand. You may not even like what you come up with, but create nonetheless. Someone else may find inspiration in it. I can't stress this enough!

Wake n Break No. 1655 - Four Jars, Two Butter Knives, And A Pandeiro
 
Today's wake 'n break is another pandeiro groove, but this one is a two bar partido alto pattern comprised of a bar of 4/4 and one bar of 7/8 (at least that's how I hear it! lol). This groove also starts with a hip pick up on the "e" of 4. As always, I hope you dig it and I should be back behind a drum kit tomorrow!

Wake n Break No. 1656 - Odd Two Bar Partido Alto Groove For Pandeiro
 
Thank goodness it's Friday! :) Today's wake 'n break has me back behind my main drum set, so I came up with a backbeat that utilizes a chicked hi-hat and a Hammerax Bash. Starting with the hi-hats, we have notes falling on "1&2&3&4&" in the first bar with accents on all of the downbeats. In the second bar, however, we have notes falling on "1&2&", (again with the downbeat accents) a chicked hi-hat note on 3, and then an open note on the "&" of 4. Moving along to the bass drum, we have notes falling on 1 and the "a" of 1, the "&" of 2, and on the "e" of 3 in the first bar, followed by notes on 1, the "a" of 1, and on the "&" of 2 in the second bar. Next, our snare drum is playing accented notes on 2 and 4 and last but not least, the Hammerax Bash is falling on the "&" of 3 in the second bar. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1657 - Two Bar Backbeat With A Boomywang And Chicked Hi-Hats

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is a baiao groove that utilizes a Peruvian nut shaker to strike the drums. Taking our feet first, our bass drum is falling on 1 and the "a" of 1, the "&" of 2, on 3 and the "a" of 3, and on the "&" of 4. Meanwhile, our hi-hats are being chicked on all of the upbeats or "&'s". Moving along to the snare drum, we have notes falling on "1e" and on "3e". Next, our floor tom has notes falling on "2e" and on "4e&". Last but not least, the high tom has notes falling on the "a" of each beat and it is played with a stick. As always, I hope you dig it and that you're having a great weekend!

Wake n Break No. 1658 - Baiao Groove Utilizing Peruvian Nut Shakers On The Drums

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is a swung backbeat that utilizes a tamborica, but you can easily apply the pattern to any drum or cymbal. Taking the feet first, our bass drum is falling on 1 and the "a" of 1, the "&" of 3, and on the "e" of 4. Meanwhile, our hi-hats are providing the groove with it's swing by being chicked on all of the upbeats or "&'s". Next, our snare drum is providing the backbeat on 2 and 4. Last but not least, the tamborim pattern has notes falling on the "&a" of 1, on "2e&a", on 3 and the "&a" of 3, and on the "&" of 4. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1659 - Swung Backbeat With Sixteenth Note Tamborica Pattern

Notation available at:
 
A new week is upon us once again! :) Today's wake 'n break is a two bar phrase that has a press roll for half of the first bar, followed by open sixteenth notes in the second bar. Taking the feet first, our bass drum is falling on 1 and the "a" of 1 in the first bar, followed by notes on 1 and the "a" of 1, the "&" of 2, and on the "e" of 3 in the second bar. Meanwhile, our hi-hats are keeping a quarter note pulse throughout both bars. Last but not least, we come to our snare drum. In the first bar, we have a press roll starting on the "&" of 2 and ending on the 1 of the second bar. Finally, we have a sixteenth note crescendo in the second bar falling on "1e&a, 2e&a, 3e&a", and then on 4 and the "&a" of 4. As always, I hope you dig it and here's to everyone's week starting off on the good foot!

Wake n Break No. 1660 - Rolled Groove With Sixteenth Note Snare Crescendo In Second Bar

Sorry, but I didn't have time to notate this one this morning.
 
Today's wake 'n break is a triplet based backbeat that has a hint of shuffle to it (think "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" by Tears For Fears, which I have actually broken down earlier in this series). Taking the hi-hats first, we have a steady slew of eighth note triplets falling on "1 trip let, 2 trip let, 3 trip let, and 4 trip let", with accents on the "trip" of 1, 2 and the "let" of 2, the "trip" of 3, and on 4 and the "let" of 4. Looking at the bass drum next, we have notes falling on "1 trip let", the "let" of 2, the "trip" and "let" of 3, and on the "let" of 4. Last but not least, our snare drum has accented notes on 2 and 4. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1661 - Triplet Backbeat With Anticipated Triplet Accents On The Hi-Hats

Notation available at:
 
Happy Humpday! ? Today's wake 'n break is a sparse groove in 6/4 where the hi-hat foot is keeping a steady eighth note pulse and the snare drum has a subtle trail of ghost notes. Looking at the feet first, our hi-hats are falling on "1&2&3&4&5&6&" while our bass drum is falling on 1, 3, and 5. Next, our snare drum has an accented note on the "&" of 5, followed by ghost notes on "6&". Last but not least, we have a single ride bell note on the "&" of 5. I think I may continue exploring this idea more tomorrow, because a mistaken snare hit at about :28 seconds into this video has given me inspiration. As always, I hope you dig it and hang in there because we're already halfway through the workweek!

Wake n Break No. 1662 - Sparse Groove In 6/4 With Steady Hats And Trailed Snare Notes

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is an uptempo groove that has a "train" feel to it, but it's being broken up between the bass drum, snare drum, hi-hats, and ride cymbal. Taking the feet first, our bass drum has a steady eighth note pulse falling on "1& 2& 3& 4&" while our hi-hats are being chicked on all of the upbeats or "&'s". Next, our snare drum has notes falling on "1e" and the "a" of 1, on "2e" and the "a" of 2, on "3e" and the "a" of 3, and on "4e" and the "a" of 4, with accents on the "a" of 3 and on the "a" of 4. Last but not least, our ride cymbal is being played on all of the upbeats or "&'s". As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1663 - An Uptempo And Broken Up Train Groove With Steady Bass Drum & Upbeat Hi-Hats

Notation available at:
 
Thank goodness it's Friday! :) Today's wake 'n break is a broken linear backbeat with a hand to hand 32nd note pattern on the hi-hats, as well as anticipated hi-hat openings. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on "1e", the "a" of 2, and on the "e" of 3. Looking at the hi-hats next, we have a short 32nd note flurry on the "&" of 1 and another on the "&" of 3. We also have open notes falling on the "&" of 2, and on the "e" and "a" of 4. Last but not least, our snare drum has accented notes falling on 2 and 4. As always, I hope you dig it and have a great weekend!

Wake n Break No. 1664 - Broken Linear Backbeat With Hand To Hand 32nd Notes & Anticipated Hi-Hat Openings

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is a 6/8 halftime backbeat on top of a multi-pedal ostinato, which in this case is split up among the bass drum pedal and two sets of hi-hats. You can tell this is a brand new ostinato for me just by looking at the tightness and awkwardness of my movement. lol Taking the ostinato first, our bass drum is falling on "1&" and "4&" while our main set of hi-hats are being chicked on 2, the "&" of 3, on 5, and on the "&" of 6. Meanwhile, our auxiliary hats are being chicked on the "&" of 2, on 3, on the "&" of 5, and on 6. Moving along to the ride cymbal, we have a notes falling on 1 and 4. Last but not least, our snare drum has an accented note on 4, followed by a ghost note on the "&" of 4. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1665 - Halftime Backbeat w/ Multi Pedal Ostinato In 6/8

Notation available at:
 
Sorry for posting so late today. Today's wake 'n break is a two bar groove in 3/4 time that is based on the polyrhythm of three against four. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on 1 and the "a" of 1, the "&" of 2, and on the "e" of 3 in both bars. Looking at the hi-hats next, we have notes falling on 1 and the "&a" of 1, the "&a" of 2, and the "&" of 3 in the first bar, followed by notes on the "e" of 1, on 2 and the "&a" of 2, and an open note on the "&" of 3 in the second bar. Last but not least, the snare drum has accented notes falling on 3 in both bars, as well as ghost notes filling in all of the notes between the hi-hat and snare accents. No notation today because I have a wicked headache. I'll try and add it tomorrow. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1666 - Two Bar Polyrhythmic Groove In 3/4 w/ Heavily Ghosted Snare Drum
 
A new week is upon us once again! :) Today's wake 'n break utilizes the samba foot ostinato to create a rock groove instead of playing a traditional samba. Taking the foot ostinato first, the bass drum is falling on 1 and the "a" of 1, 2 and the "a" of 2, 3 and the "a" of 3, and on 4 and the "a" of 4. Meanwhile, the hi-hats are being chicked on all of the upbeats or "&'s". Next, our ride bell is falling in unison with the bass drum and last but not least, our snare drum has accented notes on 2, the "e" of 3, and on 4. As always, I hope you dig it and here's to everyone's week starting off on the good foot!

Wake n Break No. 1667 - Using The Samba Foot Ostinato To Create A Rock Groove

Notation available at:
 
Today's wake 'n break is built around a ride pattern that is a variation based on the mozambique. Taking the ride cymbal first, we have notes falling on 1 and the "&a" of 1, on 2 and the "&a" of 2, the "e&" of 3, and on "4e" and the "a" of 4. Looking at the bass drum next, we have notes falling on "1&", the "&" of 2, and on the "a" of 4. Next, our snare drum has an accented note on the "a" of 2, as well as ghost notes falling on the "e" of 1, the "e" of 2, on 3 and the "a" of 3, and on the "&" of 4. Last but not least, our hi-hats are being chicked on all of the upbeats or "&'s". As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1668 - Mozambique Variation With An Anticipated Snare Accent & Upbeat Hi-Hats

Notation available at:
 
Happy Humpday! ?Today's wake 'n break is an odd time linear groove in 5/4 with a short open hi-hat accent. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on 1, 2, the "&" of 4 and the "&" of 5. Looking at the hi-hats next, we have notes falling on the "&" of 1 and on the "&" of 2, the "&" of 3, on 4, and then an open note on the "&" of 4. Last but not least, the snare drum has a single accented note on 3. As always, I hope you dig it and much love! No notation today. Pressed for time.

Wake n Break No. 1669 - Linear Groove In 5/4 With A Short Open Hi-Hat Accent
 
Today's wake 'n break is a two bar linear groove with a bit of a broken drum 'n bass feel. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on 1, the "&" of 2 in both bars, with an additional note on the "&" of 3 in the second bar. Looking at the hi-hats next, we have notes falling on the "&" of 1, on 3, and on the "&" of 4 in the first bar, followed by notes on the "&" of 1 and an open note on the "&" of 4 in the second bar. Last but not least, we come to the snare drum. In the first bar, we have notes falling on 2 and on the "&" of 3 in the first bar, followed by notes on "3e" and on 4 in the second bar. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1670 - Two Bar Linear Groove With A Broken Drum 'N Bass Feel

Notation available at:
 
Thank goodness it's Friday! :) Today's wake 'n break is a two bar backbeat where the majority of the bass drum notes are falling in anticipated spots (meaning the "e's" and "a's"). Taking the hi-hats first, we have notes falling on 1 and the "&a" of 1, 2 and the "&a" of 2, 3 and the "&a" of 3, and on 4 and the "&a" of 4, and this remains constant throughout both bars. Looking at the bass drum next, we have notes falling on the "e" of 1, the "e" of 2, on the "e" of 3, and on the "a" of 4 in the first bar, followed a single note on the "&" of 1 in the second bar. Last but not least, our snare drum is laying down the backbeat on 2 and 4 throughout both bars. As always, I hope you dig it and have a great weekend!

Wake n Break No. 1671 - Two Bar Backbeat With Anticipated And Upbeat Bass Drum Notes

Notation available at:
 
Saturday night's alright for fighting but even better for drumming! Today's wake 'n break is a quasi-linear groove in 6/4 that is broken up between the bass drum, snare drum, and hi-hat. I can see how some people may feel the groove as two bars of 3/4 as well. Taking the bass drum first, we have notes falling on "1&", the "a" of 3, on "4&", and on the "a" of 6. Looking at the snare drum next, we have accented notes falling on 2 and the "a" of 2, on 3, and on the "e" and "a" of 5, as well a ruff on 5. Last but not least, our hi-hats have notes falling on the "e&" of 2, the "e&" of 3, an open note on the "a" of 5, and then a quick buzzed note on the "a" of 6. As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1672 - Quasi-Linear Groove In 6/4

NOTE: I apologize for the poor video quality and the flashing light show. A loose bulb in my track lighting was shorting out with the damn bass drum notes. lol
 
Today's wake 'n break is 6/8 backbeat built around the polyrhythm of three against four. Taking the feet first, we have our bass drum falling on 1, the "&" of 2, on 4, and on the "&" of 5 while our hi-hats are being chicked on 1, 3, and 5. Moving along to the ride cymbal, we have notes falling on "1& 2& 3& 4& 5& 6&" with bell accents on the "&" of 1, on 3, the "&" of 4, and on 6. Last but not least, our snare drum has an accented note on 3 and then cross stick notes on "6&". As always, I hope you dig it and much love!

Wake n Break No. 1673 - A Polyrhythmic Backbeat In 6/8

Notation available at:
 
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