Beginner question...how to play a 4 piece on sheet music written for a 5 piece?

cajun voyage

Junior Member
I've only been playing a couple of months and have my 4 piece setup with the tom just to the left of the bass and basically behind my snare. I'm beginning to read music and follow and play some simple measures.


The 4 piece seems to work fine most of the time for the simple stuff I'm doing right now, except when it comes to fills and playing around the kit. Example, the sheet music calls for 4 notes on snare, high-tom, mid-tom and floor tom respectively. I only have one mounted 8x12 tom and a 16x16 floor tom.



Is there a basic rule-of-thumb when it comes to this situation? Should I play 4 notes on snare, tom, floor tom, then 4 on the snare again? Or should I play 4 notes on snare, 4 notes on tom and then 8 on floor tom?



I'm just looking for something simple to do to get me through the exercises and then later when I'm more experienced I'll get more creative with it.



Thanks.
 
In most situations it's probably okay to either split the difference and use both toms a little more, or to just decide and weight it one way or the other.

There's no right answer that fits all... You'll have to use the ol' noggin to decide how you want that space to sound since you don't have the exact configurations they had when writing.

As a beginner, and working from the book, I suppose the safest route in my estimation is just to play the middle tom notes on the one high tom. As you get better you can start to use dynamics to play the first notes at a softer volume so it sounds, well, more dynamic!
 
Agree with the Dr. There really isn't a rule of thumb besides spreading the notes out somehow that is pleasing and works for the music. A good option for a simple 16th note fill like that is snare, tom, snare, floor. That flows pretty easily but there lots of ways of doing it. Go ahead and experiment, it's not too soon.
 
Agree with the Dr. There really isn't a rule of thumb besides spreading the notes out somehow that is pleasing and works for the music..

Agreed.


As a beginner, and working from the book, I suppose the safest route in my estimation is just to play the middle tom notes on the one high tom. As you get better you can start to use dynamics to play the first notes at a softer volume so it sounds, well, more dynamic!

Exactly what I would do/have done.
 
You could do the literal thing and just leave out those parts that are supposed to be on a drum you don't have. That would present an interesting interpretation, if not give the piece a sense of space ;)
 
I've only been playing a couple of months ... I'm beginning to read music and follow and play some simple measures.


The 4 piece seems to work fine most of the time for the simple stuff I'm doing right now, except ... the sheet music calls for 4 notes on snare, high-tom, mid-tom and floor tom respectively. I only have one mounted 8x12 tom and a 16x16 floor tom.



Is there a basic rule-of-thumb when it comes to this situation?....

If you have been playing a couple of months and are no previous expert reader (example, read difficult piano pieces etc. in the past) I cuestion the eficacy your studies (are you teaching yourself or you have a techer?). You should be concentrating on combinations of figures and rests and not in PITCH yet, unless we talk about bass drum, snare, hh and cymbal.

Now to answer what you asked, there is no norm, but to mimic the difficulty of technically using a second tom THE USUAL thing is to play those notes ON THE RIDE CYMBAL, since normally is where the second tom is located.

ME PLAYING A FOUR PIECE SET (VIDEO): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGngCan1eg0

Best regards!

Alex Sanguinetti
 
Using the ride as a tom replacement is not something I've ever heard recommended before. Learning to incorporate ride notes in your fills is important, but I still think it's better for a beginner to just play the notes on the toms.

Which brings me to my next point. There's no "right" way to learn the drums and one person's opinion of what you should be learning and in what order will usually be different from another person's. On that note, please don't think there's anything wrong with working through books on your own as you're up to now. Some really fantastic drummers have learned on their own and it's okay to let your playing goals dictate what order you learn to understand different techniques and patterns in; especially given that we all have different goals and reasons to play. This is all just my opinion, of course. I'll also add that I think getting a competent teacher is a fantastic idea for anyone considering it.
 
Using the ride as a tom replacement is not something I've ever heard recommended before....

It took me a while to understand, but I think that what Alex was suggesting was using the ride as an object to hit instead of a second tom, to practice the mechanics of having a second tom.

That said, I question the value of doing that because:
1. It will sound weird AF
2. Once you have learnt a pattern, moving it around the kit is usually fairly easy.
 
I don't know, maybe it's a good idea... It just strikes me that most ride cymbals aren't really in the same positions or angles as a second tom would be. Like I said, using the ride in your fills is awesome, I do it like, all the time; but I'm thinking of it as what it is, a ride sound, not a replacement for a tom note that I absolutely must play for whatever reason.

Regardless, he's been teaching a heck of a lot longer than I, and is probably usually the one to defer to.
 
There is a big difference in listening to 'forum-opinions' and listening to a qualified teacher..

I strongly recommend to the thread starter to listen to what Alex Sanguinetti says in this case..
 
There is a big difference in listening to 'forum-opinions' and listening to a qualified teacher..

I strongly recommend to the thread starter to listen to what Alex Sanguinetti says in this case..

So all the guys who are out there living it, doing it, who have been where the OP is and gotten through it. They're not worthy of a voice, yeah?

Seriously, it's reading a basic drum chart for christ sake. Not splitting the atom or dissecting the finer points of quantum physics. It can be learned and overcome by mere mortals, despite what I continue to read. It happens every single day, in countries all over the world.

It doesn't take a path of enlightenment so special that only a select few will ever achieve it. And you don't have to be taught by a Juilliard graduate to even be considered worthy of picking up sticks.

Alex is a beast of a player. And I subscribe to the vast majority of what he says. But he's also an elitist. A man whose context comes from being at the very top of his craft. Not everyone subscribes to be that. Some people just wanna learn how to drum.......or what to do when they're short a tom and their beginner chart doesn't allow for it.

There's a place for those people too. And there's certainly a place for people who aren't Alex Sanguinetti to answer them without being ridiculed. Don't ever kid yourself that it's not true.
 
..Some people just wanna learn how to drum.......or what to do when they're short a tom and their beginner chart doesn't allow for it..

..There's a place for those people too. And there's certainly a place for people who aren't Alex Sanguinetti to answer them without being ridiculed. Don't ever kid yourself that it's not true..


I am not disagreeing at all with this, ofcourse everyone can speak..

But, since you started about being ridiculed (which in my opinion i havent), but anyway, to me is a little weird that a qualified teacher brings up something and immediately what he brings up needs to be argued..

In that case i will always advice the person with the question, to listen to what a qualified teacher says..

If the person with the question decides to listen to what other people say, then thats his choice and also perfectly ok..

No need at all to get upset..
 
But, since you started about being ridiculed (which in my opinion i havent),.......

No, you haven't. Quite right. Poor choice of words on my behalf. Fair cop.



but anyway, to me is a little weird that a qualified teacher brings up something and immediately what he brings up needs to be argued..

That's fine. To me it was a little weird to dismiss the experiences of others purely because they weren't qualified teachers. It seems we're both calling it as we see it. No harm, no foul.

There was no arguing. Merely further discussion of a point. Especially when that point is espoused by someone who believes that unless a top dollar teacher is sort out, then anything less means the student will likely "fail" (Alex's words and he uses them often). Within this context, I disagree and thought it worth further input as to why.



In that case i will always advice the person with the question, to listen to what a qualified teacher says..

More often than not, I couldn't agree more. But I judge each case on its merits. I've outlined above why I see it a little differently this time round. There's several approaches that can lead to a successful outcome. I know it. I've seen it. Time and time again.

I just think there are more roads to Rome than one.



No need at all to get upset..

If you think that was me getting upset then you may need a stiff drink and something to lie down on next time I display even the most mild annoyance.
 
First off, I have to admit that I strongly dislike math.

You could do each of the following:

8 notes on the snare and 4 each on the two toms
4 notes on the snare, 8 notes on the smaller tom, and 4 notes on the big tom
4 notes on the snare and 6 notes on each of the toms (my favorite)
4 notes on the snare, 4 notes on the smaller tom, and 8 notes on the bigger tom

Good luck and peace and goodwill.
 
First off, I have to admit that I strongly dislike math.

You could do each of the following:

8 notes on the snare and 4 each on the two toms
4 notes on the snare, 8 notes on the smaller tom, and 4 notes on the big tom
4 notes on the snare and 6 notes on each of the toms (my favorite)
4 notes on the snare, 4 notes on the smaller tom, and 8 notes on the bigger tom

Good luck and peace and goodwill.


Good deal, thanks for the suggestions.
 
I switch between a 6 and 4 piece depending on venue and setup time. Honestly, easiest way (which I do) would be to split the notes, heavier on the rack tom. So for example if it calls for 4 on the snare and all 3 toms, you would go 4 snare, 8 rack tom, 4 floor. Splitting to 6 rack and 6 floor works as well, but can throw you off from time to time.
 
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