Help with my technique and mental pulse

oob360

Junior Member
I'm looking for some criticism on my technique and form. I'm a self taught drummer with a classical violin playing background. I never had a formal teacher, and so I'm worried that I might have some bad habits in my playing.

Also, I often lose the mental beat in my head that goes along with the song while I play, so I get off from the song often. Any drills or exercises I can do to improve this?

I know the cover is not perfect, I just recorded it to highlight these issues I'm having for critique from other drummers more experienced that me :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N874uFD2BQU
 
There is tremendous value in using a metronome for practicing and I'll bet you used one in your violin wrangling days. Over time, the pulse is internalized and you'll have a better innate feel for the rhythm which in turn helps you keep it.

We had some great exercises at a music camp last week. Markus Reuter, a touch guitarist, led us every morning in a series of exercises focused on developing the internal pulse while allowing us to lay and maintain subdivisions on top of the primary rhythm. An example is foot motions in repeating patterns of 5 while counting aloud in patterns of 4 while clapping in patterns of 3. Sounds tough and was but amazingly enough, this allowed the base pulse to be internalized and maintained without having to concentrate on doing so.

I'm certain others here have additional recommendatons. Good luck!
 
Play with a click, metronome, or drum machine and try16th's and other fills around the kit while you keep your kick going playing quarters on beat. This is what really got my sense of time straightened out.
 
Hey man I liked the cover - nice work. I have to practice with a click all the time or else I will 100% for sure get lost. I will say that recently I got an app called LiveBPM that will show me what BPM I am playing at on my IPhone - so I can turn off the click and practice by myself, watching the screen to see what my tempo is - kind of hard to explain but that is the only time I do not use a click when practicing or rehearsing. Again nice job - keep working!

JM
 
Yup, I do use a metronome to practice with violin as well, but the difference is that a lot of classical music is more flexible rhythmically than rock music. I'll go and practice harder with the metronome then!

Thanks guys!

Anyone see anything wrong with my grip on the sticks or footwork?
 
Ya.. you've got it! Tempo seemed fine, good steady meter with that 'falling forward' sense to it. which is great. Only thing I'd suggest is.. tune and/or mic the snare better; sounds a bit like an old head. Also, you play pretty loud.. maybe work the dynamics a bit more so it's not always on 10. But great work.. not what I expected from a violin player Lol.
 
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Yah, both the points you raised are things I've been thinking about, and I think they are related. Recently, I switched from being a really soft hitter (like a 5 or below in dynamics), to a really hard hitter just because I had heard recordings of my playing and I didn't like the snare sound I was getting when I played softer. I think the problem might be that I like to tune my snare really low, which gives me a dead snare sound that I prefer. Thanks for the point though, I'll play around with different snare tunings and see how it affects my playing style. I do agree that I play really hard right now :p
 
Recently, I switched from being a really soft hitter (like a 5 or below in dynamics), to a really hard hitter just because I had heard recordings of my playing and I didn't like the snare sound I was getting when I played softer. I think the problem might be that I like to tune my snare really low, which gives me a dead snare sound that I prefer. Thanks for the point though, I'll play around with different snare tunings and see how it affects my playing style. I do agree that I play really hard right now :p

I checked out a few Tricot videos and your guy has some amazing technique to be sure. Completely rips on a single pedal.

Also, I (and you should) notice that Komaki himself doesn't beat the snot out of the drums all the time or even most of the time. I watched the one where they have a GoPro on his left side and he's tapping the snare like a jazz guy, getting the volume from his wrist and fingers, not his elbow. He sounds thunderous, but it's from good technique, not brute force.

Watch how he doesn't lift the stick that high even while he's wailing. You don't need to kill the thing. He flails around at times, but that's just show.

I've found that for rock, it's actually easier to play hard than it is to play soft, or with dynamics. It's easier to make the drums sound good if I hit hard, but I think a well-rounded drummer needs to be able to play softly, as well as with dynamics.

As for snare deadening, I don't like a ringy snare either, but rather than trying to tune it dead, I prefer a piece of gel at 10:00 and 2:00 on the batter head about an inch from the rim. That way you can still get a sound that cuts, but without the ringing.

As for internal timing practicing with a metronome is of course the first thing. I sometimes like the "click" on quarter notes, but I find that I learn the intricate stuff better with the click on eighth notes.

Here's an interesting technique for building your feel using a metronome:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMMtkf8UpnQ
 
Gave me a lot to think about, hahaha.

Yes, it's definitely true that komaki plays with finesse. He often doesn't use much force except for show. I will definitely work on tuning my snare higher and look into the gel. I agree with you that playing loud is often easier than playing quiet. I'll focus on using my wrists and fingers more while I practice.

About the exercise you sent me, I've seen a similar video by tony royster jr. recently where he plays around with the metronome on different beats of the measure. It's definitely interesting stuff.
 
Krupa, that link is awesome.

Here's some from jazz pianist Hal Galper;

Here he talks about the time that is within the instrument. Unless you have a '70s kit with stuff taped to everything, every drum has an arc to it's tone. Therefore there is an intrinsic time in the sound it makes.
http://youtu.be/_4y3nb4E30Q

In this one he talks about the internal groove and how it relates to playing with others.
http://youtu.be/a2XnB5G6oSc

Here he talks about how you hear the music in your head and how that affects how you play it.
http://youtu.be/y_7DgCrziI8

There's a bunch more. Hal has an amazing way of breaking things down to get to the musical essence of it.
 
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