Here’s a raggedy little video I made of Solo No. 128 from Wilcoxon’s All American Drummer— in response to an online question. Never played it before, I worked it up in about 15 minutes. Tempo […]
Category: rudimental
Ruffs, drags, and general correctness in snare drumming
The correct way to play ruffs (or drags if you prefer) on the snare drum is an extremely attractive topic for repeated, endless debate. Evidently. I’ve seen it again and again, people going nuts for the topic. The […]
Chop busters: syncopated flammed 16ths
More rooting around in my archives, with a stealth from the zone item. I found this in one of my notebooks from high school, and it’s worth playing, with some mixed 16th note rhythms with […]
Chop busters: flammed 16ths
Another small item, while I power through writing my new book: a page of 16th notes with flams, designed to be rather technically challenging, in the manner of Ron Fink’s book Chop Busters: Alternating sticking […]
Warm ups for Alan Dawson’s “Para Bossa” system
Alan Dawson’s Para Bossa system, from John Ramsay’s book, The Drummer’s Complete Vocabulary, is a way of interpreting exercises in Ted Reed’s Syncopation as 16th note paradiddles, and extended paradiddles, with a samba rhythm in […]
Bishopdiddles – 02: double paradiddles to swing 8ths
Listen: do not show these to somebody and call them “BISHOPDIDDLES.” You’re going to get both of us beaten up. One thing I like about this double paradiddle inversion is that it’s possible to accent the […]
Bishopdiddles
Minor item, corralling some similar sticking ideas that have been floating around the site. I noticed that with paradiddle-like stickings, I like inverting them so the double is up front, right after the first accent. […]
5/8 flam accents
Page of rudimental patterns in 5/8, based on a flam accent #1. We’ve just extended it a couple of notes. You could connect some of these with a whole lot of rudiments: flam drags, pataflaflas, […]
From the zone: SD chops
Another notebook item from the later 80s, as I get my act together following recent personal developments. Cleaning out my mom’s basement, I found a bunch of my old notebooks and music materials. Basically, I’ve […]
Elvin’s Biddy Oats
No, this is an ALL Elvin Jones site. I think we have to earn it if we’re going to talk about him, put in some work, have some humility, don’t be a leech. I imagine […]
Elvin’s march
“I did go through [Harr’s snare drum book] as a matter of fact. I went to public school in Pontiac, Michigan, so I didn’t do anything extra. […] I didn’t have that advantage of being […]
Cinquillodiddles
This one occurred to me thinking about Wilby Fletcher playing with McCoy Tyner… The cinquillo rhythm— I’m calling it that now for ease of reference— is a very useful one measure Latin rhythm, and a common […]