Not a word we use a lot in music, doctrine has a lot of unsavory religious connotations, suggesting bureaucracy, rigidity of thought, and the opposite of creativity in general. Indoctrination, orienting someone to a way […]
Category: syncopation
Straight’s Modern Syncopated Rhythms
We must get away from the old military method of drumming and play the Drum part the same lead as the Violin, Saxophone or Xylophone parts. Let’s take a close look at a very old […]
Embellishing the Reed linear system
I call it the Reed linear system, it’s a thing I started doing on my own years ago, using Reed— the book Syncopation. I imagine others do it, because it’s kind of obvious. I never […]
Reed interpretation: RH lead 16ths – swing
A little item I’ve been working with, adapting our familar right hand lead Reed system for 16th notes, giving the rhythms in the book a dotted-8th/16th swing interpretation— as we do with this paradiddle inversion […]
Combining Reed solo systems
Lots of stuff combining Reed systems lately. Here we’re combining some solo systems with similar movements— they’ll have a timing change, and a minor sticking change, the broad movements are the same. They can be […]
Fill phrase with RH lead on toms
We’ve got a good little fill unit going here lately— usually these might be taught with a single instruction, “groove first measure / RH lead second measure”, and that’s mostly enough, but, reading from Syncopation, […]
Reed tweak: expanding a fill phrase
Opening up a stock fill phrase I use with my students, reading, as ever, from Syncopation. A couple of easy moves for not being so barline oriented. This has a pretty energetic feel, with a […]
Cymbal variation with Reed
Sketching out a thing I was working with after listening to some Jack Dejohnette. We do a lot of things with Syncopation with the cymbal and bass drum in unison, this introduces some variations in […]
Subtractive method: three way – 01
Wrote this out as an experiment, adding the left foot to a subtractive pattern, and it works quite well. It’s manageably easy to read. The underlying pattern is close to my usual pattern: BSHB SHBS. […]
Reed tweak: paradiddle inversion to toms
Another pretty substantial tweak to one of my other Reed systems— converting a very ordinary system, accented triplets, to paradiddle inversions— RLLR-LRRL. Actually there’s very little to it, I just think it’s worth spending some […]
Reed interpretation: extra accents
I was thinking of Dejohnette when I was working this out. A standard way of playing Reed is as running, alternating 8th notes, accenting the book rhythm on the cymbals, plus bass drum. Often playing […]
Subtractive systems for 16ths in jazz
Some subtractive systems for voicing your snare drum and bass drum in 16ths and partials thereof, in jazz comping. It’s a very common thing, but not usually featured in the normal materials, or included in […]