Learn To Play Eighth Note Bass Drum Beats

Before we get started, make sure you have the proper stick grip! Also, make sure your drums sound as good as they can. You can do that by reading up on how to properly tune your drums.

I will give you a few varieties of the basic rock beat. These will all be eighth note rock beats, meaning they will be played with eighth notes. Also, to keep things basic, we will be using the bass drum to change the feel of all these beats. Before I go on, I want to remind you that there are MANY different variations of these grooves and beats; these are just a few examples. You will notice with these beats that there are 2 voices on the drum that do not change: the hi hat and the snare. These two will be a constant for all these beats, which is good, as it allows us to split our mind, and focus on what we are currently working on: The Bass Drum

If you are unsure on how to read this, read up on understanding sheet music.

Start by playing eighth notes on your hi hat. Remember to play slow at first, and get one hand moving at a time. When you've got this under control move on to your snare.

Play your snare on the 2 and 4 count. Just like in the money beat.

These two hands will not change. So if you can, try to get the feel of this, and forget about it. This way you can focus on the other parts of your drum kit, like the bass drum. Let’s add the bass drum in now; notice how you can get a totally different feel just by changing the spot on the bass drum.

Now add the bass drum on 1,&3,&. You will find this has a much fuller sound to your beat. 

Lastly, try adding in the bass drum wherever your snare isn’t played. So on the 1, &, 2&, 3, &, 4&. This will get you a very punchy sound from your beat.

There you have it! A few basic eighth note rock beats. These are very common in a lot of songs, so tune your ears in when you are listening to music, and try and pick out the beat. Notice how all these are just different applications of the basic rudiments & Single stroke rolls. Practicing these rudiments will help you with all beats! Remember to start slow, then work at build up your speed! When you have figured these out, try some eighth note snare rock beats!

Build Your Groove with Shuffle Beats

Learning how to play shuffle beats on the drum set can be one of the best ways to improve your feel and groove as a drummer. The feel of any shuffle beat is very relaxed and groovy, almost lagging behind the song. By learning the shuffle, you also increase your independence with your sticks, allowing you to play jazz and Latin beats a lot easier. There are many different shuffle beats you can play; like the double shuffle, sixteenth note shuffle, eighth note shuffle, and the Texas shuffle. So take the time in developing this very unique groove!

The shuffle groove is based around triplets, usually played on the ride cymbal or hi hats. This is where the whole groove gets its swinging feel. When done right, it will sound similar to a gallop. So let’s start by developing that triplet “galloping” groove with your dominant hand. Before you go on, I should mention it is best to practice this on a practice pad first, this way you will not be distracted with your other voices.

Before you start swinging away, make sure you count this pattern out loud first. Counting your beats out before you dive into them is a good way to confirm you are getting them right! This is counted in triplets obviously, so start by counting out triplets. If you are unsure of the best way to do this, check out this article on learning how to count. I will show you how to count this beat out; the beats you do not play are the ones in brackets.

ONE   (trip)   LET   TWO   (trip)   LET   THREE   (trip)   LET   FOUR   (trip)   LET

Notice how you leave the (trip) out of each set. This is what gives you that groove. Now play this beat on your practice pad with your dominant hand. Eventually, you will want to get to the speed where the pattern sounds like a gallop with double strokes with your stick. Once you have mastered this with your practice pad, move onto your hi hats on your drum kit. The shuffle pattern looks like this on paper:

Now with this groove going on, all you need to do is add you bass drum and snare. Do this on the ONE and THREE of the shuffle beat. Take your time, and make sure you do not lose focus of your hi hat beat. This is the Half Time Shuffle Groove. It is easier to develop the half time groove first then move on to the regular shuffle. Try this:

Once you have the idea of the shuffle, you will see how powerful it actually is. Try this 2 bar beat out; it is more of an advanced groove. Count it out before, as you will see the second bar has a note that is not followed by your hi hats. Try this:

That is the basic shuffle groove for you! To spice things up a bit, add a few cymbals in here and there. Also, change up your hi hats to your ride cymbal. The shuffle groove is played mostly in blues music, so pop in some blues and start grooving!

Learn How To Play The Money Drum Beat

For all of you out there who are unaware of the money beat, this article is for you. Most have more than likely heard this beat before, but why is it called the money beat? For one simple reason - So many songs are based around this beat. In addition, this is one of the easiest drum beats to learn! In fact, to most drum instructors, this is one of the first drum beats they teach their students. It is those two reasons why we call this the money beat. Have you ever listened to Billy Jean, ACDC, KISS, or Hoobastank? Are any of you country fans?The list goes on and on. If you have heard any of these songs, chances are you are familiar with this groove.

I guarantee if you can count to 4, you can play this groove. In fact, any non-drummer can sit behind a drum set, and play this beat. It consists of eighth notes and quarter notes. You may have read an article on how to play drums the easy way; this is a very similar beat. We will add some spice to this though, giving it more groove. Groove is what really makes this beat popular. You see, this beat is the base of pretty much all rock, pop, country, and other genres. Once you have this beat down, you can start adding stuff in, such as fills and accents, to really spice things up.

So let’s get into it! To get this beat going start with one part at a time. This way you can part your mind, and feel the groove a lot better. With you hi hat, play constant eight notes. We will add in some accents in the future, but for now, just play eight notes. Rememember to count out loud when you are playing, it will help you out a lot! Here is what it looks like::

Now that you have got this, try to not think about it. When people first learn to play the drums they usually think too much. This is where they start to make mistakes, they overthink. Your hi hat hand will not change this motion, so try to forget about it. Now it's time to concentrate on your other hand. With this hand, you will be playing quarter notes on the snare. These snare hits will be on the 2 and 4 count. Add this over top of your hi hat:

Good! Now let’s finish it off with the bass drum. This too will be playing quarter notes, however, not on the 2 and four. Most beginners will have trouble with this, they will end up playing their snare and bass drum at the same time. Take your time and it will come to you. Play the bass on the 1 and 3 counts. Here is what it looks like:

That’s it! The money beat. This is the starting point to most rock beats, making it a good beat to learn. Practice this beat with some common songs, the most well-known is Micheal Jackson's "Billy Jean". Once you have this, try to spice things up with some accents. This can really change the beat and add a lot more groove.

Now that you have a bit of a grasp on this beat, we can move onto some fills to change things up a bit. 

Learn How To Play Basic Rock Drum Beats

Most drummers out there today are mainly interested in one thing – Rock Drumming!That’s where this site comes into play. Under drum beats, I will go over many different beats for you to learn. Rock drumming is one of the most rewarding genre to play. You can go many directions with rock drumming, as you hear in a variety of songs today. You can groove it, like Weezer, you can grunge to it, like Nirvana, you can thrash it like Metallica, or you can just accompany it like Coldplay. These are just a few examples of the many different styles and directions you can go. However, first things first, the Basics! Learn how to master the art of rock drumming!

If you haven’t already, check out Jared Falk’s Rock Drumming System, this is a complete package with practically every rock beat and fill you can think of. It’s a great product if you are really interested in learning a ton of material fast! So what makes a rock beat? Is there any certain formula that makes a beat rock? The answer is no. As I said before, there are many different types of rock, and many different beats can be played to fit into the “rock” category. There are some guidelines however, that make rock beats a little more distinguishable. Once you are ready to start playing rock, check out these styles below!

• Basic Rock Beats
• Linear Rock Beats
• Two Handed Rock Beats
• Heavy Metal Rock Beats
• Punk Rock Beats

To start off, your most common beat is in common time, or 4/4. In addition, most rock beats are accented on the 2, and 4 counts. (Check my article on counting time if you are unsure of any of this). Make sure you try all the different variaties of rock drumming beats in here! Do not be afraid by what they are called either. If you are a little weak on theory, read up onunderstanding note values. This will help you out with some of the descriptions on these beats. Most of you have probably heard these beats before, as they are all very common. It's good to be able to put a name to these beats, and put them into a acategory you can understand.

Drum Dictionary with Terms and Definitions

Drum Kit /Set - A complete set of drums. This can consists of as many, or as little drums as desired.

Drum - A musical instrument with a hollow body, covered by a tight skin / head on one, or both ends. Used for rhythm by percussionists, these can range from small to very large.

Throne - The stool or seat of a drummer. This is usually a round adjustable padded stool specially designed for behind a drum kit.

Drumsticks - The main accessory to a drum set. Usually made out of wood, these come in pairs, and are used to strike the drums.

Cymbal - Concave brass or bronze plates used to produce high ringing sounds on a drum set. Can be played in pairs, or on their own with a stick.

Snare - Also known as the heart of the drums, the snare is the drum that creates a loud cracking sound. This drum has a set of coiled wires (snare) on the bottom skin of the drum. Tightening these will create a different sound.

Tom Tom - The drums with a certain pitch or tone. These drums produce a different sound depending on the size, and tightness of the drum. 

Stand - A three legged upright pole, made to hold different drum hardware. Stands are used for cymbals, snares, toms, tambourines, and anything else needed to be help in place. Usually made out of chrome aluminum.

Wing Nut - A unique bolt designed for the tops of cymbal and other stands on the drum set. These are used to tighten the percussion piece to the stand.

Tension Rod - A screw that tightens the drum hoop onto a drum. These are long and narrow, and allow you to tune your drum by tightening and loosening your skin to a certain tension.

Practice Pad - A drummers best friend! A Practice pad allows drummers to play without making any noise. Usually the same feel as a drum, these are smaller surfaces, that offer the same bounce as a real drum with almost no noise.

Crash Cymbal - A powerful cymbal that emits a loud crashing sound. Used in all types of music, this cymbal ranges in sizes from 14 inches to 21 inches, and can be played loud or soft.

Ride Cymbal - A much larger, and thicker cymbal. This is more of a rhythmic cymbal that produces a higher pitch sound than a crash when played with your stick tips.

Splash Cymbal - A much smaller and thinner cymbal, used for quicker attacks, and higher pitched sounds. Ranging anywhere from 6 inches to 14 inches.

China Cymbal - A uniquely shaped cymbal that looks like it has had its edges folded upwards. This 

produces a darker effect sound, used in many styles of music. These can range in all sizes, and is usually played upside down.

Gong Cymbal - A very large and very thick cymbal played with a mallet. Has a much lower tone.

Stack Cymbals - A pair of cymbals stacked on top of each other to creat a unique rhythmic sound. Can be a combination of any two cymbals.

Cowbell - A thick bell origionally used to be hung around a cows neck. However, when struck with a stick, it creates a unique sound. Great for funk grooves, as well as salsa beats.

Wood Blocks - Blocks of wood with a hollow center. These are designed to create a certain note when played. They come in many sizes, ranging in all different notes and sounds.

Chimes - A set of cylendar bells or metal slabs hung together to create a high pitch musical tone. Usually hung in a row, they make a sound when they hit each other. A great mood instrument that adds ambiance and personality to any song.

Djembe - A hand drum made from wood, and covered usually in an animal hide skin. This African drum has a distinct low end sound, that can range in all tones, as the drum can be all sizes. 

Conga - Deep wooden hand drum.(deeper and bigger then a djembe) Usually very big, these are used more for rhythm, and played in a lot of salsa, funk, and other latin grooves. 

Bongo - A wooden tuned drum played with your hands. Like the djembe, these drums usually come in pairs, and are a little more rhythmic than the Djembe.

Timbales - Two drums like the bongo, but a little wider and longer. These are played with drum sticks instead of your hands, and are a great accessory to any kit.

Hi Hat 

- 2 cymbals stacked on top of each other that open and close. These are played closed for short high end hits, and opened for lengthy sloshy sounds. These sit on a hi hat stand.

Hi Hat Stand - An upright stand meant to hold the Hi Hat cymbals. This has a unique design to it, with a pole in the center that is connected to a foot pedal that allows you to open and close the hi hats.

Bass Drum - Usually the biggest drum. This drum creates a low punchy sound that you can usually feel. This drum is usually played with your foot hitting a pedal.

Bass Drum Pedal - The foot trigger that strokes the bass drum.  This can be used on any percussion instrument, like a cowbell, or wood block. These are driven by either chain, belt, or direct drive.

Double Pedal - Similar to a single bass drum pedal, this has 2 foot triggers that are connected to two beaters that can hit the bass drum alternatively. Allowing for faster strokes.

Bell - A very thick cymbal smaller than most, in a large arc shape. These produce a very high pitch note that carries its note for a long time.

Cymbal Bell - The part of the cymbal that has the most arc. Located right in the center of the cymbal, striking this will give you a higher pitch “ting” then the rest of the cymbal.

Drum Skin - The piece that gets strung overtop of the drum. Also known as a head, this is what you hit to make the drum sound. Can be coated, clear, doubly ply, made from animal hide, and more. These are placed over the drum, and tightened to certain tensions to create different pitches.

Drum Head - See Drum Skin

Drum Module - The main brain on electronic drum sets. This is what stores all the drum voices, beats, metronomes, and songs. Usually what costs the most on a E-drum set.

E-Drums - Electronic Drums. Virtual pads that are full of sensors that when struck, send a signal to the drum module and create sounds. Can be played as single drums, or whole kits.

Effects Cymbal - Cymbals with different designs and shapes to create unique sounds different from regular cymbals. There are a lot of different effect cymbals out there.

Drum Rims - Circular rings that cover the rim of the drum. These are places over the drum skin, and are used to hold them on. By tightening these, you push down the skin (head), causing it to become more tense, and changing its sound.

Hoops - Like a drum Rim. These can be wood, or metallic.

Rack - Large stands that surround the drum set, allowing for easy connectivity of your drums and cymbals. These are very common for bigger drum sets, and usually eliminate the need for most drum stands.

Shakers - Ranging in different sizes and shapes, these are rhtymic tools. Hollow in the center, these are filled with small particles, sometimes sand or beans, that give it a unique feel when shooken.

Tambourine - An instrument with a set of small cymbals stacked on top of each other. When hit, it creates a high pitch, fast note that compliments most music. Can be hand held, or mounted for drum set playability.

Piccolo Snare - A smaller drum that is snared. This drum is usually a lot thinner, and offers a higher pitched snare sound when struck. Produces a very tight sound.

Firecracker Snare - Like a Piccolo snare, this drum is smaller in diameter, but larger in depth. Usually tuned very tightly, this also produced more of a high pitched “Cracking” sound.

Biography of Thomas Lang

Austrian born drum Thomas Lang is not only an extremely talented drummer, but also a talented musician. Thomas is best known for playing in over 250 albums, as well as creating a number of instructional DVD’s for better control. With his strong accent, Thomas has taught drummers around the world skills that range from beginner, to very advance stick and foot control. Like I said before, Thomas is not only a great drummer, but a talented guitarist and producer as well. With so many achievements under his belt, he is definitely a notable drummer.

Thomas Lang’s Life

Thomas Lang was born in Austria on August 5, 1967. Like most professionals, he started playing the drums at the age of 5. Years of drum lessons and practice brought this young and upcoming drummer along very well. Thomas Lang was the youngest student to be enrolled at the Vienna Conservatory of Music. Here he learned all different styles of music like Jazz, Classical, Fusion, and big band. Upon graduation, Thomas immediately began working with many different bands and artists in Europe. He engulfed himself in work, sometimes doing up to 15 projects at a time. Eventually, Thomas grew a name for himself.

Thomas Lang’s aspiration in life is to be able to “play the unplayed”. This has been his life slogan he has lived with ever since he was young. As he progresses through his music career, this aspiration becomes more and more achievable. Some of the reasons for this are his grueling practice schedule. Lang practices a set routine every day (or at least tries to). These practice exercises eventually became the basis to his 1995 video called “Ultimatives Schlagzeug I & II”. This sold so many copies, that it was eventually re-released in 2004 by Hudson music.

Thomas Lang’s Hardware

Thomas not only plays the drums, he creates them. He works closely with Meinl cymbals to create new and improve sounding cymbals. In 2002, Lang created the “Toms Becken”, a line of cymbals that both acoustic and electronic drummers could use. These grew more and more popular in time that eventually Lang created the “Fast Hats”. In addition to all of this in 2002, Remo and Meinl got together with the help of Thomas Lang to create the “Thomas Lang Practice Kit’. This is a complete practice pad set that looks similar to a drum set - perfect for traveling with. Here are some Thomas Lang pictures if you are interested in seeing him and his setup.

Currently, Thomas Lang is signed with Sonar and Meinl. For his drum set, he plays a Sonar X-ray acrylic kit, with Remo drum heads. His drum set is very large, with 2 22 inch bass drums, 2 snares and a wide array of toms. In his recent DVD, he uses multiple pedals for snares, bells, and other toms for different effects. He uses Vic Firth drum sticks, and Gibralter hardware. He has a wide array of Meinl cymbals, including his own cymbals he has created. He also uses the Roland TD-20 electronic drum set. He uses this in a variety of live performances, as well as his latest DVD – Foot Control.

Thomas Lang currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife and 2 sons. He recently released a video with Hudson music called “Total Foot Control”, and practices regularly in his home studio. He is currently working on a solo album that is due to be released early this year called “Along These Lines”. So as you can see, Thomas Lang is much more than a drummer, he is a musician, complete with his own albums, hardware, and cymbal line.

Biography On Mike Michalkow

Mike Michalkow is a rapidly growing drummer in the music scene. His years of playing, teaching, and recording are being highlighted throughout the drumming community. Having played with some of the most recognized drummers in the industry, Mikes career has definitely been a success. It doesn’t stop there either, Mike continues to perform and learn new tricks as he moves ahead as a musician.

Growing up in Winnipeg, Mike first started drumming at the age of 17; which by most professionals is rather old. He started out playing heavy rock, punk, and pop music. It wasn’t until he got accepted into Grant MacEwan College in Edmonton, where he really started to take music more seriously. Although he originally played mainly rock beats, he graduated top of the class in Latin and Jazz. Mike has since been to many clinics, such as the Drummers Collective, to improve his skills.

In 1994, Mike moved to Vancouver BC. This is where his career really started to take off. It was in this time where mike met and took lessons from famous drummers, such as: John Fisher, Jim Chapin, Chuck Silverman, Peter Magadini, Virgil Donati and Dom Famularo. During this time mike played in cover bands as well as some orchestras. Mike has also played in the Vancouver International Drum Festival consecutively for the last 5 years.

Mike is sponsored by Yamaha Drums, and has a variety of kits. He currently plays a mix between and Oak, Beech, and Maple Custom, all with a brilliant sparkle finish. Mike Michalkow is also sponsored by Sabian Cymbals, Vic Firth Drumsticks, and Hansen Futz Practice Pedals.

Mike has been teaching percussion for years now, and is well known in the community for his abilities to interact well with students. Because of his outgoing personality, Mike has been a favorite for Drum clinics all around North America. In addition, Mike has been in a few drumming DVD’s, including his self made- “Moeller Method Secrets”. In this DVD Mike not only shows his skills with stick control, he also displays his ability to “jam” with very talented musicians!

All in all, Mike Michalkow is drummer still growing in skill and popularity. He is an extremely friendly man, easy to get along with, and easy to learn from. Given all this, plus his experience with well known drummers, Mike is definitely one to be noted in the modern music industry, to learn more about Mike and his Music, check out his website at MikeMichalkow.com

Mike Portnoy

Mike Portnoy is probably one of the best progressive rock drummers of all time. His huge success in the band Dream Theater has brought drummers from across the world to recognize his skill with the drums. Portnoy has had huge success in progressive rock with a number of bands, including one that he put together himself, “Liquid Tension Experiment”. As a graduate from Berklee Music Institute, Mike has had his share of education with rhythm and percussion. A master of odd time signatures and double bass drum fills, Mike Portnoy is definitely a drummer to be recognized.

History of Mike Portnoy

Mike Portnoy was born on April 20, 1967 in Long Beach New York. His father worked as a radio DJ for a local radio station. This is where Portnoy got most of his early music appreciation from. He started out liking Led Zeppelin, The Who, Queen, The Beatles, and more. Mike never really had any drum lessons early in his life, he basically taught himself. During his high school years, he played for local metal bands such as Rising Power, Inner Sanctum, and Intruder. Inner Sanctum eventually created an album. During his years of playing with Inner Sanctum, Mike received a scholarship to Berklee Music College that he couldn’t pass up.

It was in Berklee College where he met good friends John Petrucci and John Myung. This group of three went on to form the band Majesty – a progressive metal band. Through ups and downs, the band had a fairly large fan base in the progressive rock genre. However, it wasn’t until 1999 where the band met keyboardist Jordan Rudess, before they really took off. By this time, the band changed its’ name to Dream Theater, and had a very large fan base. Mike Portnoy's popularity grew due to his unique drumming style and fast double bass drumming chops.

Mike Portnoy's Achievements

Apart from his massive success with Dream Theater, Mike Portnoy has also had many other achievements. The biggest has got to be his enrollment into the Drumming Hall Of Fame. In fact, Mike Portnoy is the youngest drummer in history to be placed in the Drumming Hall Of Fame – quite the achievement. Along with this, Mike Portnoy has won 20 awards with Modern Drummer Magazine. These include Best Up and Coming Drummer, Best Educational DVD, Best Recorded Performance, and Best Progressive Rock Drummer. Mike has made 2 instructional movies, both in which are very popular. His most recent one, “Liquid Drum Theater”, has won awards from Modern Drummer. Mike has met many famous drummers, including child hero Neil Peart.

Mike Portnoy has been involved in many bands besides Dream Theater. He has been a drummer for many cover bands, like his Beatles cover band he started. He has also covered for many different bands that need a replacement drummer. Mike Portnoy created a super band called Liquid Tension Experiment. This included some of the best musicians around the world.  Mike is by far a very versatile drummer.

Mike Portnoy’s Drums

Mike has played on many kits in his life. He is currently signed with Tama, and has been playing Tama drums for many years now. There are too many different kits that Portnoy has played with this band Dream Theater to list. He has a number of big kit set ups that he has named in his life time. Some of these are: Yellow Matter Custard kit, The Purple Monster, Transatlantic kit, the Hammer of the Gods, and The Albino Monster. He has used a Mapex drum kit for some of his recordings, but mainly sticks to Tama. Portnoy is recognized for his huge drum kit setups, including 2 bass drums, many toms, and a very large selection of cymbals. Mike is currently signed with Sabian cymbals.

All in all, Mike Portnoy is definitely a drummer you should know and study. Most common drummers can easily relate to Portnoy’s chops due to his style. A definite leader in the Progressive metal rock music genre. Although Mike may not be as technical as others, his playing is far from basic, with chops that are sure to impress you!

Biography On Joey Jordison

Joey Jordison is by far one of the most influential drummers in heavy metal / rock music. His unique style and chops have been viewed and imitated by drummers across the world. He has branded his style with a white mask that he wears when playing for his main band, Slipknot. Joey has played in many bands throughout his life, most of which were heavy metal bands.

Joey Jordison was born on April 26, 1975 in Des Moines, Iowa. His full name is Nathan Jonas Jordison. Joey plays the drums for many metal bands, but also plays guitar in his spare time. Joey started playing drums in a jazz school band when he was young. This, and hanging out with his cousin Steve Allan White, helped him tone his drum skills at an early age. After years of working at a gas station and playing for numerous metal bands, he finally landed a gig with the band currently known as Slipknot. Although this band took a little bit to get noticed, once they did, Joey Jordison became one of the top rated drummers of America.

Joey Jordisons Bands and Gigs

Obviously, Joey plays for the band Slipknot; however, that isn’t the only band he plays with. He is currently the guitarist for the up and coming band Murderdolls, which is currently on a break due to other side projects. Joey has filled in for well known drummer John Dolmayan of System of a Down during a show in 2001. In 2004, Joridson filled in for famous metal drummer Lars Ulrich of Metallica when he turned ill for one of their shows. Joey has played in bands such as Modifidious and Anal Blast when he was just starting out. Joey has definitely seen his share of diversity with bands. He has had the opportunity to play with well known heavy rock bands, meaning he is well trusted as a drummer!

Joey Jordison’s Drum Kit

Jordison has always been a Pearl drummer, he signed with Pearl when he started with Slipknot. He plays a very large kit, including 2 bass drums, and a rack loaded with a variety of Paiste cymbals. For the longest time he played the Pearl Masters Series MMX drum set; however, as of late Joridson teamed up with Pearl to create a Jet Black Pearl Export EX kit. This kit is just as popular, and is now selling very well. Jordison uses TAMA Iron Cobra bass pedals, with high tension springs. His drum set is covered in Remo drum heads. The sizes he is most familiar with playing are: 2 22” x 18” bass drums, 8x7, 10x8 , 12x9, 3x10, 14x12, 16x16, and 18x16 toms. His snare is 13x6.5. He is currently signed with Paiste cymbals in which he uses a very wide variety.

One of Joey Jordison’s claim to fame, is his white mask that he wears during the majority of his concerts. In the band Slipknot, every member wears a mask that means something to them. As for Joey, he chose a plain white Japanese Noh mask – the same mask his mother wore one Halloween that terrified him. Recently, Jordison has painted blood and other markings on the mask to spice things up. That, mixed with his long straight, red streaked hair, makes him quite the musician to look at. But don’t let looks fool you, Jordison is a master behind the drum set. Take a look at these Joey Jordison pictures, and check out his unique sense of style for yourself.

When playing in his bands Slipknot or Muderdolls, or when he is filling in for other popular drummers, Joey Jordison has definitely made a name for himself. His pure skill on the Pearl drums mixed with his unique looks, give him the edge over most other heavy metal drummers. A must to check out if you are into heavy power drumming!

Biography of Buddy Rich

Buddy Rich is by far one of the best drummers to walk this earth. Buddy rich was a drummer ever since his early years of his life, and lived a life full of drumming. With such skill with his sticks, there’s no question to why he was so popular in the drumming community. In fact, even a lot of non drummers know his name. His outgoing personality, his skill, and his dedication to the art of drumming has made Buddy one of the top of his league. Specializing in jazz drumming, Buddy Rich played with speed and control which amazed everyone - very amazing for a drummer who never really practiced between performances.

The Start of Buddy Rich’s Career

Bernard (Buddy) Rich was born in September 30, 1917. He was introduced to the drum sticks at the amazingly early age of 18 months; by 1921, he was already a seasoned drum soloist for his Vaudeville act. Buddy Rich has such a natural sense of rhythm; he was performing on Broadway at the early stages of his life. In fact, he was the second highest paid child performer of his time. By 1937, Buddy Rich landed his first Jazz gig, playing for Joe Marsala at the New York’s Hickory house. This was just the start of an amazing Jazz career, eventually playing for such famous Jazz musicians as: Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Ventura, Louis Armstrong and Gene Krupa. Check out Buddy Rich videos if you want to see him in action.

More than just a Drummer

Buddy Rich was more than a drummer, he also made guest appearances on a number of movies like “Symphony of Swing”, “Ship Ahoy”, and “How’s About It”. Buddy also opened a few night clubs called Buddy’s Place, and Buddy’s Place II. These night clubs were packed every night with loyal Rich fans. Buddy was known for his quick wit and humor. This led him to many talk shows such as the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, the Mike Douglas Show, the Dick Cavett Show and the Merv Griffin Show. Buddy also appeared on an episode of I Love Lucy. Buddy went beyond drumming by showing his fans his true colors, humor, and loving personality.

The Career of Buddy Rich

Buddy Rich toured around the world many times, playing for literally millions of fans. He played for top political figures as well as famous actors and musicians. Some top political people Buddy played for are: The King of Thailand, King Hussein of Jordan the Queen of England, and U.S. presidents Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan. Buddy was Close friends with Frank Sinatra, who he played for in many of his shows. Buddy Rich played a variety of drum sets growing up; however he found himself playing a signature Ludwig set for most of his career. These were the American standard of the time; Buddy had his own initials on the front the bass drum. Something many drummers copy to this day.

The amount of people Buddy played for and inspired cannot be listed in any single article – he truly was an amazing musician and man. In 1987, on April 2, Buddy Rich passed due to a heart failure. This happened when he was going into surgery for a brain tumor. To this day, Buddy is still hailed as one of the best drummers ever to live.

Biography On Travis Barker

Travis Barker is arguably one of the most influential modern drummers that is still active in the drumming community. Not only is he known for being one of the most fresh sounding drummers, but he also has his own clothing line, TV show, and various advertisements. He has designed his own signature Zildjian drumstick, his own Orange County drum sets, and he plays Avedis Zildjian Cymbals.

Travis Barker's Achievements

In 1999 Travis Barker started his own clothing company “Famous Stars and Straps”. His clothing company specializes in making t-shirts, jackets, hats, and accessories like belt buckles and bandanas.

Travis generally plays a 4 piece drum kit from Orange County Percussion. Currently he has a kit made of Orange County Gold Acrylic Shells. His snare drum is 7x14 with large vents just to make sure that he is louder than everyone else. His toms are 6x10 and 14x16, and his kick drum is 22x22 with a gold plated DW 5000 bass drum pedal.

Travis Barker's Drum Kit

For cymbals Travis uses all Zildjian cymbals. Starting on the left side, he uses 14” A Custom Master Sounds Hi-Hats, and for his left crash he uses a 20” Z Custom Medium Crash. On the right side of his drum kit, he uses a 21” A Sweet Ride Brilliant, and a 20” Z Custom Medium Crash. For effects Travis uses an 18” Oriental China Trash and a Latin Percussion Rock Cowbell.

Travis Barkers Drumming Career

When Travis Barker fist starting playing the drums, at the age of 4 years old, he was inspired and influenced by jazz music. In school, Travis played in a number of jazz bands, marching bands, and rock bands. When Travis was about to graduate, he was approached by the drum corps, and aksed to audition. Travis declined because he wanted to go on tour with a rock band that he was currently playing with. Ever since that summer, Travis has been in and out of rock bands playing literally thousands of rock shows all around the world.

In 1998, Travis Barker replaced Blink 182’s drummer, Scott Raynor, when Scott failed to show up on time for their gig. Since Travis Barker was there anyways playing with his band “The Aquabats”, he was somewhat familiar with Blink 182’s set. After that show Travis quit the Aquabats and continued to Tour with Blink 182.

While playing with Blink 182 Travis Barker had many side projects including: Box Car Racer, The Transplants, and doing the drum tracks for Pink’s CD “Try This”. Travis has also been in music videos for P.Diddy, New Found Glory, Bubba Sparxxx, Black Eyed Peas, N.E.R.D., Xzibit, and Outkast. 

In 2005 Blink-182 broke up, but Travis Barker, and Mark Hoppus stayed together and formed the band “+44”. They have released a CD entitled “When Your Heart Stops Beating” and Travis has continued being successful by doing studio sessions for Avril Lavigne and Expensive Taste.

Travis Barker is definitely one of those drummers who will never stop being successful. So far Travis Barker’s career has been everything that up and coming drummers can only dream of becoming. Not only do his fans, and band mates respect him, but he also has the respect of the whole music industry in general.

Learn how to Develop the Left Foot Clave

Learning how to perform the Clave pattern is a must for any latin, salsa or other similar grooves. Being able to throw in the clave rhythm, while playing a pattern with your right hand can be very tricky. What about using your feet though? A lot of Latin music is played around the clave groove, meaning sometimes as a drummer it is good to have it constantly played in the background. The best way to achieve this is by mastering the clave pattern with your left foot. Learning this allows you to maintain the clave groove while soloing and playing other beats over top with your hands and bass drum. So how do you develop this technique?

For starters, make sure you know what the clave groove is, and which one you want to learn. There are two types of clave, the Son clave, and the Rhumba clave, each has their own place in music. For this lesson, I will be using the Son clave which is the more popular pattern. Now that you know what the clave is all about, start warming up your left foot by doing some basic rudiments. Learning how to use your left foot with more independence is key in doing this technique. Practice both heel up and heel down, doing the basic single stroke, double stroke, and paradiddle. Once you have warmed up, its time to move on to the clave.

**The left foot clave is usually played on a cowbell or wood block to get that Latin sound; however, you do not need to go out and buy a foot pedal just for this. You may use your hi hat to get the same feel, this will save you some money.

To get started, simply play the clave pattern with your right foot (this is the easy part). Start slow, and make sure you use a metronome to make sure you are performing a true clave groove, and not a broken up triplet beat. Notice how the clave is a 2/3 pattern spread over two bars. This looks like this:

When you are comfortable with this clave pattern, and ONLY when you are comfortable , move on the next clave pattern. This clave pattern is very basic, but very complicated. It is a little easier to start with your right foot doing constant quarter notes on the bass drum. This exercise will work on your feet independence.

Now try to add your hands over top of the left foot. Try doing this without the bass drum at first, and then add the bass drum later. Make sure you use both your right and left hands with this clave exercise. Also, remember to start slow!

These following practice exercises will help greatly in developing your left foot clave. Remember that this technique takes time, and will not be learned over night. Go over each pattern until you can do it at slow and fast tempos. If you are able to play all these with no problems, maybe try playing the Rhumba clave over each of these instead of the Son clave. 

Jazz Drumming – How to Play Drums to Basic Jazz

Jazz is one of the rewarding, and challenging styles of music to play. Jazz drumming is full of improvisation, soloing, and dynamics. Playing in a jazz band can bring forth the true creativity in your drumming, and can encourage you to play with more independence and style than ever before. Jazz is a huge genre of music, ranging from faster bee bop, to fusion fink Jazz, to jazz swing, to softer melodic Jazz. Each style shares the common jazz groove – one that every drummer must know. It is almost as essential as the basic 4/4 beat to some. So let’s break the chains on jazz drumming and learn how to master the most essential jazz groove. Before you move on, make sure you take the time to master the art of drumming with brushes. In Jazz, brushes are almost as common as drumsticks!

To being, I want to stress the fact that jazz drumming is unlike rock drumming. There is a certain finesse to jazz that is not shared in rock. The job of a jazz drummer is to keep time first, and compliment the band second. In jazz, every musician will get their own turn to solo and add their expertise. This means you must have a lot of patience and self control. Some of the time you will be playing along with the pianist or the bass player to compliment their playing. Another big aspect to this style of music is dynamics. This means playing softer and quieter at certain parts of the song. Feathering the bass drum is a technique that you will use quite a bit.

The basic groove to learn is a triplet groove. Most people know this as a jazz beat, but do not know how to read it. Although Jazz is mostly about feeling, you should still be able to recognize what is looks like on paper. The main beat is played with 2 voices on the drum, the ride cymbal and the Hi hat. Usually you will be used to using your bass drum to drive the beat; this is not the case in Jazz music. Another thing, rock music usually accents the 1 and 3 on the beat. Jazz focuses on the 2 and 4. This is a big deal, one that takes a bit of practice to grasp.

Let’s start with the ride swing pattern. This is a very well known groove. Remember to count this an eight note triplets, and it will all make sense. Usually, you will play this on the ride, but realistically you can play it on the hi hats or other drum voices.

Now watch where you add the hi hat. This is VERY important in jazz drumming. Make sure you play it loud enough to hear. This will drive the beat. Add this over top of the swing groove you have going on already.

What is the Clave

For those drummers out there that are eager to dive in to the world of Latin music, the term Clave, is a rhythmic pattern that relates to latin drumming. Pronounced (Klah-Vay), this term has more than one meaning, which; unfortunately to most, is a mystery. The clave is so popular in Latin and Afro Cuban music, that most beats are based around it. Somba, Salsa,Bossa Nova, Samba, and more all are based around the clave.  So let me uncover this latin drumming mystery and explain the different types and definitions of the clave.

The term Clave literally means “Key” in Spanish. So in other words, the clave is the key to Latin music. Now I mentioned above that there are two meanings to this word. First off, The Claves is also an instrument. These are two wooden blocks that are hit together to produce a rhythmic Latin sound. The second definition of the clave is a two bar rhythmic pattern. This is the most common use of the word, and is the “key” to spicing up drum beats.

The clave is a two bar pattern that can be played in two different directions. The pattern consists of 5 notes, and can be played 2-3 or 3-2. This would mean that 2 beats are played in the first bar and 3 beats played in the second bar. (or visa versa for 3-2). It is good to practice both directions, as each one offers a totally different feel. There are different varieties of the clave, each one is very similar (3-2 or 2-3) but are played just a little different. Make no mistake, each version of the clave has its place in different types of music! The different types of clave rhythms are:

• Son clave
• Rhumba clave
• Bossa Nova clave
• 6/8 clave

It is very important to understand these patterns and the differences between them all before you start exploring the Latin music. Like I said before the clave is the key to Latin and Afro Cuban music; even the salsa, Bossa Nova, and Samba use the clave pattern. Gaining the skills and independence to perform this pattern will improve your skills on the drum set drastically. Learning this will give you skills in independence with your sticks as well as your feet. In fact, learning how to perform the clave with your left foot is very beneficial. It allows you play other voices on the drum while maintaining the fundamental rhythm. Read my article on the left foot clave to learn this!

Add Spice with Triplet Fills

Every drummer will tell you that playing drum fills is one of the most rewarding aspects of drumming. It allows you to express yourself and show off your skills and chops. So how do you spice up your fills and solo’s? There are many ways to add variety and spice to your fills, like triplets for example. These easy to play patterns will change the flow of things, giving your fill a very unique sound. When the crowd hears a triplet fill they think you are playing something off time or off beat. Triplet fills sometimes give the illusion of a different rhythmic pattern, making things sound much more complicated then they already are. So let’s take a look at some basic and more advanced triplet fills.

*If you are unsure of what a triplet is, check out my article on explaining triplets. This will explain everything you need to know about triplets.

Playing a triplet fill can be very simple and easy, or if you want, more advanced and complex. Let’s start with some very basic triplet fills and move up from there. Feel free to add these into any song style or beat. Let’s start with a basic eighth note triplet fill. This fill is very basic and can be very effective. Start on the snare drum, and work your way around the kit. In this example, you hit your snare and your 3 toms. If you do not have 3 toms, or have a different set up, you can easily hit one of your drums twice. To end each of these fills, although it’s not written, you can crash a cymbal. Try this one:

This next example is a little faster so take it slow. Make sure you are hitting each note and not keeping things on time.

Now let’s try something a little more advanced. Instead of using your hands to play triplet fills, let’s incorporate your feet. Playing triplets is a great way to spice beats up, playing triplets with your bass drum adds so much more. With this example, play your snare first, then your bass drum, followed by a tom. You will find this is a little trickier than it looks, but once you get it you will understand why it is so important to learn.

These are a few basic triplet fills revolving around the whole drum set. Practice these outside of your fills so you can master them first, and then incorporate them into songs and beats. You can even create beats out of these concepts. So have fun with these and do not feel limited to what you see. Use the same ideas on different voices of your drum set to get a complete different feel!

What is a Triplet?

A triplet in drumming terms is a group of 3 notes played in a different duration then the regular beat. Every drummer should become very familiar with triplets and all the different varieties out there. This is almost as important as rudiment study. In music, there are groups of notes called Tuplets, which are groups of notes played at different tempos then the rest of the notes. The triplet is the most common form of these. This may sound a little confusing, but let me try and explain what a triplet is in this article.

In music you can play quarter notes, eighth notes, sixteenth notes, etc… With these, you can also play triplets. So this means you can play quarter note triplets, eighth note triplets, sixteenth note triplets, etc…The word triplet literally means three, so you would assume you are playing groups of three notes. A regular quarter note triple is two thirds the duration of a regular quarter note. To understand these we must look at fractions, if a triplet is usually 2/3 the time of regular notes, then we would need to play more triplets to equal certain note values. For example, three eighth note triplets are the same as one quarter note. This may sound very confusing, so let me gave you some diagram examples for some extra help.

Before I give you some examples, let me explain how triplets look in music. They are super easy to spot. There will be a group of notes (a group of three) with a number 3 over top. You may see a set of 2 triplets in a row that are all connected however there will be a “3” over top. This means you are supposed to play triplets. If you are unaware of music theory and sheet music, check out this drum notation article to get fully acquainted with things! Reading the note value for triplets is the same as regular notes. The note value changes depending on the number of tails, so if you have 1 tail, you are playing eight note triplets.

This is very hard to explain with text, so here are some examples. Here is an example of straight quarter notes. Below that is a set of quarter note triplets. Notice how there is 6 notes in the triplets compared to the 4 notes in the straight quarter notes. This is the 2/3 ratio I was talking about before.

Try not to think too hard about this. Triplets are actually fairly simple and can be felt a lot easier then read. So try to feel the triplet groove. Here is a set of eight note triplets with bass drum quarter notes on the 1, 2, 3, and 4.

Here is a 16th note triplet groove; again with the bass drum on the 1, 2, 3, and 4.

Triplets are easy to spot on any piece of music. Playing them is fairly simple; in fact you have probably already experimented with triplets before if you have been playing for a while. This article is more focused on explaining triplets. For applications with triplets, check out triplet fills. This will show you how to incorporate triplets into all styles of music!