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Thread: Improving Speed and Endurance

  1. #1

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    What sorts of things do you do or practice to improve your speed and endurance? Is it better to focus on playing the individual songs or rudiment type exercises.
    ---- If thine enemy wrong thee, buy each of his children a drum. - chinese proverb

  2. #2

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    Quote Originally Posted by midgard View Post
    What sorts of things do you do or practice to improve your speed and endurance? Is it better to focus on playing the individual songs or rudiment type exercises.
    Since I am right handed I spend a lot of energy now trying to speed up my left hand and make it do as much as I do with the right hand. Mostly no concerned with quality but speed and flexibility with my left hand. Balance of hands I think will allow more right hand contacts with the other drums while holding rhythm with the left and slapping more with my left.
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  3. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by midgard View Post
    What sorts of things do you do or practice to improve your speed and endurance? Is it better to focus on playing the individual songs or rudiment type exercises.
    The best thing you can do is practice each thing (whether it be a rudiment, beat, drum fill or song) repetitively. The more you do something, the faster you get. It's as simple as that.

  4. #4

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    I am a an animal(muppet) when it comes to the hand percussions, I practice ruds. and time and beats but when its time to rock I am usually playin by the seat of my pants. I have to mention I have only owned a set of congs/bongs for 3 months so my comment is highly uneducated, Love the drumms though can take most anywhere.
    F/T

  5. #5

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    Everytime I sit down behind the drums I do 2 warmups for speed. One is a heel/tip exercise called Vagateo that my old conga teacher would do. Its basically 32nds with the heel/tip 4 counts, then throw in a slap on the downbeat of the next 4, then on the next 4 counts move the slap to the left hand, and continue the pattern through until then end of the count.

    The other I use is a "mano secreta" warmup that I adapted from a drumline warmup we used to do called chiken and a roll. 4 counts of 16ths followed by 4 counts of double stroke roll. Do that twice then the last one is 8 counts. Repeat adding speed everytime. Doublestroke rolls are a pain in the butt on congas, and this exercise is a huge help.

  6. #6

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    Wow Gretschhead, those are some great exercises. It is going to take some getting used to counting the heel/tips as 32 (I keep wanting to make the heel portion a 16th and the tip portion a 16th!)

    On the second exercise, are you doing the same stroke (open, bass, etc) through out or are you varying it in the course of the exercise?
    ---- If thine enemy wrong thee, buy each of his children a drum. - chinese proverb

  7. #7

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    Speed comes from muscle memory, this mean repetition so that you don not have to think about it anymore you feel it and play it.

    Endurance is conditioning, So this requires extending your playing time.
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  8. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by midgard View Post
    Wow Gretschhead, those are some great exercises. It is going to take some getting used to counting the heel/tips as 32 (I keep wanting to make the heel portion a 16th and the tip portion a 16th!)

    On the second exercise, are you doing the same stroke (open, bass, etc) through out or are you varying it in the course of the exercise?
    Midgard, I count the heel/tip as 16ths as well, but they are doubles, so I just count the down beat on each hand like 1R eL &R aL. The second exercise I play all open tones.

  9. #9

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    I think becoming ambidextrous as possible is very good. for all these patterns, make sure u can do it many different ways.

    i have trouble feeling and focusing a fast groove like fast calypso, merengue or samba.

    so that is what i am working on now.


    learning the dances is very good for me because it helps my understanding and ability to feel and focus, and free up.
    gravity needs to do a lot of your work. the arms/hands are like dancers on the drum head...

    endurance will just come with time spent playing

    but the more relaxed u are, the better.... always

  10. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by Gretschhead View Post
    Midgard, I count the heel/tip as 16ths as well, but they are doubles, so I just count the down beat on each hand like 1R eL &R aL. The second exercise I play all open tones.
    cool

    this also is good to help think about one of the common patterns that is used in a lot of the pulse of this african music (and music in general).. both 4/4/ / 2/4/ and 3/4 / 6/8 etc....

    the downs and the ups

    or as my teacher says, the get its and got its (the one ees and the and ahhs, and the further subdivision into 32nds)

  11. #11

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    I know you want speed, but rember speed isn't everthing.

    A drummer said it i can't rember who "If you work on speed you miss out on alot off other cool things."
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  12. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by SEPULTURA View Post
    I know you want speed, but rember speed isn't everthing.

    A drummer said it i can't rember who "If you work on speed you miss out on alot off other cool things."
    Tis true... Groove > Speed

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