Constructive advice on my rudiments please

[agent_orange]

can anyone tell me if I'm doing them correctly, even though they still need loads of practice.

[rickthedrummer]

You have this listed as private. Can't see it.

[agent_orange]

should be ok now. be nice. I'm not too sure about posting them,but I want to make sure that I'm at least on the right track.

[rickthedrummer]

Work them slow. Get the sticking down pat. You can't rush speed.

It will all come together with time and practice.

[zzzdanz]

Slow down...way down, metronome, and practice. Try to get ya pad flatter. Speed will come, but you need to put in the time and effort of practicing " the correct way"...steady tempo.

You'll get there.

[agent_orange]

i was thinking that the quicker i do it even if i'm occasionally missing notes, it'd get jammed in my head faster. is that not the case

[rickthedrummer]

No! What you'll wind up with is sloppy rudiments, which will lead to sloppy playing.

There are no short cuts. I know because I tried to find them decades ago.

Everything you will ever play on the drums will come from the rudiments, so work them slowly, get the sticking patterns down and the speed will come.

[agent_orange]

Thank you guys. I will definitely slow it down.But how will I know when to speed up if I'm not pushing myself?
As far as what you say about everything you'll ever play...! Boy, do I wish I'd realised that fifteen odd years ago!!!!!
I don't know why I've neglected them so much and how I've got to an ok standard doing single strokes

[agent_orange]

One other thing I just thought of. Is it better to work on one at a time? I've been doing a bit of this and a bit of that, should I just concentrate on, say, double strokes, as from what I can see, pretty much everything comes from them.

[Russ]

I actually sort of agree with both ways - yes it's important to slow down if you're struggling. Definitely, get the technique down and raise your comfort level with playing something, understand it. But part of me also believes that you should be playing at a speed that fully challenges your abilities, but isn't too fast. The fastest you can manage while still keeping good form, is the one i'd go for. I think if you can maintain your technique at a higher tempo, you can do the same with tempos below it, so pushing your limits within reason isn't a bad idea.

[agent_orange]

great thanks all you guys. I will now be driving my wife mad for the next..I don't know how long

[agent_orange]

Is it normal that my left forearm aches when especially doing double strokes? Do/did you do anything to strengthen it?

[Russ]

Well personally I like to do hammer curls or farmer's walk with dumbbell, gets em nice and beefed out before long if you use a challenging weight. Otherwise it's just repetitions, when it aches stop, when it recovers get back on again and try some more. Make sure you aren't gripping the sticks too hard, keep things feeling loose and natural.

[agent_orange]

real basic question, russ, but is the an optimum place to hold the stick when doing rudiments? I'm finding if i hold it too far back I lose control, but if too far forward I don't get any whip. But if either of these is right/better than the other I'll persevere

[Russ]

Ah the fulcrum! Definitely a good thing to find out. Check this video out for more on this:

[agent_orange]

I've done exactly what he said in the video, but my balance point seems to be awfully far forward. Surely it would be the same for everyone? On my Vic Firth American classic my fulcrum is just about on the 'C' of Vic, whereas his was on the 'H' of Firth. Way further back than me. Whats that about?

[Russ]

He's just going according to the size of his stick, it varies somewhat for smaller or larger sticks. It's just something you have to feel around to find, like he did in the video.

[rickthedrummer]

Did I read that right, you've been at this for 15 years?

[Dominic]

video is marked as private

[agent_orange]

Did I read that right, you've been at this for 15 years?

Nooooo. Played for about 4/5ish years in the late 90's in my teens and twenties, stopped for 15, just started up again, been bout 9 months this time round

[agent_orange]

Dom,yeah I've made it private again, only wanted a couple of pointers. My rudiments are definitely my weak point, can't be leaving them up it's embarrassing. I will get a couple of vids up when we next practice.

[Dominic]

that video....

hahahaha "once i learned how to hold this piece of wood in my hands, i was amazed..."

Anyway, I'm going to give that balancing point technique a go. I've stuck rayon (fabric tape they stick on vehicle wiring harnesses) tape on the balancing points so my fingers can feel where it is.

[agent_orange]

Although I got to an ok standard the first time round and most of it has come/is coming back, I'm really keen to go back to basics now with the rudiments etc, I want to study a little more as opposed to just playing. Because of this it seems and feels like I'm starting again. Very weird

[agent_orange]

Did I read that right, you've been at this for 15 years?

I'll tell you how long ago it was. I had a Pearl BLX and I bought two of the old Z's + Z Dyno Beats new, the ones before the Z customs, as well as an Earth Ride brilliant, first time around. Boy that does make me feel old!!

[Markadiddle]

AO - I have to agree with all the others that have already posted. The best way to improve is, slow down, get the sticking nice and clean and then push yourself to go a little faster.

I noticed in your video(please don't take this the wrong way ) your double strokes are a bit loose. You need to slow down and really concentrate on getting them to sound consistent from hand to hand. Look at your sticks while you are practicing and keep the sticks at the same height.

The way to get faster is, keep practicing. Eventually, muscle memory will take over. I know rudiments are extremely boring, but practicing slow is the key. If you perform a task over and over and over, eventually muscle memory will kick in. You may also want to play along to a metronome. Start out at like 60bpm. If you can play nice even doubles, bump it up to 65bpm and just keep going. Also, you should be able to switch from 1/16th note singles to doubles and not hear the difference.

I used to practice rudiments while watching a movie. I would switch between singles, doubles, paradiddles, etc. I would forget what my hands were doing because muscle memory took over. When I would focus on what I was practicing again, I would push myself to go a little faster.