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Thread: Balancing technique and mindset in drumming

  1. #1

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    Default Balancing technique and mindset in drumming

    Hi everyone, newbie here!

    I’ve been playing for about 17 years now and as a self taught drummer I’ve never really given much importance to technique, until the last couple of years in which I saw that I needed to dig deep into it if I wanted to move further with my playing. However, I really think technique is not everything if you manage to give people emotions with your playing.

    How do you guys think about the balance between technique and mindset/habits in drumming? Is the right mindset important in playing for you (overcoming performance anxiety and be relaxed/confident) or do you value technique more over it?

  2. #2

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    Welcome to the forum, where in Italy are you? I've been to Pisa, Florence and Rome and out of the 3 enjoyed Pisa the most.

    I'm not very technical and probably will never be but I'm okay with that. The band I am with now doesn't require high technical drumming which suits me fine. On the other hand I try not to be too boring by finding opportunity's within a song to insert small fills or accents. I try to stay open to suggestions too. I suppose that's my balance
    RDM/Damage Poets
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    AQUARIAN

  3. #3

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    Quote Originally Posted by slinky View Post
    Welcome to the forum, where in Italy are you? I've been to Pisa, Florence and Rome and out of the 3 enjoyed Pisa the most.

    I'm not very technical and probably will never be but I'm okay with that. The band I am with now doesn't require high technical drumming which suits me fine. On the other hand I try not to be too boring by finding opportunity's within a song to insert small fills or accents. I try to stay open to suggestions too. I suppose that's my balance
    ^^^ Me too!

    all the best...

  4. #4

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    Quote Originally Posted by hellyeschris View Post

    How do you guys think about the balance between technique and mindset/habits in drumming? Is the right mindset important in playing for you (overcoming performance anxiety and be relaxed/confident) or do you value technique more over it?
    Technique is another word for vocabulary. The more vocabulary words you have, the better you can express yourself on the drums. That said, you should always be relaxed as possible on the drums. There is no need to trade one for the other. Both are important.

    Welcome to the forum.

  5. #5

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    Welcome to the forum! I briefly lived in Italy, and I have family in Rome, Sicily, Calabria and Venice. I've been everywhere in Italy. I last went in 2009 for a month and a half!



    Technique is important, but if you've found a comfortable way to make your sounds, that's what matters.
    Quote Originally Posted by rickthedrummer View Post
    There is intelligent life out there. The problem is that there isn't any here.

    -Mike

  6. #6

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    Quote Originally Posted by hellyeschris View Post
    How do you guys think about the balance between technique and mindset/habits in drumming? Is the right mindset important in playing for you (overcoming performance anxiety and be relaxed/confident) or do you value technique more over it?
    Quote Originally Posted by drummer View Post
    Technique is another word for vocabulary. The more vocabulary words you have, the better you can express yourself on the drums. That said, you should always be relaxed as possible on the drums. There is no need to trade one for the other. Both are important.

    Welcome to the forum.
    Welcome hellyechris and great questions. I agree with what drummer posted and it seems to be a prevalent theme that many other pros share especially those who I've seen at drum clinics, specifically Todd Sucherman.

    The vocabulary analogy that drummer speaks of is exactly what Sucherman spoke to but he substituted the word vocabulary with the word "rudiment". To speak in confidence and to make sense of what one is saying, you must string a set of words together in a coherent structure to be understood by those who are listening. He said, the same goes for drumming.

    According to Sucherman, if you can't string a coherent set of rudiments together as a drummer but instead play in broken phrases, the drumming won't flow. He said it would be the same as if one were to speak in broken sentences all of the time. It would be obviously difficult to follow and understand.

    The building blocks to great drumming is a solid foundation of the 40 basic drum rudiments. In my opinion, you don't need to be proficient in all 40 but you'll need a few to string along to strengthen your vocabulary and to be able to speak with confidence.
    Last edited by late8; 02-24-2016 at 12:29 PM.

  7. #7

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    Quote Originally Posted by drummer View Post
    That said, you should always be relaxed as possible on the drums.
    That is very, very important. Best way to stay relaxed is to know and be comfortable with what you're doing. Having a good technique I believe helps. Having good technique helps to make things less hard. Notice when people get tight and speed up or slow down? It's when they become tense due to struggling due to not being comfortable with what they're doing.

  8. #8

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    FYI: CLive Bunker of J.Tull talking about his technique in an interview:
    Although Bunker might seem self-deprecating, it's simply a component of his very approachable and unaffected personality. Here's his response to the observation that almost 20 years since his departure from the limelight of Tull (in '72 after the Aqualung album), his eminent reputation is still intact:

    I know! (he laughs). It's all so completely outrageous! There are some great players who say they've been influenced by my playing, and when I hear them I say, "Blimey! They're brilliant." It amazes me how they could pick up on something as bad as my playing was then. Now I can just about consider myself a drummer because I've got some of the bits together.

    More than a few drummers would take issue with Clive concerning his self-written "report card." But he relays an incident from his formative days as a Tull drummer when he was, in fact, a bit more technically ignorant than he was perceived.

    I was at a festival, inside a practice tent with a bunch of drummers. I had my little kit set up in one corner, while the other guys had these huge kits. They were playing this incredibly technical stuff, and then one of their wives came up to me and said, "Why don't you go over and have a play?" I told her that I didn't know what they were playing, because that was the truth. I didn't know what paradiddles were then. After the show, they didn't speak to me, and I couldn't understand why, because I had been friendly to them.

    Months later we were playing in the same place, and I ran into some of these guys. They told me they thought I had been pretending I didn't know what I was doing, then I'd go on stage and blow them away. But in truth, I really hadn't been aware of exactly what I was doing. When it came to things like paradiddles, I made them sound the same as I heard other people play them — all single-stroke rolls and stuff. Those guys had thought I was taking the Michael out of them [fooling them], but I wasn't. I knew the sounds I wanted, but I didn't know the terminology involved.
    SONOR 6 pc Special Edition 3007's red maple, old Pearl Brass 14x6 FF snare, Yamaha Tour Custom maple 8 pc., Tama 4 pc., honey amber B/B, Ludwig Supralite chrome 14x6.5 steel snare, Paiste, Saluda & Zildjian
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  9. #9

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    Thanks for the warm welcome guys! I'm from the north of Italy, Modena for everyone asking It's crazy that so many of you have been here haha

    Lots of great replies, thanks everyone!

    I totally agree with who's saying that we should strive to master both technique and mindset and use them seamlessly in our performances. This is the end goal of every drummer I think, and it's what we should keep in mind every time we practice. Building vocabulary is crucial.

    That said and considering mastery is not behind the door, the way I see it, I would rather learn the basics technically speaking, but play everything with monster groove and confidence. After all if I put myself in the shoes of the average non-drummer listener/audience, whenever I go to a show and look at the drummer, I'd never think "wow that's an insanely accurate double paradiddle"...what I'd think, if the guy's talented and shows confidence, on the other hand would be, "damn he's a beast, his drumming really gives me something", even if he doesn't play anything too technical.

    Long story short, I'd say learn the technique you need to learn at the step you're at, but first learn to master your mindset and make the crowd FEEL something.

    I've noticed many aspiring professional drummers struggle with managing time between music and their job to practice effectively, but also get filled with anxiety and dread every time they step on a stage. It's like their mental barriers prevent them from progressing with the rest of their playing. I'm looking into creating a resource to help these drummers out and your feedback here was invaluable.

    I would love your opinion or any pointer about this idea as well!

  10. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by late8 View Post
    According to Sucherman, if you can't string a coherent set of rudiments together as a drummer but instead play in broken phrases, the drumming won't flow. He said it would be the same as if one were to speak in broken sentences all of the time. It would be obviously difficult to follow and understand.

    The building blocks to great drumming is a solid foundation of the 40 basic drum rudiments. In my opinion, you don't need to be proficient in all 40 but you'll need a few to string along to strengthen your vocabulary and to be able to speak with confidence.
    Rich...................I got to see TS recently with Styx. I did a little research on him before attending the show and knew his background and being at Berklee for one year too. He started out the set with solid power and tempo.............once he got warmed up he was so much fun to watch.............as the night went on, he got more and more technical and still carried it with great power and timing..........I loved it.
    Styx never sounded better.

    And, regarding the 40 rudiments, most guys I know can't play half of them.................I just looked at them again and although I can play most, I sure don't use them all.
    But I agree with you.............if you knew 6 or 8 and could do them very well at all speeds and knew how to work them into the cues and fills, you will have a good time.
    Gretsch USA & Zildjian
    (What Else Would I Ever Need ?)


  11. #11

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    Quote Originally Posted by Ricardo View Post
    Rich...................I got to see TS recently with Styx. I did a little research on him before attending the show and knew his background and being at Berklee for one year too. He started out the set with solid power and tempo.............once he got warmed up he was so much fun to watch.............as the night went on, he got more and more technical and still carried it with great power and timing..........I loved it.
    Styx never sounded better.

    And, regarding the 40 rudiments, most guys I know can't play half of them.................I just looked at them again and although I can play most, I sure don't use them all.
    But I agree with you.............if you knew 6 or 8 and could do them very well at all speeds and knew how to work them into the cues and fills, you will have a good time.
    I learned so much in 90 minutes at Sucherman's clinic than I did in the entire year I took drum lessons at my local music store. His approach to combining odd time signatures and breaking them down into simple subdivisions was enlightening. He played us a 13/8 example of Manic Depression by Hendrix and the groove was incredible. He sub-divided the 13 by playing a measure in 7 followed by a seamless measure in 6. So simple on paper but when he accented and put some feel behind it the groove, it came to life!





    Last edited by late8; 02-25-2016 at 03:56 PM.

  12. #12

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    That's great!
    I didn't realize Manic Depression was in 13/8...we always do it in 3/4.
    SONOR 6 pc Special Edition 3007's red maple, old Pearl Brass 14x6 FF snare, Yamaha Tour Custom maple 8 pc., Tama 4 pc., honey amber B/B, Ludwig Supralite chrome 14x6.5 steel snare, Paiste, Saluda & Zildjian
    Loaned out Slingerland upgraded 4 pc 1963 black, wrapped maple + 14" Pearl birch FT
    The Almighty Speed King pedal, Speed Cobra, Sonor Single

    http://www.screaminmelinas.com
    http://www.facebook.com/DerailedRockers/

  13. #13

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    Drummers by playing and practicing end up developing there own style of playing.
    Your technique will develop as your style of playing grows. You might incorporate some rudiments into your playing because it works or helps develops your style or you may not. A style of playing is just what you consider a comfortable way of playing. Everybody's different.
    Last edited by Jackie; 03-17-2016 at 03:10 AM.

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