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EXPLORING ODD GROUPINGS PART 4

22/5/2017

Hello. I feel a bit cheeky calling this part 4 of the series because it is clearly the second half of part 3. This lesson is an extension of what we looked at last time so if you missed that one, go and check it out. This time, we are still going to be focused on a three note grouping but instead of snare, bass, bass we flip it for bass, snare, snare. This is really going to loosen up your left hand for ghost notes. I have found a lot of students becoming more creative with their grooves after mastering this as it really helps build an independence between the hands. The steps involved are almost identical to the previous lesson. Stay focused and have some fun

This is the basic snare/bass pattern that we are going to work with. As always, take your time and really try to internalise this pattern until it flows smoothly.
In this exercise we are “simply” going to add an 8th note hi-hat pulse over the top. Please be aware that the phrase now flows in and out of sync with your right hand. Also, when you loop the bar, you get a double bass drum. Really focus on keeping this clean and relaxed.
Now we just put it into context. As you go between the simple groove and the pattern, really focus on keeping the hihat as smooth and consistent as you can.
I have given you a simple example here of moving the pattern around the kit to give more of a fill feel. Have some fun and move this around to create your own versions.
As in the previous lesson, we now have the same three note grouping as before but we are playing it over a 1/4 note pulse in 3/4 so that it resolves each bar. As you increase the tempo, try and ensure that the hihat pulse is kept smooth and relaxed.
I have chucked this in as a bonus exercise. We have the two main phrases from lesson 3 and 4 back to back. If you have worked through the previous exercises, this shouldn’t be too tricky but works really well as a warm up as we work on both the left hand and right foot whilst keeping a consistent pulse with the right.

Hopefully this will have been of some use to you. After talking to a few people, I realise that part 3 was quite tough to master at a higher speed due to the number of bass drums. Join me in the next lesson where I take a break from the odd groupings and focus a bit more on the core ability to play accurate bass drum patterns.

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EXPLORING ODD GROUPINGS PART 3

15/5/2017

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Welcome to part 3 of the series. In this lesson we are going to look at one way to play a three note grouping. Not only is this really going to help you strengthen your bass drum speed and independence, but it also sounds cool! It’s a short but focused lesson that should hopefully prepare you for some of the more intricate patterns to come.

This is the basic snare/bass pattern that we are going to work with. As always, take your time and really try to internalise this pattern until it flows smoothly.
In this exercise we are “simply” going to add an 8th note hi-hat pulse over the top. Please be aware that the phrase now flows in and out of sync with your right hand. Also, when you loop the bar, it really helps to work on strengthening your left hand for ghost notes. Once you can comfortably play this try accenting the 1/4 note downbeat.
Now we just put it into context. As you go between the simple groove and the pattern, really focus on keeping the hihat as smooth and consistent as you can. As in the previous example, once you have the loop down, try to accent the downbeat as you play.
So, if you were able to play the previous exercises with the downbeat accent then you should find this a little bit easier. If, you skipped that step, I recommend, going back and doing that first. What we have is the same three note grouping as before but we are now playing it over a 1/4 note pulse in 3/4 so that it resolves each bar. As you increase the tempo, try and ensure that the hihat pulse is kept smooth and relaxed.

Check out the next lesson for an extension in this idea to help progress your snare independence.

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EXPLORING ODD GROUPINGS PART 2

4/5/2017

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Hello and welcome to the second lesson on odd groupings. In this lesson we are going to take a look at a few accents and get comfortable with the building blocks that we will need to progress through later lessons. We are also going to have a quick look at some groupings of 3, and two very simple ways of playing them.

This is your baseline. You want to just loop standard unaccented 16th notes on your hands, with a left foot 1/4 note pulse for a few minutes. Try and focus on keeping the notes quiet, controlled and (most importantly) even. We want to relax so that the hands and left foot lock together in a relaxed manner.
This exercise is trickier than it looks if you haven’t had much experience with accents. I want you to take each bar on its own and run it for a couple of minutes (ideally with a click). The first bar is simply accenting the “1” in the right hand. Then we displace it one 16th note to the “e”, this will be on your left hand. Then again, another 16th note back to the right hand of “and” then finally the left hand of “a”. As you work through these bars, make sure you do not displace the left foot. That should remain on the 1/4 note pulse. Once you feel happy with each bar, we can play it as a four bar phrase. As you increase the tempo, really focus on keeping all the unaccented notes even and at the same dynamic, with the accents clear and consistent.
A great way to test your new found comfort with accents is to play a grouping of three notes over 16ths. This is because in the one bar of 3/4 we have an accent on every possible location. Also, by keeping it in 3/4 it resolves in just one bar so it is much easier to get into the flow of it. As before, pay attention to your left foot as it is all too easy to move it to the accents and then you are implying 8th note triplets instead of the straight 16ths.
This could easily be labelled 3b! We have simply carried on the grouping of three through 4/4. As three times 5 is 15, we have a remainder of one, so this pattern is no longer smooth as it doesn’t properly resolve, “resetting” every bar. Once you are feeling comfortable with this, start moving the accents around the kit. Start with right hand to the floor tom and left to the high tom, then try the hats, ride and crash, with and without the bass drum as well.
This is a little more of a challenge, especially if you play RLL though triplets a lot. It should sound identical to exercise 3 but you may find it harder to keep the left foot playing 1/4 notes. Stick with it.
The final exercise is an extension on the previous one again. It should sound identical to 4 but as with 5, you will probably find it harder to lock in with the left foot. Take your time to really get it and nail the double accent as you loop it. You will find when you start moving this around the kit you will end up playing different ideas than 4. Finally, when it comes to using this pattern as a fill you have a couple of options to help make it flow smoothly. Firstly, play it as written and just crash with the left hand on the one. The second option is to replace the very last 16th note accent with a bass drum. This keeps your right hand relaxed and makes it very easy to hit any cymbal on your kit.

I hope you got a lot out of this lesson. Make sure you take your time with each of the exercises as in the next lesson we are going to increase the difficulty and start looking at some more advanced groupings and combinations, and have some fun!

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EXPLORING ODD GROUPINGS PART 1

2/5/2017

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Hello and welcome to the first of my lessons for the Blog.

This is the simplest style of groove in 7/8. It follows the standard “money” beat with a simple 1/8 note removed. Spend some time getting comfortable with how this feels. A little piece of advice, when counting only count to “sev” not “seven”. This is because “seven” has two syllables and your brain will try and normalise your groove and all too easily you can end up playing 4/4. The way to start counting this would be; one, two, three, four, five, six, sev.
Now we add our basic 1/4 note accent on the hi hats. As we loop this, the jumping/skipping sound is accentuated and it makes the odd time signature feel even more odd.
With number 3 we have switched the accent to the off beat. Take your time with this as it’s easy to get caught out and put an accent on beat one when you loop it.
This is the main focus of this lesson. We are effectively playing example 2 into 3. We are now playing in 7/4 which allows us to keep the accents rolling. This gives the groove better flow and “evens out” the odd time signature.
In the final example we are just playing the accent pattern. This gives it a nice chunky sound, but again doesn’t feel too “odd”

I am going to end this lesson by saying that although this lesson is a basic introduction to one of the ways that you can make odd time signatures feel less odd and more musical, the core principles will really help your playing in 4/4 as well. So have some fun.

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EXPLORING ODD GROUPINGS PART 4

EXPLORING ODD GROUPINGS PART 3

EXPLORING ODD GROUPINGS PART 2

EXPLORING ODD GROUPINGS PART 1

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