Saturday, November 19, 2011

How to Practice Effectively

By Joe Maldonado


The most boring aspect of learning how to play the drums is considered to be practicing. But as we all know that "Practice make Perfect". Every amateur as well as professional drummer needs to practice regularly. You need to utilize your practice time to the fullest especially if you get less time to do it. There are quite a few drummers out there who practice two to three times a week but do not improve much. This is because they are unable to practice effectively. You need to know the difference between practicing and jamming. Jamming is when you play your favorite songs to enjoy yourself while practicing is when you work on different aspects of your drumming.

Firstly, you need to warm up. It is a very demanding physical task. Most of it is related to our joints and muscles. Drummers are usually not able to play to their full potential because their performance is hindered by the body that is not warmed up properly. Ten to fifteen minutes of wrists and feet warm up allows you to play smooth. This prevents injuries and increases your performance ability.

Try to play with a practice pad and sticks. This is an important part while learning how to play the drums. Play a few patterns which are simple and where you do not have to worry about other things. You should try to play single and double stroke rolls for 10 minutes straight. This will definitely warm up your wrists. Make up patterns that sound unique to make things a little easy. Try to mix up some rudiments as well. This will warm up your mind for the big performance. Later, you can also play a paradiddle.

Feet also need a warm up since a lot of drummers tend to play double bass drum these days. In order to get your feet going, warm those up with a double bass drum pedal or even a pair of Hansen Futz pedals. If you need to warm up outside your drum kit, then you can go for Hansen Futz pedals. These are the imitation bass drum pedals that can be placed anywhere to flex your muscles. Again, basic rudiment playing is the best option to get your feet moving. You should also make sure that you are warming up with the heel down as well as heel up techniques.

Another key factor is to not try matching the progress of your feet with your wrists. Your Feet might not be as developed as your wrists. This will tire you out instead of warming yourself up. Also, you should warm up any time you play. Warm up should also be the start of your practice session.

Now you need to warm up on the drums. Take 10 to 15 minutes on a practice pad. Play only the basic rudiments, single stroke roll and double stroke roll. Metronome practice is also very important. This helps you to keep you on time and keep you up with the tempo. It helps you to record your progress as well by jotting down the tempo of some of your beats. The ratio of practice on practice pad with respect to drum set should be equal. This is extremely crucial for effective practice of how to play the drums.




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