Beginners learning drums should consider using a metronome. It will help them keep time while practicing, as well as give an insight into how their favorite drummers perform.
Make sure both sticks have an equal grip; your thumb should rest against your index finger on each stick for optimal balance and pivot point stability.
Basics
Beginners need a basic drum kit and practice space when starting out on their drumming journey, such as a student set that costs under $100. Such kits typically contain kick drum, snare drum, hi-hat, crash and ride cymbals as well as crash and ride cymbals.
Beginners with some drumming experience may want to start working on basic rhythms on their drums. Beginners can begin practicing their rhythms using only their hands – hitting one instrument at a time – in order to develop coordination and timing skills. Playing drums with a metronome helps maintain an appropriate tempo that is essential when learning a new instrument.
Music commonly played is in 4/4 time, meaning four beats make up each bar of music. To begin counting, listen to some radio music while clapping along and counting four equal beats – this will help when it comes time to playing in a band!
Beginner drummers should learn how to read drum notation as it will prove invaluable in later stages of their drumming journey. Drum notation is simply a system of numbers which indicates which drum should be hit and when. For instance, hitting your snare drum on “One” and “Two” may indicate hitting it three times over its duration. Acquiring this skill early on will prove immensely helpful and ensure a successful experience overall!
Reading drum notation out loud will strengthen the connection between your brain and limbs, giving you greater awareness of song structures as you locate any difficult beats or phrases that might be challenging to hit correctly. Beginner drummers should seek out an instructor in their locality who can offer customized lesson plans based on skill level and style.
Last but not least, invest in good ear protection. The sound of drumming can be intense and may harm your ears without proper ear protection if playing at high volumes, which many beginner drummers tend to do at first. By creating the ideal practice space and protecting hearing during practice sessions, it will help you become a better drummer while avoiding injuries and pain.
Setup
Step one in playing drums is making sure that you have all of the appropriate equipment, which should at least include drumsticks, a practice pad, and music to play along with.
Once you’ve established a rhythm, the next step should be purchasing a full drum set. There are plenty of choices on the market, but for optimal results it is generally wise to opt for high quality sets made from durable materials that will withstand regular usage. You could also look up online reviews to gain a sense of what might best suit your personal requirements.
When purchasing drumsticks, start by finding two that suit both in size and style. It is also advisable to choose sticks made of materials that will provide optimal sound production and feel based on your playing style; there are numerous types available from wood to metal – it might even pay to test several out before choosing your ultimate favorite pair!
Once you’ve selected suitable drumsticks, it’s time to focus on improving your grip. Beginners should start off slowly by practicing two-hand coordination while playing simple rhythms such as counting ‘1 2 3 4’ while tapping your left foot on the floor and right foot on bass drum ‘boom’ respectively to replicate counting and timing patterns.
Once you can master this step, it’s time to add the cymbals. Now is also a good time to explore “odd” rhythms such as 3/4 and 7/8 which are popular across multiple musical traditions.
An investment in a drum stool or seat for your kit is also highly recommended, to ensure you’re sitting correctly when playing and to prevent slouching, bad posture and back strain. Over time you might even decide to add bass drum pedal and bass drum throne for an enhanced experience.
Technique
Every sport, art and activity has a set of techniques tailored specifically to it, which enable its practitioners to achieve greater results with less effort. Learning drums is no exception: during practice you must always aim to improve your technique.
First and foremost in playing a successful drum solo is holding your sticks correctly. For optimal results, place it between the first joint of your middle finger and thumb with its tip close to center; relax but not loosely hold each finger with each hand; this allows faster tempos with lesser muscle strain. Furthermore, it’s essential that shoulders and back remain relaxed rather than stiff or tight, since tension will only slow you down further or even lead to injury.
Rebound strokes (hitting the drum or pad with your stick so it bounces) are another important element of drumming technique. Rebound strokes allow you to build speed while also practicing accuracy, relaxation and economy of motion. Rebound strokes allow you to move the drumstick at a slower pace before speeding it toward its surface with quick wrist turns – perfect for building speed without losing control and consistency! To maximize control and consistency while playing rebound strokes.
While playing, counting out loud will help strengthen your beats and coordination, learn the rhythm of music more easily, and ensure that none of the beats go missed. Doing this also forces you to pay more attention to both hands and feet so that no beats go missed during practice sessions.
As a beginner drummer, it is wise to begin learning the most common drum beats and patterns used most frequently in songs. Doing this will allow for maximum results from practice sessions while preventing you from trying to learn a song that features complex drum patterns too soon.
Make time to learn cymbals as part of your rhythm learning experience. A basic set would include a ride cymbal – the largest one of all on a kit that gives off a clean sound when hit – as the cornerstone. Crash and hi-hat cymbals could add some color and variety to your beats as later additions in learning to drum.
Music
Beginner drumming students should begin by learning the fundamentals of rhythm. Before investing money into buying a kit or becoming frustrated by being unable to play simple beats in time with songs, it’s wise to get acquainted with rhythm before investing more money on practice sessions or kits. One basic way of understanding rhythm is learning how to count quarter notes; there are various methods of breaking musical bars down into four equal beats per measure that may also work as guides – but for this guide we will use 4/4 time signature for simplicity’s sake.
Step two of learning drumming involves playing along to songs with basic drum beats that are simple for you to learn and that are enjoyable listening to, such as Ringo Starr’s “Nothing Else Matters” or Queen’s “We Are the Champions.” Both feature catchy tunes with accessible tempos that feature simple drumbeats.
As your playing improves, it is advisable to find songs which require you to play more complex beats and fills. This will keep your skills progressing while keeping a varied practice regimen so as not to become bored or discouraged with practicing.
Listening closely when playing along to songs is essential if you want to create a consistent sound from start to finish. Listen out for things such as the four on the floor bass drum beat, snare backbeat and any cymbal or vocal accents included in the song so as to stay in time with everyone and create an accurate representation of its original version.
Staying in sync with the band requires listening for any changes to the tempo of a song, such as an increase or decrease of speed, to stay on time with their performance. Keeping an ear out for any signs that you might be speeding up or slowing down will allow for accurate timekeeping and will help ensure everyone keeps in time with one another.
As an introductory drumming student, it’s also essential that you learn drum notation; it provides a roadmap of the song’s rhythm and other elements, making learning how to play drums much simpler. We have provided free drum notation for 20 popular tunes below as an aid; additionally you can sign up with Drumeo for more specialized instruction and notation!