ROCK MUSIC ONLINE

lesson 0: FAQ'S

Hi all,
First of all, this is *NOT REALLY* a lesson, the real lessons start with "lesson #1".
So those of you that are just here to get some patterns, don't be disappointed. Just move on to the other lessons.
Why a drum-FAQ?
The main reason is that some of you asked me a couple of questions, and I thought they could probably be useful for other drummers, too.
Secondly, this could be a place, permanently changing, where you, fellow-drummers, can add your tips!

So let me have it!


Frequently Asked Questions
Where (Q) = Question and (A) = Aswer
Q: Equipment - Are expensive drumsets/cymbals/sticks always better? Should I buy a set made by one of the 'big' companies or a cheap one? New or second-hand?
A: - Tough question! Hard to answer...
First thing: there are A LOT of drum/cymbal/stick manufacturers. I won't mention anyone of them here, because this is no advertisement-page. Some of them I'd rather forget quickly as well. Please don't ask me which ones...
Be sure you know what is out there and what the prices/colors/types are BEFORE you buy your set... Do your homework!
I guess you'll be a bit sick, when you see the week after you've bought your second choice drumset, a copy of the one you'd always wanted, in the perfect colors and also priced for 100$ less than you've paid already!

You don't NEED a 'big bucks'-drumset to play great stuff!
Big companies all want to make you believe they are the best, which isn't always true. Believe me, I've seen some crap around. Fact is, however, that they in general charge you too much.
Some of the cheaper sets CAN actually sound great, when you use a perfect combination of skins.

Be sure your hardware is OK. You don't want to spend hours of your rehearsal-time patching up a drumset, that tears apart when you hit it (goes for some budget-lines of a few big companies, too!)

If you buy a used drumset/cymbal, please ask a friend with a bit more experience to help you judge...

Q: Language - Why is your english sometimes a little bit odd? (allright, nobody actually did ask me this question, but I thought I'd put it in here!)
A: - I'm no native speaker of english, I'm a dutchman (...I can't fly...) and thus, if something is unclear to you, please write and I'll try to explain!

Q: Lefthanded - I'm lefthanded. Does that make any difference?
A: - Yes it does...! These lessons are in fact all based on righthanded drummers.
Yeah right, that's pretty lame, but don't you worry...
All you need to do is mirroring. In the basic 5-piece setup (you saw a crappy graphical representation in "drums.html" with a SD, HH and HT on the left with a Cymbal, LT and FT on the right.
Change this to Cymbal, FT and LT (left) and SD, HH and HT (right).
Playing cross-matched you cross your left arm for your hihat OVER you right arm which plays the SD.
It's just like a mirror image, because a righthanded drummer crosses right OVER left.

Q: Lefthanded (2) - What if I'm righthanded and I learned to play lefthanded (or the other way around)? Do I need to change?
A: - Don't! If you play for one or two weeks only you are still able to change, but if you play this way for some time already, don't change it. Just play that way as long as it feels right!

Q: Lefthanded patterns - If I need to change my setup being lefthanded, do I need to change your patterns, too?
A: - Yes again! If you are lefthanded every pattern needs to be "translated" to "lefties".
Lets's say you have a pattern and it goes like this "RLRL RLRL", you need to change it into "LRLR LRLR" and so on...
This goes for all fills/rhythms/shoes/pants/stuff...

Q: Lessons - Will you make any more of them?
A: - Yes, I will... but I don't have that much time, so the site will be updated irregularily!

Q: Matched vs. traditional grip - I've seen old jazz-drummers and marching bands using the traditional grip (that's holding your stick in between your ring-finger and your middle finger, while your index-finger and middle-finger make a kind of V-sign.)
A: - Nowadays you MAY use that grip, but you don't HAVE TO.

Q: Playing Loud - Should I care about my volume as a drummer?
A: - Absolutely! Be sure you can play SOFTLY as well. Making a lot of hard noise is easy, just bang those drums hard and that's all.
Wrong! You NEED to be in control of your volume, a good drummer (according to my opinion) HAS TO be able to play not only loud, but SOFTLY as well.
I teach my real-life students to use "dynamics" for a "balanced" sound, so they are able to play soft parts of a song next to explosive parts.
It makes your drumsolo or rhythm a lot more interesting if you use "dynamics" (= accents, soft parts, loud parts, speed, fast and slow patterns). I'd prefer to listen to a drummer that composes a little song, while doing a solo, instead of attending an attempt for a new World Record "Breaking as many sticks and stuff as you can in 10 minutes".
Many drummers associate "slow" with "soft" and "loud" with "fast", i.e. if you play faster your volume goes up, too).
Please DON'T do that!
Another reason is that being able to play softly you are able to play together with "difficult" instruments, like acoustic guitar or flutes, and you WILL get that well-paid gig in the small pub, where only "unplugged" bands can play and where you have to keep the volume down.
Right, if you're playing NIRVANA or SLAYER-stuff (which can be fun too!) there are other things to worry about than volume... but in general...
You'll see that playing "slow" or "soft" is not that easy though... "loud" or "fast" is easier. Please keep trying!

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