Using paradiddles as triplets in fills and grooves.

[beyondbetrayal]

I finally got my camera back from the repair shop. Canon apparently have pretty decent customer service considering I was off warranty.  I had to pay but it was only a few hundred. I was expecting double.

I just started playing around with this and figured I'd make a video to test the camera. I may have opened a rabbit hole to start using other rudiments in uncommon subdivisions. also playing groups of 5, 7, or 8 as triplets etc. or 6 over 5's . Pretty sure this will be never ending.

These may get me fired by the bands but it sure is a fun way to work on independence. And when you find the right combination of accents and hit the right drums it gets tasty.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCCI3kaXKY4

[James Walker]

Great materials, Scott.   :)

I've been working on similar things.  One part of my warmup is to play paradiddles (or doubles) up and down the ladder, starting with quarters or eighths, to triplets, to fours, fives, sixes, sevens, and eights (32nd notes) and then back down. keeping quarter notes going in one or both feet, and playing along to a click.  Only a limited amount of this material has started showing up in my vocabulary when improvising, but even so that's OK.  I've noticed that ever since I started practicing things like this on a consistent basis, my overall sense of time and rhythm has become much more solid (steadier, and more confident), even when playing more straightforward rhythms and beats.

[beyondbetrayal]

I heard a cool tip that anything you are working on and learn takes about 6 months to show up in your natural playing.  I am making a point of working on stuff and NOT playing it for close to that time until I can let it show up on it's own and not force it.

I played a tad too fast in this video and should have used a click as it got sloppy. I use a click for practice. I find being on stage or having a camera on me speeds me up about 20 BPM if I don't use one haha. That is all in my head to fix that.

I may try your ladder exercise. I am working on 5's now and when playing 4/4 16th notes etc I can do it no problem.  Switch to triplets I had to slow way down.   Guess changing time signatures AND subdivisions will make a big ladder :).

I agree with the confidence. I find I hear it in my playing. I am hitting the drums and getting more confident tones out of them being able to play with time on the fly. Mostly in my fills. Even mid fill when I want to change it up I'm not "guessing"

[James Walker]

Here's a PDF I made, something to help me out when I first started practicing this sort of thing.  I started out just doing it on a pad (or snare drum) with a click, but then moved it to the drum set as you did.

http://www.malletjazz.com/cafefiles/paradiddle_ladder_2.pdf

This can be applied to any four-note grouping, of course.  Just replacing the paradiddles with flam paradiddles throws a real wrench into the works, for me at least.  ;)

Some of the variations I've added are not only "ascending" the ladder, but "descending" as well, moving to successively slower divisions.  I've found, for example, that fives were slower than I expected coming down from sextuplets.  I'll also vary the order, such as going from eighths to triplets, back to eighths, to sixteenths, back to eighths, to fives, etc., or switching from one odd division to the next.  You've discovered the same thing as well, I'm sure:  after a while the "what else can I do with this?" question becomes automatic, and the possible variations start springing to mind.

One other benefit:  in addition to my own playing being more confident and solid, I find that I'm less likely to be thrown by unexpected rhythms or phrasings by other members of the band.

[Bart Elliott]

From an educational aspect... for the future videos... I would suggest that you change up your camera angle, use two cameras, or overdub a separate segment so that people can see your hands and what you are explaining. The reason is that your hihat is blocking the view for most of what you are playing on the snare drum... the exception being your accents and some of what your right hand is doing. One of the three suggestions I gave would help tremendously, although it means more work. Again, this is just from an educational point of view... which does seem what your video is all about.

[beyondbetrayal]

I appreciate the feedback.

After watching I realized the same thing.

I may dedicate my smaller kit to become a video / recording kit and set up a second camera angle, mics, and not move it.

The fact I am always moving stuff for gigs and have no room in the basement makes it difficult.

Also as much as I would love 3 or 4 camera angles I can't afford another camera.   I have an old point and shoot digital but the video is quite bad. Better than nothing :).

Heck with the prices of everything these days I haven't even replaced the heads on my kit in over half a year. haha