"Odd" Paradiddle Variations

I came up with these useful sticking patterns after working on some Elvin Jones type of patterns found in John Riley's "Beyond Bop Drumming" method book.

"Odd" Paradiddles

-Take a single paradiddle like this RLRR and add one extra L at the end to create a five note pattern like this:

RLRRL

Play them several times in a row and accent 1) the first note and then 2) the first AND last note of each pattern:

RLRRL RLRRL RLRRL RLRRL

-Starting on the left hand, it would look something like this:

LRLLR LRLLR LRLLR LRLLR

-Play them on the snare drum and mess around playing the accents on the floor tom and mounted tom (or cymbals or whatever)

-Using that same concept of adding a note to the end of each paradiddle, do the same with a double paradiddle (this creates a 7 note pattern):

RLRLRRL RLRLRRL RLRLRRL RLRLRRL

LRLRLLR LRLRLLR LRLRLLR LRLRLLR

-Written here as a triple paradiddle (creating a 9 note pattern):

RLRLRLRRL RLRLRLRRL RLRLRLRRL RLRLRLRRL

LRLRLRLLR LRLRLRLLR LRLRLRLLR LRLRLRLLR

-And here is a paradiddlediddle approached the same way (also a 7 note pattern BUT this one switches hands each time):

RLRRLLR LRLLRRL RLRRLLR LRLLRRL

Don't forget to work these patterns with the accents ! (as described above)

One more variation that incorporates using the bass drum:

- Again, add even one or two extra notes to the end of each of these variations but play them on the bass drum. When you add the bass drum with the accented pattern, you'll get a kind of Elvin Jones/Tony Williams sounding pattern.

Enjoy !