Stick Control Linear Exercise - Part One

Wow! Now here's something a bit different for a change...a drum lesson! It's been awhile since I've posted one of these but since I've received some nice comments with regards to my previous lessons (it's been month, years!!!) I thought I would try and keep this up.

Here's a little variation on a Stick Control exercise I took from Steve Smith's excellent DVD "The Art of Playing Brushes" (with Adam Nussbaum). I believe that Steve originally got this one from his time studying with Alan Dawson in Boston. I've found this a great way to engage all my limbs at the same time and develop an overall sense of coordinated balance on the drum set.

Take the first few pages of Stick Control (such as the column above). Using a steady rhythm of eighth-notes as your rhythmic template, use these following variations as your guide to create some interesting linear ideas:

1) Exercise #1

- When you play R with your Right Hand, follow it with a bass drum.

- When you play L with your Left Hand, follow it with a hi-hat (open or closed, your choice)

So a paradiddle sticking RLRR LRLL would look like this:

R B L H R B R B      L H R B L H L H


R = Right Hand

L = Left Hand

B = Bass Drum

H = Hi-Hat


2) Exercise #2 (variation)

- When you play R with your Right Hand, follow it with a hi-hat (open or closed, your choice)

- When you play L with your Left Hand, follow it with the bass drum

So the following RLRR LRLL combination would look like this:

R H L B R H R H      L B R H L B L B


You'll find that you come up with some pretty interesting and challenging four-limb linear patterns as the sticking variations develop. I've also been messing around with a fun variation that involves triplets that I'll share with you in a future post.