By Tim Kamak George’s Music

Whenever I practice, it has always been helpful to change things up in order to keep my interest and build my creativity!  A while back I was looking to improve my technique, ghost strokes (very quiet “taps” usually on the snare drum), and reading, when I was given this very fun and helpful tip.  Hope you enjoy it!

• First, start out with a simple/easy reading page of quarter notes and eighth notes, (if it has rests, that’s ok too.)

• Next, on your snare drum, VERY SOFTLY (as soft as you can absolutely play), play a R L R L sixteenth note pattern (no accents).

*Important:  Always start out slowly

• Now read down the page as it is written, while keeping the SOFT sixteenth note pattern going, but ONLY accent the notes you are reading.

*Helpful tip:  Notice when reading a page with only quarter and eighths that everything accented will fall on your right hand (left is you’re a lefty!).

Once you have successfully accomplished this, change things up by:

• Adding a reading page with sixteenth notes.  Remember although you are playing SOFT sixteenth notes continually, you will only accent the ones dictated on your reading page.  All others should remain SOFT.
• Moving the “reading page” accents around the toms while always returning the “in-between” notes to the SOFT sixteenth note fillers on the snare drum.

*One book that is good for this lesson is:  “The Reading Drummer” by Dave Vose/Hal Leonard and Berklee Press.  Just $9.95 at George’s Music

Good luck and always…Have Fun!