DRUMMERS: Advice for a beginner

The best advice for drummers is surely the list issued by Robert Fripp to Bill Bruford:

1. Any existing solution to a problem is the wrong one: absolutum, obsoletum;
2. If you have an idea, don't play it;
3. When a change in the music needs emphasis, don't play it: the change in the music is emphasis enough;
4. Don't phrase with any other member of the band unless it's in the part;
5. Phrasing in the part should include no more than two people;
6. If the tension in the music needs emphasising, don't. The tension is there because of what you're playing, not what you're about to play;
7. If you really have to change your part to build tension, don't add -- leave out;
8. The maximum tension you can add is by stopping completely;
9. If there is space for a fill which is demanded by the music, don't play it: there are three other people who would like to use the opportunity;
10. If the part you're playing is boring, stop listening with your head;
11. If this still bores you, listen to the interaction between all the parts;
12. If this still bores you, stop playing and wait until you are no longer bored;
13. Do not be dramatic;
14. Do not be afraid to repeat yourself;
15. Do not be afraid to take your time.

nah

some of those things are good and some are just fripp being bossy af
i really like his speech "from good to great" though -- he sure loves prescriptive advice!

i do agree about stopping completely

I've always loved that list. I think more bands should establish rules like this. It could easily be applied to any other instruments as well, besides drums. Restrictions breed creativity.

My favorite:

5. Phrasing in the part should include no more than two people;

This is the exact opposite of what I call the "monolithic" approach to arrangement, which was very popular in the 90s, basically the Nirvana sound. It leads to a lot more variety and color, as opposed to everyone playing the exact same thing in unison all on top of each other.

i agree that placing limitations on oneself yields interesting results
however, i can place those limitations myself or among the people i am playing with without fripp telling me what to do

That is a great list. Especially 3-6 & 10-11...obviously would not be good if you followed it blindly (and BB didn't), but it's true that drummers can be too accent-happy and fill-happy. It usually feels good in the moment but not so much when listening back.

xp

More like "good concepts to consider and apply when appropriate"

Ha, I think Fripp's list basically amounts to, "I don't like the Who, so please don't play like Keith Moon."

(and congrats, LL!!!!!!)

Right, dont be compelled to fill space with endless drum rolls and cymbals. There's a school of thought out there that cymbals should be avoided as much as possible because they generate a bunch of white noise. This is a very 80s-centric outlook, where everything was very clean and noise-free. Throwing Muses - House Tornado is a great example if this approach.

Late 80s metal/hard rock and 90s indie/grunge pretty much demolished this outlook.

*musicians approach the beginning of the next phrase, with tension building in a fripp-approved manner.* https://i.imgur.com/SLpsoKl.jpg?1

*drummer reaches to strike the crash cymbal exactly on the downbeat of the next phrase* https://i.imgur.com/uN3weo9.jpg?2

*drummer decides not to hit the cymbal on 1* https://i.imgur.com/NrwORw7.jpg

crash cymbals basically useless afaic

Always found it hilarious that Peter Gabriel went from "no cymbals!" on his 1980 and '82 records to "nothing but cymbals!" on So.

congrats ll!

lol Karl

thank you!

because they generate a bunch of white noise
hello that is what they are for...? i love a whole lotta cymbals if given the right context, no shame

i feel similarly about crash cymbals. i inherited one recently and switched it out after i was like bleh, no

It's more of an aesthetic question rather than a moral one. There isn't a right or wrong, just what are you trying to achieve.

Music in the 80s tended toward an ultra clean, crisp, synthetic sound field in which drum sounds were ultra separated and treated with reverb. A lot of cymbals could muddy up that approach.

Post-80s, noise and saturation came back into style, recording technology swung away from early digital to the "warmth" of analog. This also meant that people started to find ways to overload the analog signal without blowing it out completely.

In case my dwelling on particular time periods seems strange, Fripp's rules were meant to establish guidelines for the 80s incarnation of KC. You can hear a very big contrast between this version of the band vs their 70s recordings.

that's great for him! his band's group agreements are just right for his band in the 80s.
i like the 70s KC recordings much better but wtf do i know, everyone likes what they like including robert fripp & me :)
long live fripp tbh

Oh that does make more sense.

I like cymbals, it's open hi-hat that I have the most aesthetic issues with.

xp

xp

Yeah, totally not something that everyone should be expected to sign on for, but those rules can definitely be heard in action on those 80s recordings, for good or ill, and I see them partially as a response to the shifting aesthetics of the time.

xp to jordan you mean it's just left open and played without the pedal?

come to think of it, i don't have any major prejudices aside from deeply disliking a particular type of cheesy canned beat featured in an array of popular 90s radio hits. most of my preferences are positive (i like xyz) rather than negative (please no xyz)

Yeah, like leaving it wide open and riding on it, especially in a big chorus or climax. It just sounds either very '90s or jammy in a way I don't like, but that's my issue.

(I'll admit to lots of negative preferences, mostly through identifying things in my playing that I don't like and try to stay away from)

To me, it's a very hair metal move, but I'm sure there are tons of counter-examples

ewww @ leaving hi hat open like that.
I was really missing my drums last night (they're 1800 miles away and have been for 5.5 yrs).

I don't think I have any real cymbal hate, except for when splash cymbals are used by super-slick drummers in the middle of super-slick fills.

I don't like the open hi-hat in hair metal, but I don't like hair metal. So when Roy Haynes or Keith Moon uses it, I like it.

i play punk music and am self-taught, open hi-hat is part of the equation afaict

it was mostly a personal choice due to inability though, pre-being able to do more intricate hi-hat work, has a huge presence in a mix bc hi-hats cut through everything

i don't play splash cymbals almost at all on the record we just made, i mostly wanted to do everything via the hi-hat and the ride. i liked it way better but some of my favorite drummers get extreme musicality out of an elaborate cymbal set up

splash

er, crash*

Open hi-hat and crash cymbals are great and very useful when playing with others who are very loud.

My tendency is to dislike what I perceive as trite gambits that other drummers/percussionists do -- like if I see/hear a lot of people doing the same thing, I tend to avoid doing it myself. So, for me, it's cymbal swells w/mallets.

ooh but cymbal swells sound so good sometimes

good to see you sarahell!! :)

Sarahell and the Cymbal Swells sounds like a cool band name

i don't think it has ever occurred to me to ride the open hi hat
i also do not like hair metal

i think that just like just about any other sound, the open hi-hat can be perfect for one song and absolutely awful for another. sounds pretty sweet on "i want to hold your hand", for example.

that makes sense
for all the time i have spent watching youtube videos of people playing drums, there is always something new to learn

ok tonight i played SOLO solo (without accompaniment) in front of an audience for the first time and (by design) the set was only 5 min (all sets for the evening were only 5 min) but guess what
i loved it
the feeling of doing it was excellent and i enjoyed it a lot. i only played the small tom and snare <3

That is awesome!!!

Congrats! Standing-up setup?

heck yeah!

xp - no i decided to sit down. i kept the snare and tom where they normally are, i was sort of sitting off to the side, not in the middle of the stage. if i were being uncharitable i'd say it looked like a drum phallus but why would i do that to myself. if anyone else thought that they didn't say so to me. i don't think i have any photos but all of the sets were recorded so that's cool.

also? i carried everything up in one trip. it was glorious. hardware on my back, a drum on each shoulder, and my purse bag in the front. this was on the third floor too!

Yesss. I recently had a gig at a new jazz club a block from my house, where there is a house drum kit. I walked there with a cymbal bag, stick bag, and pedal. It was the best experience of my drumming career.

yesssssss
the limitation made it interesting too. i would normally pack the car with whatever i could stuff into it but this was just like 3 bags. that's it.
huge thank you to karl malone for letting me repeatedly borrow his snare bag!

in 2 hours i am going to pick up my very first drum set. i have convinced myself +/- that i am not too old or too stupid. i finally have time and a basement and in 2 hours i will have some drums of my own, if this transaction doesn't somehow get screwed up. for a while i was looking for approval to go ahead and do this, but soon enough it became evident that i was just being a chicken. now i'm just going to finally see what i can teach myself in my oodles of spare time. this is one of the most self-indulgent things i have ever done in my life and i just have to get over that because i think it will be super fun and also good for my general health.

― free your spirit pig (La Lechera), Saturday, June 15, 2013 9:22 AM (six years ago) Bookmark

happy drummiversary to me! i'm 6!

many happy returns 👍

🎂 🎁 🍰

yayyy!!!

I forgot an emoji or two: 🥁🍗

I’m in first grade now! Still so much to learn. I’ve made a lot of loony decisions but that drum set & the ensuing years of practice have not been among them.

😀🎵🥁❤️

I used to play drums in bands, but have not played drums in ... 10 years? 15 years? But I sort of feel like with a week of practice I could get back up to speed. It's like riding a bike, but with calluses.

You don’t need calluses! I’m sure you’d be right back in the saddle. Once you know you know.

I’m in a recording studio rn!! On my birthday 🎂 🎉