The past 20 years have witnessed the rise of digital audio workstations (DAW) such as Pro Tools and Garageband. The prices of these recording software programs have dropped and are now often used in home studios. Loop replacement of drummers, plug-ins, and quantification of drum performance to grids are becoming more and more common.

These technological advances are now vital to many songwriters, engineers, and producers, but it raises some important questions: Yes, loops are easier, but are they better? Is it really necessary to use quant drums to play so many popular songs?

When people create exciting new projects in the privacy of their own homes, many of the things that make it mainstream seem very boring. For example, from the drum pattern to the harmony structure to the melody, there is a lack of sparkle in the popular music of the 60s and 70s. Compare Rihanna's current hits with Aretha Franklin's past hits, and you might understand where I come from. Will today's mainstream pop music be helped by human drumming? Of course it will not be harmed.

A group dynamic that wastes original ideas and adventurous spirit may be the culprit here. The following list of suggestions is expected to help you find creative solutions to remedy these problems and keep the creative fire burning. But remember, artistry is the eye of the beholder. In other words, what you think is a creative drumbeat or percussion may or may not appear to the audience or your band members.

A friend of mine recently went to Thomas Lang’s drum clinic and had a transformative experience. Lang talked about drummers wasting a lot of time wandering around the drum kit when they can practice hard. It's hard to deny his point: we can all practice more effectively. However, if done well, hanging out on the drum set is also a good way to practice. Billy Ward showed off one of his practice skills in his excellent DVD Big Time: he wanders around until he finds something that sounds promising to him, then copies and develops it further . Billy Ward is one of the most creative drummers on the planet, so his method is worth trying.

Spontaneous creativity can also be cultivated through noodle exercises. When I play jazz or rock music, I am often asked to arrange music on the spot. The noodles made me better prepared for these moments.

Below is an exercise that combines noodles with organized exercises. Songo is one of my favorite rhythms to play and teach. Start warming up by playing the basic Songo (Example 1).

Now start the noodles inside the pattern. In other words, change the viscous, add additional bass drums and/or hi-hat notes, arrange the viscous around various sound sources, and change the rhythmic structure. There are two modes of enrichment in this way (Exs. 2-3).

Creative drummers often let the sound of the drum kit decide what to add or remove. In this tribal mode, high-frequency edge clicks blend perfectly with low-frequency tom and bass drum notes (Example 4).

Whether you are performing live or in a studio, your ability to listen to and react to other musicians is crucial. Here are some of the more common ways to interact with other players.

Below: There will be special moments in the performance-whether planned or not-you find yourself playing hit songs with some or all of the band. A good example is the call and response part of James Brown's "I Got You (I Feel Good)" chorus (Ex. 5).

Comparison: Stone Temple Pilots’ "Vasoline"’s main guitar/bass improvisation uses a buzzing 3:2 cardioversion. Eric Kretz performed this marsh-based paradiddle movement as a contrast (Ex. 6).

Call and response: To illustrate the concept of call and response, here is a "jazz dance" inspired by the great Peter Erskine. The bass drum sounded and the snare drum responded. Of course, here you are not communicating with other musicians, but talking to yourself. This kind of joke with yourself (or others) is a necessary part of being a creative drummer (Example 7).

Imitation: This is as annoying as someone repeats every word you say. However, sometimes this may be effective. Paraphrase (repetitive licking in your own way) is also effective.

Avoid obstacles: The following paragraphs are from Eric Hernandez's performance on Bruno Mars' hit single "Locked Out In Heaven". This Stewart Copeland-style hi-hat improvisation took place during the collapse of the second quarter (1:35 in the song). Avoiding obstacles involves taste and subtle performance, and Hernandez proves this with style (Example 8).

Leadership: Sometimes, you will find yourself in a musical environment where you can control the rhythm and others will react to you.

Why reinvent the wheel? Following these instructions, you will be able to use past performances to unleash your creativity by tapping on the icon.

Listen: One of my drum students is learning Led Zeppelin's "Moby Dick" (Studio Edition) for his band. In order to best help him start the solo part, I first listened to the piece as a whole and selected some (from many) gems.

Transcription: The following two Bonham licks start at the 2:58 mark (approximately the point where he switches from hand to stick playing) (Ex. 9-10).

Note: Learning to read and write music is essential in the creative process because it is the raw material needed for transcription. I highly recommend The Art Of Tracribing Drum Set – Books 1 and 2 by Allen Schechner and Nate Brown’s Snare Drum Introductory Workbook by Alfred. Or (shameless plugin alert) you can check out my latest book Drumcraft for a fearless way to gain these reading/writing skills. Also, make sure you invest in a transcription program, such as The Amazing Slow-Downer or mimiCopy.

Learning: I am a supporter of goal-oriented practice. One of my suggestions is "one note at a time". If you set up two drum kits (with two players), you can turn learning to lick into a fun game called "Simon". The "leader" plays a note on the drum kit, and another player copies the note (including viscous). Then the leader plays the first note, then the second note, and the other player imitates the two notes. This process continues until the whole lick is learned.

Go Back for More: Going a step further, it is wise to look back and determine where John Bonham might have gotten his thoughts on the "Moby Dick" solo (Ex. 11-12).

Modification: Licking and changing it is another good strategy. Here, Bonham licks, which were previously based on triplets, are converted to sixteenth notes (Ex. 13-14).

Note: This information may be difficult to find. I strongly recommend hiring a drum teacher to help achieve this goal.

Bonham draws on the following three drum jazz icons (among others):

Using abstraction to fully mobilize your brain can produce creative licks and grooves. For drummers who make a living mainly by shooting backwards, abstract ideas seem impractical. However, if you are willing to accept this possibility, you will be satisfied with the result.

Put yourself in a box: At PASIC 2011, during the John Riley clinic, I volunteered to be on stage in front of thousands of percussionists and took John’s 20-minute "private" class.

First, John "put me in a box" and asked me to improvise left-handed accompaniment (while the other limbs played a typical jazz pattern) to Sonny Rolling's 12-bar blues music "Torrent Madness".

predecessor. 15 (below) is a sample of four bars I might play that night. John once again asked me to use my left hand and right foot to play "Torrent Madness" (Ex. 16). Finally, John asked me to accompany two snare notes and then hit a bass drum (Ex. 17). It seems that playing drums under restricted conditions will hinder your creativity, but the opposite is true. Sometimes, the more variables you restrict, the more imaginative you are.

The situation/voices around you: Later in the clinic, John asked me to play a short solo. He said, "Play the sound of a quarrel between a man and his wife or girlfriend." The ex. 18 is the four subsections of the argument.

Emotion: This may seem far-fetched, but next time you play, try to tap your emotions. For example, if you are accompaniing a cheerful song, think about a happy moment in your life. If you are playing a melancholic ballad, please remember a painful time.

Color: Sound can be associated with a specific color. For example, bright colors such as yellow and orange can be equivalent to the sound of a cymbal. However, there is not much consensus on this point. Individuals usually have their own way of associating colors with certain sounds. Try this: while playing the rhythm, close your eyes and imagine a movie screen full of a certain color. Does this affect your performance?

Rules and traditions are used to break. Combining the rhythms or percussions of different genres and transforming these elements into new things is an important tool for being a creative drummer.

The following are two rhythms excerpted from my book "Drum Aerobics" that combine extremely opposite genres: heavy metal and samba and jazz swing (Ex. 19-20).

Try this: play different types of rhythms every day of the week. Once a week, two of these grooves are deformed together to form a hybrid. If you like the final result, please write it down and record it for a year.

Song structure: The understanding of song structure provides drummers with a framework to help shape the music from one part to the next. The following notch by Death Cab For Cutie drummer Jason McGerr shows how understanding form can contribute to the creative drum part. "I will have your heart" is a harmonious static state. McGerr clearly realized that his role was to build the song from beginning to end by adding rhythm and intensity.

This four-bar phrase (at 3:35) is a sample of McGerr's performance from start to finish, although he forged many different rhythm combinations (Ex. 21) during the performance.

Harmony: As mentioned earlier, a basic understanding of chords is very helpful in designing drum parts. Identifying chord types (such as major and minor) allows you to react in different ways. In addition, the chord sequence creates "seams" in the music, which can be advanced with proper drum handling.

Note: Many of you want to learn music theory, learn harmony instruments such as piano or guitar, and start writing your own songs.

Melody: Many drummers use melody as the basis. The information of this song often appears in the lyrics, so learning how to support this can be very beneficial.

Philadelphia Joe Jones, Steve Gad, and Stanton Moore — the three most creative drummers in history — are all known for using basic elements in their performances. The idea is simple: use one or more basic elements and arrange them around the kit. The key is to have a long basic drop-down menu for you to use. Then, you can filter these options when the time comes and hope to make an informed decision.

To get you started, I recommend three books: Stick Technique by Bill Bachman, One Surface Learning by Roy Burns and Joey Farris, and my own Daily Drum Warm-Ups.

I was lucky enough to go to Stanton Moore's clinic at PASIC 2012, where he talked about how to apply the "rock and roll" paradox RLRR LRRL. The first half of Ex. 22 Use this basic form, while the other half uses an upside-down paradiddle. The bass drum notes emphasize the right hand and provide a funk feel.

Why is JR Robinson one of the drummers with the most records in history? Is it because JR is a good guy? This may be part of the picture, but the rest may be due to his ability to influence the audience with amazing feelings and words. If you focus on the concepts in this section, you may become the next JR.

Space: Just like in visual art, space is as important as letting go of ideas. It allows artists or musicians to design their work. The use of space requires great restraint. predecessor. 23 (picture below) is an exercise to help you develop a sense of space. Play with and without metronome.

Rhythmic density/taste: Rhythmic density involves painting in gray instead of black and white. It involves subdividing into larger or smaller parts and using more or fewer limbs or sound sources. predecessor. 24 is a four-bar phrase that constructs density in these two ways.

Dynamics (touch/power): The ability to use dynamics is probably the most overlooked and most important aspect of effective drumming. Try this: play Ex. 24 From soft to loud, from loud to soft.

Long and short notes: Each part of the drum kit has a different resonance. For example, riding a cymbal takes longer to vibrate than a snare drum. However, by using your hand as a silencer, even the longest ringing will make a short sound. predecessor. 25 is a split tone practice, with staccato/short tone (indicated by dots) or long tone (indicated by accents). Try to use all parts of the drum kit to produce long and short sounds.

Longer phrases: Due to the loop/program phenomenon, short drum phrases have become popular in today's music. Longer phrases are sometimes considered more creative and therefore worth pursuing. Try this: use rock or funk beats to create a 4-bar phrase. Now try the 8-bar phrase. How about the 16-bar phrase?

Sloppy Vs. Pronunciation: Against the trend of quantitative music, a sloppy or greasy lick can be refreshing. If you try this during a show and get a mean look, you can blame me!

Swing amount: Changing the amount of swing is actually the difference between good and bad music feels. A leap of faith is achieved here; you will not be disappointed.

Displacement: Displacement patterns are a very quick way to create dramatic effects. in front. 26. The strong shot and the reverse shot were shifted 3 times.

Drum set: Do you think it is more comfortable to play with the bass drum or the snare drum? Small kits help to get the most sound from fewer options, while larger kits provide you with the greatest freedom of choice. Depending on personal circumstances, either of these two methods can increase creativity.

Big drum? Snare drum? cymbals? Metal and wooden hoops? Drumhead selection? The choices are endless. But if you can find something that best suits your personality, body shape, and technique, it will allow your imagination to flow freely.

Try these: Use only hi-hats, snare drums, and cymbals for jazz performances. Play a rock show without hi-hats (à la Keith Moon) or cymbals at all. Switch your Toms. Try different kinds of cymbals. Set your drum throne higher or lower than usual. Try the settings on that extremely complicated bass drum pedal. Discover the discovered percussion (for inspiration, check out Glenn Kotche of Wilco).

Mixed drum kits: Walfredo Reyes Sr., Richie Gajate-Garcia and Stanton Moore (among others) revolutionized the fusion of national percussion and traditional drum kits. Follow in their footsteps and find some new voices of your own.

Tuning, silencing and drum stick tools: The tuning and silencing of drums and the drum sticks you use not only help define your style, but also affect the sound of the entire band. Try these: The Hat Shake, Hat Trick, Stickball and Jingle Kick, to name a few.

Electronic products: Although not every drummer likes to drink tea, electronic products provide unlimited options to stimulate your creativity. Nowadays, it is also popular to mix electronic devices in acoustic kits to make hybrid kits.

Imitating procedural music: If you have not seen Jojo Mayer's performance, you need to do so now. Among other achievements, Mayer incorporated the sound of programmatic (electronic) music into the original sound setting. Try this: learn to program your own drums, then go back and see if you can play on the acoustic drum kit you designed through technology.

Gaining jaw-dropping independence or coordination will not necessarily make you the most creative drummer in town, but lack of independence or coordination will certainly become a major stumbling block. Learning how to play jazz and Latin may be the best way to get the coordination skills you need, while also making you more hired. predecessor. Section 27 is another excerpt from drum aerobic exercise. The hands play blues random patterns between the cymbals and snare drums, while the feet play in various eighth note triplet positions.

These three rhythmic "illusions" can confuse the listener (and your fellow musicians), and at other times can cause incredible excitement. Chris Dave and Ari Hoenig took metric modulation to a new level. David Stanoch introduced time conversion in his book "Mastering The Tables Of Time", a concept that has been used in the past by Irwin Jones, Tony Williams and Many others have used it creatively. Polyrhythms is another never-ending pursuit, and it will also expand your toolkit. Pete Magadini's "Cardioversion: A Musician's Guide" is still a seminal work on the subject.

Practicing without a metronome or using the metronome in a unique way can help stimulate the creative part of the brain. Playing after, on, or before clicking can make the surrounding instruments and music feel completely different. Find a drum teacher with studio experience to show you how to play.

Don't hang around in your drum cabinet all day. By over-practising and isolating yourself from others, you will shut yourself out, and these experiences may increase your imagination. Make sure to listen to and accept suggestions from people with different perspectives. Many non-drummer musicians helped me discover ideas that I would never discover myself.

Pay attention to the time and environment of the day, when and where you are most creative. Many of my ideas came about when I was hiking in the desert with my wife. Now I have written seven books while my dog ​​and I are lying on the bed as my working partner.

Some people are inherently more creative than others. Hope the plan presented here will give you some ideas on how to catch up with those artistic people. Like most things in life, it takes hard work to achieve significant results.

I hope that as drummers, if we can best use our imagination, we will have a better chance to help improve the quality of music for everyone-ourselves, the band members, and most importantly, the audience.

This article originally appeared in Drum! Magazine in July 2013.

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