Tipbook Drums: The Complete Guide

Tipbook.

1 A drummer?

You hear some pretty wild stories about drummers. They’re savages who hit everything in sight. They always play as loud as they can. They can’t read (music, that is). And then there’s the one about the four-piece band; that’s a band made up of three musicians and a drummer...

It’s all jealousy, really. Every musician knows that the drummer is the most important member of the band. No band will sound great if there’s a lousy drummer up there, and pretty much any band with a great drummer will sound at least acceptable. The drummer is the engine of the band. If your engine’s not running okay, you won’t get there. It’s as simple as that.

Groove

Whether you’re into country music, jazz, grunge, soul, funk, R&B or heavy metal, it’s always the drummer who gets everyone to start and stop at the same time, who makes sure that nobody speeds up or slows down. Who reminds the singer to come in. Who makes it swing. Who makes it groove. Who makes it feel good.

All musical styles

As a drummer, you can play a wide variety of musical styles. You can play in bands where you need loads of amplification in order to make yourself heard, or in groups where you’ll need to play as softly as you can, so the audience can still hear what the unamplified pianist is doing. You can play in big bands or trios, you can play improvised music or music that’s written down note for note — and much more.

Easy to learn

One of the great things about drumming is that it’s quite easy to learn. You may be able to play a couple of basic rock beats within two or three weeks — or even sooner — and you’ll probably be able to play along to most of the songs in the charts within a couple of months. In the end, however, the drum set is just as hard to master as any other instrument.

Create your own

Almost every guitar has six strings. Every trumpet has three valves. Every piano looks basically the same. As a drummer, however, you can create your own instrument. You decide how many drums you use, you decide what sizes they have, and how you tune them. You also decide how many cymbals you use, and what sizes they have. In other words: the drum set is a very personal instrument.

(No) sound

A drum set is about the loudest instrument there is — and yet you can learn how to play the drums without making too much noise. For example, there are special practice sets, you can do all kinds of exercises on pillows, you can play your thighs with your hands, or... More on this is in Chapter 3.

2 A quick tour

A drum set is a set of drums, of course, as well as a set of cymbals, and a bunch of stands and pedals, collectively known as the hardware. This chapter introduces you to the main elements of the basic five-piece drum set — which happens to consist of at least ten or more pieces...

Many drummers use a five-piece drum set, ‘five’ referring to the number of drums in the set. The two main drums are the high-pitched, short and crisp sounding snare drum and the low-tuned bass drum. The other three are the toms: two on the bass drum, and one on the floor. Sounds familiar? Then just skip this chapter.

Tipcode Drum-001

This Tipcode shows you the main elements of a five-piece drum set plus cymbals,

Cymbals

Besides those drums, a drum set has various cymbals. The biggest cymbal is the ride cymbal, which you use to play the rhythm or ride. Alternatively, you can play the rhythm on the hi-hat cymbals: This is a pair of cymbals, one mounted above the other. You can play the hi-hats either by closing them via a pedal or by playing the top cymbal with your sticks. For accents, you use a smaller, thinner type of cymbal: the crash cymbal.

Stands and pedals

Ride and crash cymbals are mounted on cymbal stands, and there is a special type of stand for the snare drum. The two small toms are usually mounted on a tom holder, which in turn is mounted on the bass drum. The bass drum is played with a pedal, as is the hi-hat.

The shell

The main part of a drum is called the shell. This is the sound box of the drum. Snare drums often have metal shells; other drums usually have wooden shells.

Five-piece set with ride, crash, and hi-hat cymbals.

As big as you like

You can make a drum set as big as you like. Many drummers use one or two extra toms, for instance. Some have two bass drums. And most drummers use additional cymbals: two or three crashes, for instance, one on the left and one on the right, or extra smaller or bigger cymbals. Chapter 16 shows some examples of drum sets, from a four-piece jazz set to a nine-piece rock set.

The heads

Most drums come with two heads. The batter head is the head that you play. Underneath is the bottom head, also known as the resonant head. If you take it off, you can clearly hear that the drum sounds less resonant; the tone is shorter and not as ‘full’.

Rods and hoops

The drum head is held in place by a metal or wooden counter hoop. This hoop sits on the drum head’s flesh hoop. Tightening the tension rods of a drum makes the counter hoop move down, pulling the head tight over the drum shell. The greater the head’s tension, the higher the pitch of the drum will be.

The main parts of a drum.

Vent hole

A small vent hole, often located in the center of the drum’s badge, allows the air to move in and out of the drum. Hold you hand an inch away from the hole, play the drum, and you will feel the air move out as the stick hits the head.

The main drums

You can play probably ninety percent of all the songs in the charts with just a bass drum, a snare drum, and a pair of hi-hat cymbals. The bass drum and the snare drum provide the heartbeat of the music in many styles, with the bass drum playing every downbeat (one and three), the snare drum every upbeat (two and four): boom, crack, boom, crack... The other drums and cymbals are basically there for embellishment; to play a fill or a break between two parts of a song, to play a solo, to spice up the basic beat, to create accents...

The bass drum

Because it is played with a pedal, the bass drum is also known as the kick drum. It has a low, deep, heavy, and fairly short sound. One of the most popular sizes is a 16x22 bass drum. The first figure refers to the shell depth; the second to its diameter, which equals the drum head size: A 16x22 bass drum requires a 22" bass drum head.

Spurs

Spurs on either side of the bass drum keep the instrument from rolling over or creeping away from you.

A 16x22 bass drum with bass drum pedal.

The snare drum

Both the sound and the name of the snare drum come from its set of snares or snappy snares: some twenty spiraled metal strands that rest against the bottom head. Every time you hit the drum, the snares bounce off and immediately snap back to the bottom head, producing a crisp, tight ‘snare’ sound. Most snare drums are 14 in diameter, their depth varying from 4 to 6.5". A deeper drum will give a deeper sound.

The main parts of a snare drum.

Snare strainer

A knurled knob on the snare strainer allows you to vary the tension on the snares, making the sound a bit tighter or looser. You can use the handle of this mechanism to disengage the snares altogether. Without the snares, the drum sounds more like a high-pitched tom.

Toms

The toms, or tom-toms, are used mainly for rolls, fills, and solos. They come in a wide variety of sizes. The bigger a drum is, the lower it can sound. A typical five-piece set has two smaller toms, a 12 and a 13, mounted directly on the bass drum. They’re also known as rack toms, mounted toms, or hanging toms. The third tom is the floor tom, usually a 16". It stands on its own, next to the snare drum.

Fusion

One of the main variations on this set is known as a fusion set. A fusion set usually has 10 and 12 toms, a stand-mounted ‘hanging’ 14 tom, and a 20 or 22" bass drum.

Power toms

Rack toms come in various depths. Traditionally, a 12 tom is 8 deep (8x12). Power toms are usually two inches deeper (10x12), and there are also in-between sizes. The deeper a tom is, the deeper its sound will be. Most floor toms have square sizes, such as 16x16.

Head first

Drums are usually identified by their head size only: A 12" drum is a drum with a 12" diameter head. If they do specify the depth as well, most American drummers will state shell depth first. European drummers do it the other way around. In other words, an ‘American’ 10x12 tom equals a ‘European’ 12x10 tom. A basic rule avoids confusion: The higher number typically refers to the head size.

CYMBALS

A basic cymbal set consists of a ride cymbal, a pair of hi-hats and a crash cymbal. The hi-hat cymbals are played with your (left) foot, by closing them with the pedal, with sticks or, frequently, a combination of the two.

Keeping time

If you play a basic rock rhythm, you’ll play a pattern of beats either on the ride cymbal or on the closed hi-hat cymbals. In other words, you keep time on the ride or on the hi-hats. The latter produce a tighter, more defined sound. If you want to hear a more open, sustained type of sound, you may want to use the ride cymbal.

Sizes

Most drummers go for a 20 ride, with the 22 also being quite popular. Other sizes are quite rare. The vast majority of drummers go for 14 hi-hat cymbals, though some prefer a 13 set.

Crashes

Crash cymbals, like toms, are named after the sound they make. And crash cymbals, like toms, are mainly used for adding color to the basic rhythm. They are thinner and smaller than ride cymbals, and respond very quickly, enabling a wide array of accents. If you only have one crash cymbal, it’ll usually be a 16 or an 18. If you can afford two, a common choice would be one of each — but there are many other sizes available as well.

Effect cymbals

Besides rides, crashes and hi-hats, there are many other cymbal types, often referred to as effect cymbals, from paper-thin splashes to raw and exotic sounding China types or Chinese cymbals. Read more about them in Chapter 9.

Bow, cup and edge

The bow of the cymbal is where you hit it when playing a ride pattern. The cup or bell, in the middle, can be used for tighter-sounding, penetrating accents or patterns. Crashes are played on the edge, with a glancing motion.

The ‘parts’ of a cymbal.

Anything else

Along with all these cymbals, you can add a variety of other instruments to your set, ranging from timbales or the ever popular cowbells (see pages 148 and 152) to tambourines and other small percussion instruments. Chapter 16 shows some examples of drum sets.

STANDS AND PEDALS

The stands and pedals are collectively known as the hardware.

Straight stands and boom stands

Cymbal stands are usually made up of three telescoping tubes. The tilter, on top, allows you to angle the cymbal towards you. With the extra arm of a boom stand you can position a cymbal pretty much anywhere you like. There are also special boom stands for mounting toms.

Snare drum stand

The snare drum