Rock Drumming Introduction
With
Sophie AllowaySophie Alloway lays the foundations of rock drumming - snare on 2 and 4, hi-hats with attack and solid grooves in the style of Ringo Starr and Dave Grohl.
What's in the course
114 lessons (3h 47m) · 1 free
01. Rock Drumming Introduction
You are here7:55
02. Example 1 - Single Strokes
2:44
03. Example 2 - Double Strokes
1:28
04. Example 3 - Paradiddles
2:37
05. Bonus - Combining Singles, Doubles, and Paradiddles
2:22
06. Rock Lesson 2 - Adding Rests
1:48
07. Example 1 - Rest on Beat 4
1:56
08. Example 2 - Rest on Beat 2
1:36
09. Example 3 - Moving Rests
1:05
10. Example 4 - Piston Bars 12-16
1:56
11. Bonus Exercise 1
1:49
12. Bonus Exercise 2
1:02
13. Rock Section Summary
1:50
01. Pop - Adding the Hi-Hat
1:31
02. Example 1 - Quarter Notes on Hi-Hat
1:40
03. Example 2 - Resting on Beat 1
1:42
04. Example 3 - Two Consecutive Quarter Note Rests
1:28
05. Bonus Exercise 1
1:11
06. Bonus Exercise 2
1:10
07. Pop Lesson 2 Example 1 - Combining the Hi-Hat & Snare
1:11
08. Example 2 - Moving Quickly Between Drum Voices
1:17
09. Example 3 - Two Drum Voices in One Bar
0:59
10. Example 4 - Take It to the Top Bars 1-4
1:10
11. Bonus Exercise 1
1:08
12. Bonus Exercise 2
1:04
13. Pop Music Section Summary
0:51
01. Introduction to Country Music
4:13
02. Skills Checkpoint
1:54
03. Example 1 - Half-Note Rest
1:18
04. Example 2 - Placing of the Half-Note Rest
1:31
05. Example 3 - Bass Drum Phrases
1:29
06. Bonus Exercise 1
1:27
07. Bonus Exercise 2
1:10
08. Country Lesson 2 - Combining Bass Drum, Snare, and Hi-Hat
3:07
09. Example 1 - Combining the Bass Drum & Hi-Hat
1:40
10. Example 2 - Adding the Half-Note Rest in Various Positions
1:10
11. Example 3 - Moving Quickly Between Drum Voices
1:10
12. Example 4 - Borderlands Bars 1-4
1:06
13. Bonus Exercise 1
1:30
14. Bonus Exercise 2
0:56
15. Country Music Section Summary
0:26
01. Metal Introduction - Playing Two Drum Voices
3:35
02. Example 1 - Focusing on Coordination
2:19
03. Example 2 - Bass Drum Variations
1:16
04. Example 3 - Coordinating the Hands
1:09
05. Bonus Exercise 1
1:05
06. Bonus Exercise 2
0:50
07. Metal Lesson 1 Summary
0:25
08. Metal Lesson 2 - Playing Your First Full Beat
1:56
09. Example 1 - Basic Rock Beat Hi-Hat Pattern
1:08
10. Example 2 - Adding the Back Beat
0:58
11. Example 3 - Adding the Bass Drum
0:59
12. Example 4 - Power Trip Bars 13-14
1:32
13. Bonus Exercise 1
1:10
14. Bonus Exercise 2
0:53
15. Metal Section Summary
1:05
01. Indie - Introduction to the Style
1:26
02. Example 1 - Resting on Beat Three
1:01
03. Example 2 - More Variations
1:00
04. Example 3 - Coordinating the Limbs
2:16
05. Bonus Exercise 1
1:10
06. Bonus Exercise 2
0:50
07. Indie Lesson 1 Summary
0:25
08. Indie Checkpoint - Mallets
2:46
09. Indie Lesson 2 - Introducing 8th Note Bass Drum and Snare
1:25
10. Example 1 - Eighth-Note Snare
1:36
11. Example 2 - Eighth-Note Bass Drum
1:04
12. Example 3 - Eighth Note Phrase
0:59
13. Example 4 - 'Big Mouth' Bars 1-4
1:48
14. Bonus Exercise 1
0:38
15. Bonus Exercise 2
0:59
16. Indie Section Summary
0:34
01. Hip-Hop Introduction - Basic Beats and Fills
1:33
02. Example 1 - Snare & Bass Drum Fill
1:10
03. Example 2 - Snare & Hi-Hat Fill
1:08
04. Example 3 - Fill Using Snare, Hi-Hat & Bass Drum
1:09
05. Bonus Exercise 1
1:38
06. Bonus Exercise 2
0:47
07. Hip-Hop Lesson 1 Summary
0:32
08. Hip Hop Lesson 2 - Introduction to Eighth Note Beats
3:53
09. Example 1 - The Basic Eighth-Note Beat
1:19
10. Example 2 - Snare Drum Variations
1:28
11. Example 3 - Bass Drum Variations
1:09
12. Example 4 - 'The Dogg' Bars 13-16
1:56
13. Bonus Exercise 1
1:04
14. Bonus Exercise 2
1:09
15. Hip-Hop Section Summary
0:32
01. Introduction to the Pieces
1:04
02. Piston (Rock) - Walkthrough
4:57
03. Piston (Rock) - Performance
0:46
04. Take it to the Top (Pop) - Walkthrough
3:58
05. Take it to the Top (Pop) - Performance
0:50
06. Borderlands (Country) - Walkthrough
3:49
07. Borderlands (Country) - Performance
0:48
08. Power Trip - Walkthrough
5:04
09. Power Trip (Metal) - Performance
0:51
10. Big Mouth (Indie) - Walkthrough
5:26
11. Big Mouth (Indie) - Performance
0:52
12. The Dogg (Hip Hop) - Walkthrough
6:14
13. The Dogg (Hip Hop) - Performance
0:51
14. Overload (Rock) - Walkthrough
5:23
15. Overload (Rock) - Performance
0:50
16. Slam (Metal) - Walkthrough
4:28
17. Slam (Metal) - Performance
0:51
18. Under the Radar (Indie) - Walkthrough
5:02
19. Under the Radar (Indie) - Performance
0:50
Lesson transcript
Rock Drumming Lesson
Okay, so in this section, we're going to start learning about rock drumming. One of the most popular styles of drumming, I would say some of my favorite drummers would be:
- Ringo Starr from The Beatles
- Charlie Watts from The Rolling Stones
- Dave Grohl (brilliant in Nirvana, loved the Foo Fighters)
- Neil Peart from Rush (a lot more complexity in his playing)
Finding Inspiration
Listen to lots of different players for inspiration. The variety in styles can greatly enhance your playing.
Playing Dynamics
As a starting point for rock drumming, we want to play a little bit louder. Here are some tips:
- Hit the hi-hats with this part of the stick rather than the tip for more attack.
- You can also experiment with opening the hi-hats a little, especially when playing quarter notes per bar.
Rhythm Structure
- Generally, the snare drums will be on 2 and 4.
- The bass drum phrasing can vary, but typically, we place the bass drums on beats 1 and 3.
Keeping Time
- It's important to keep your counting going: 1 and 2 and 3 and 4.
- This will help you remember where your snare drums land: 2 and 4.
Simple Rock Groove
A simple kind of rock groove that you might learn could be structured like this:
- Start with basic patterns.
- Progress to something more complicated, like occasionally adding 16th notes on the bass drum.
Note: Keep the snare drum strong on 2 and 4, and play eighth notes on the hi-hat.
Drumstick Techniques
Some rock drummers like to turn the drumstick around to get even more attack on the snare drum. This changes the balance slightly, giving more weight at the tip of the stick:
- While it’s less common, some drummers turn the hi-hat stick around for added variation.
Practicing Unison
We need to practice playing a lot of things in unison—that means when the hands or the hand and foot land together. Aim for tight timing.
- There's a lot of hi-hats and bass drums landing together, and hi-hat plus snare landing together.
- Try to avoid a flam effect (where one hits slightly before the other).
Flam Example:
- A flam can be demonstrated when one stick is slightly out of time with the other. Avoid this effect with the hi-hat and bass drum.
Playing Techniques
You can visualize the hand and foot going down at the same time. As right-handed drummers, we may find it easier to coordinate our right hand and right foot together.
Practice Tips:
- You might find it frustrating at times when your timing with the snare and hi-hat isn't aligning perfectly; adjust as needed.
Snare Drum Techniques
Now, we'll start looking at some examples for practicing your snare drum techniques:
-
Single Strokes:
- Strike the snare with the right hand, then the left, alternating (right, left, right, left).
- Play quarter notes at a nice, easy tempo.
- If you're left-handed, you may want to reverse this pattern.
-
Double Strokes:
- Play two notes with each hand (right, right, left, left).
-
Paradiddle:
- This pattern combines single and double strokes:
- For right-handed players: right, left, right, right.
- This will naturally reverse in the second bar: left, right, left, left.
- This pattern combines single and double strokes:
Conclusion
We’ll work on all these patterns together, giving you the chance to play alongside me. Let's have fun practicing!
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Meet your guru
Meet your guru
Sophie Alloway is a session and touring drummer at the heart of the London jazz scene. She has performed with Jason Rebello, Yazz Ahmed, Laurence Cottle and Tony Allen, and notably played for Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace shortly before he became King.
Touring credits include Roots Manuva, the Thriller musical and Paul Stacey (Oasis / The Black Crowes). She is also the drummer in original fusion band Lydian Collective, with over six million Spotify streams.
Sophie has recorded sessions at Abbey Road, AIR and Angel studios, and her television appearances include Later… with Jools Holland, Glastonbury and two series of Adrian Dunbar’s drama Ridley. She is featured on Abbey Road Masters: The Drum Sessions and performed for the BBC Young Jazz Musician 2024 finalists, broadcast on BBC TV and Radio. Jon Newey of Jazz FM dubbed her the “goddess of groove”.
