Lesson 3 of 114DrumsBeginner

Sitting at the Kit

With

5:28

Learn how to sit comfortably and efficiently at the drum kit. Sophie covers posture, setup, and positioning to ensure you play without strain and build good habits for drumming success.

Part of the courseRockschool Drums Method for Beginners114 lessons (3h 47m)

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Your guruSophie Alloway

What's in the course

114 lessons (3h 47m) · 1 free

- 01. Welcome to the Course
  2:31
- 02. Drum Kit Quick Guide
  Free lesson
  8:36
- 03. Sitting at the Kit
  You are here
  5:28
- 04. Stick Technique
  7:53
- 05. Pedal Technique
  6:15
- 06. Using a Metronome
  5:26
- 07. Reading Drum Notation
  5:26
- 01. Rock Drumming Introduction
  7:55
- 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
- 01. Congratulations on Finishing the Course
  1:23

Lesson transcript

Sitting at the Drum Kit: A Personal Approach

Regarding how you might sit at the drum kit, it's a very personal thing. In my 30 years of playing, I've adapted various aspects, such as:

Stool height
Proximity to the drums

All these factors have changed over the years, and it's always a work in progress. However, there are some fundamental things we can discuss at this stage.

Comfort Height

Stool or Drum Throne
Make sure you’re sitting at a comfortable height.
- When you hit the snare drum (which, if you're right-handed, will be with your left stick), ensure your hand is clear of your leg.
- Avoid bashing your hand into your leg each time you try to hit the snare drum.
This prevents adopting strange techniques that can affect your posture, playing, and longevity.

Tip: Try hitting the snare drum a few times with your left stick, ensuring your hand doesn’t bump into your thigh.

Drum Fills

There are some drum fills in this course where you’ll use both hands on the snare.
- Similarly, avoid having your right thigh bump into your hand while playing.

Distance Between Hi-Hat and Snare Drum

Spacing Adjustments
Over time, I’ve adapted the distance between the hi-hat and the snare drum.
- Depending on the style of music, I may change this spacing slightly. For instance, if I’m playing louder rock music, I prefer a bit more clearance.
- This prevents the sticks from bashing into one another, especially when playing a loud snare backbeat in rock and pop.
Example:
- I like to have the hi-hats high enough so my shoulder isn’t strained, maintaining a relaxed posture.
- For a simple play, I might perform quarter notes on the hi-hat with the snare on two and four.

Playing the Toms

Proximity for Comfort
When you play the toms, ensure you're sitting close enough to hit each of them comfortably.
- Maintain a relaxed position; you don’t want to be too far away from the drums.
- A demonstration might involve playing two hits on each tom as eighth notes, alternating right and left all the way around.

Ride Cymbal Adjustments

Playing Jazz
When playing jazz, I often position the ride cymbal closer, as I spend most of my time with my right hand on it.
- I might not have the medium tom in this setup, which is common among many jazz drummers.
- Ensure you can reach the ride cymbal comfortably.
Note on Sound:
- Hitting the ride too close to the edge can produce a "gongy" sound, which might build in volume undesirably.
- For a cleaner tone and better control, aim to play in the middle section of the ride cymbal.
Bell of the Ride
- There’s also the bell of the ride, which you may want to use for some patterns later in the course, but not at this stage.

Final Thoughts:

Focus on comfort.
Maintain a relaxed posture and ensure that you’re not straining to reach any part of the drum kit, including the crash cymbals.

Part of the courseRockschool Drums Method for Beginners114 lessons (3h 47m)

This lesson is part of the full course. 1 lesson is free to watch.

from$13/month

Subscribe to Watch

Explore the course

Cancel anytime30-day refund

Your guruSophie Alloway

$13/monthSubscription

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114 lessons

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Meet your guru

Sophie Alloway

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”.

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