Hi everyone,

With the transition to ZOOM video lessons, I am no longer able to write down notes and musical material in the students’ books/binders. Instead, I have created PDF documents for each of you and dropped them into a Google Drive folder. The link to your documents is listed in the What to practice heading under your name below. You should be able to access the documents simply by clicking on the link. Here are your practice assignments for this week:

Will

Recommended minutes to practice: 20-30 minutes per day

What to practice: Review the first page of “Beggin’” and then work on page 2.

How to practice it most effectively: The critical thing with the fill at the top of page 2 is to make sure everything is played in time. Remember that the open hi-hat with bass drum is played on the “a” of 2 (“2 e & a”) and the snare note with a drag is played on the “&” of 3. This timing is tricky so listen carefully to the recording to help you with your practicing.

Elliot

Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes per day

What to practice: Practice beats 1-6 from the page “Syncopated Bass Drum Beats”: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/10YGpSqgr9Z2SExyhXz7k1evG3C0t2VEc?usp=sharing

How to practice it most effectively: You already have a good handle on beats 1-4, so begin by reviewing those ones. Once you begin to feel comfortable with them, then try playing them ini combination with a drum fill of your choice (3 bars of the beat and then 1 bar of fill). With beats 5 and 6, practice them slowly and make sure you can count the rhythm of the bass drum part before you begin.

Damian

Recommended minutes to practice: 5-10 minutes per day

What to practice: Practice the beat from “Immigrant Song”: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1jaROP8emrq7yGkV13Mt_Js4NVtEz-sCl?usp=sharing

How to practice it most effectively: Focus this week on playing the beat that incorporates the cymbal. Take is slowly and loo at each note written on the page to make sure you’re playing all of them correctly. Remember that sometimes the bass drum plays together with the cymbal, and sometimes it plays by itself. The cymbal also plays by itself at the very end of the beat.

Noah

Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes per day

What to practice: Practice page 2 of “Can’t Stop”: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Dga1ZBRWaN_Ka4O1G009w-74c4VaZCj7?usp=sharing

How to practice it most effectively: Focus this week on all the sections that use the open hi-hat. This is an important part of this song and it is a good way to start working on using your left foot. Sometimes the bass drum plays at the same time as the open hi-hat (feet moving opposite from one another) and sometimes the bass drum plays right after (feet moving together). Take it slow and pay close attention to the rhythms.

Koel

Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes per day

What to practice: Practice the verse beat and chorus beat from “Whole Lotta Love” by Led Zeppelin: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SCS8WVjfR1OZVlYmt8a1r2LTxo2NJOpN?usp=sharing

How to practice it most effectively: First practice each beat individually. Remember that the second snare drum isn’t where you think it should be in the verse beat. In the chorus beat, it is important to play the two sixteenth notes on the hi-hat in order to get the correct rhythm for the last two bass drum notes. Once both beats start to feel comfortable, then practice playing them together: verse beat once, chorus beat three times, and then back to the verse beat.

Nate O.

Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes per day

What to practice: Practice verse 2 and the chorus of “Never Lost” by Cece Winans: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1lsS6FvGAobS96Y5mFUDE_7L1HGfAK0_s?usp=sharing

How to practice it most effectively: Practice playing verse 2 together with the recording. Make sure that you’re counting each bar so that you don’t miss where the fill goes at the end of the sixth bar. The practice the chorus on your own. Pay close attention to all the bass drum notes and make sure that you’re not leaving any out. Try counting to six in your head during each bar to make sure that you are keeping time properly.