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: 15-20 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice the Rhumba, Mambo, and Bossa Nova beats and, if you have time, the Nanigo beat as well: https://drive.google.com/open?id=17pjkCZ1jfMdjwRqFBMaPIG_hKMb3gQGz
How to practice it most effectively: With the Bossa Nova beat, focus on how the rhythm of the snare drum part sounds in combination with the foot pattern. The most difficult part of this beat is playing these rhythms together. With the Nanigo beat, remember that it is 6/8 time signature (not 4/4) so each part of the beat is subdivided into 3 (not 2). Count the rhythm on the ride cymbal carefully and focus on really feeling the subdivision in 3.
Elliot
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice playing all the way through “Highway to Hell” by ACDC first by yourself and then with the recording: https://drive.google.com/open?id=10YGpSqgr9Z2SExyhXz7k1evG3C0t2VEc
How to practice it most effectively: Start your practice session by trying to play through the whole song. Then, whatever spots you had trouble with, practice just those spots by themselves. The two spots that give you the most trouble are the transition into the long fill before the chorus, and the transition into the final measure of the piece. When you’re finished, end you practice session with a full run-through together with the recording.
Aidan
Recommended minutes to practice: 20-30 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice playing through the whole snare drum solo as well as the first 12 flam exercises: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1yJPRmQn7QZuvnmvhe8ji-CCGmJPGLDZi
How to practice it most effectively: Practice playing each of the flam exercises at least 4 times in a row without stopping. Be very careful with your stickings. Remember that the F without a circle is a right-handed flam (left-Right) and the F with a circle around it is a left-handed flam (right-Left). Keep a really steady rhythm and try to keep the sticks low (close to the drum) for all the notes other than the flams.
Noah
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice the beat and fills from “Misunderstanding” by Genesis: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Dga1ZBRWaN_Ka4O1G009w-74c4VaZCj7?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: The beat for this song is a 12/8 beat with a lot of bass drum notes. You need to be able to play it fairly quickly, so practice playing the bass drum notes light (not heavy). This will help with speed. The fills for this song are mostly eighth notes that are played around the drums. The most important part is to know the timing of when each fill starts. Pay close attention to the notation and count out loud if you need to.
Nate O.
Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice the new ghost note beats from this sheet I have provided (#s 13-18): https://drive.google.com/open?id=1lsS6FvGAobS96Y5mFUDE_7L1HGfAK0_s
How to practice it most effectively: First identify the rhythm of the bass drum and snare drum. The look at which snare notes are loud and which ones are ghost note (the ghost notes will have brackets around them). Then practice playing the beat slowly while counting in your head. Remember to keep the stick low and close to the drum when playing the ghost notes. Only lift it high when you’re playing the louder notes.