Hello! Jasmine (Chris’ substitute) here. Great work this week, hope you all have a lovely winter break! (Chris will be back in January)

Your lesson notes are as follows:

 

Josh

Warm-ups:

-continue with the exercises recommended by Chris: coordinating hands and feet with steady beats on the bass drum. BPM (beats per minute) that we started with was 55, working up to 75/80

–Integrating the metronome: metronome pulse can be used for warming up and practicing pieces. Find the “slow” tempo/BPM that you can play something comfortably at and the “fast” tempo where things can’t quite be played together — gradually work towards the fast tempo making sure that all limbs and rhythms are grooving together (watch out for tensing arms or legs as you increase speed)

 

I Had Some Help

-Great work on the verse and chorus groove! 

-We worked on just playing one part (beginning kick, then adding snare, then adding hihat) and coordinating with the metronome. Count out loud as you play to line up your beats and gradually increase tempo. We started at 70 bpm, increased our way to 115 with just one part at a time. 

-When adding all parts together, we were able to play through at around 95 bpm

-Over the break, continue working on coordination across the kit (with warmups+other grooves) and I Had Some Help

 

Myles

Xylophone

-G major technique: Great job! If you’re wanting to vary the way scales are practiced, try incorporating dynamics or different rhythmic patterns (doubling each note, swinging the notes going up and down)

-Reading at the keyboard: see image on anchor points and note acronyms on the staff

-Cirone Simple Steps: Awesome sight reading today! Continue working on your note recognition on the staff

 

-Over the break, focus on Weezer: My Name is Jonas and G major technique

 

Finn

Warmups (30sec each, counting aloud):

–Single Strokes

–Double Strokes

–8 on a hand

 

Visual Drummer: Drum Beats ex. 7-9

-When working through these, remember to count out loud and to practice one part at a time to get everything lined up. For exercise 7, see attached image on a groove that can be practiced on its own before adding the other sounds. 

 

-Over the break, continue working through Joan Jett: I Love Rock and Roll and the next page of exercises on the Visual Drummer (exercises 10-12)

 

Noah

Warmups (1min each per practice session):

-Single paradiddles 75bpm

-Double Paradiddles 75bpm

-Triple Paradiddles 75bpm

-Combo exercise: four of each paradiddle w/o breaks — Great work on this! Accents are really popping. Challenge yourself by syncing up with a metronome and see how fast you can play the groove without tension/starts and stops

 

Paul Simon: Late in the Evening

-Awesome work on this! 

-Try isolating different pairs of sounds in your practice: bass drum and LH tom, bass drum and RH clicks. Getting the tom and BD part to click will solidify the feel

-To get the rim clicks more comfortable/consistent, you can try playing the groove just on the rim of the snare — how consistent can you make the sound? 

 

Mario

Warm ups

-Can integrate these exercises onto the kit to vary the practice (and to build more fluidity moving around the drums) — pulse quarter notes on the bass drum and work through hand warm ups on snare/toms/combination of both using eighth notes. Be mindful of tension and remember to shake out your arms and wrists periodically

 

4-Beat Fills, 4-6 (and beyond)

-Can alternate between one bar groove and one bar of fill to get used to moving around the kit

-Be mindful of keeping the pulse consistent when moving from groove to fill; the fill can be a moment of musical interest in the phrase, don’t be afraid to give it a dynamic shape/direction

-For more syncopated fills (8), you can add quarter notes on the bass drum to help line up the rhythm on the toms

 

Backbeat Patterns

-In working through these exercises, try isolating them by a single instrument at a time. Once that particular limb is settled, add in other elements. Strive for a consistent pulse as you’re moving through the exercises.