Talk to me about learning drums

[MrNovember]

So lately I've been throwing around the idea of learning drums. I'm a little torn between trying to put together a small kit - just a kick, snare, floor tom, hi-hat, and one cymbal? - or getting an electric kit. I'm sure my fiancee would appreciate an electric kit, but I think I'm leaning towards a small acoustic kit. At the moment, I really don't have a budget set aside for this; just trying to get an idea of what I'd need.

I would love to get to a point where I can integrate some synths and jam like this guy (I saw him open for Thom Yorke last year and that's partially where this idea is coming from):


Any suggestions for putting together a kit? Also, any suggestions for learning drums in the first place?

[K2000]

I'm not a drummer - I wish I was - but one thing you can do right now is get a practice pad and start learning rudiments. Even when you have a kit, a practice pad will still be useful.

[kaboodle]

There are ways of managing to soundproof a small drum room, even in an apartment. If I was learning again for the first time, I'd choose an acoustic kit, because that's where the visceral fun and feeling of playing drums is, and the more fun it is the more likely I would be to stick with it. You can rent kits, or buy one for a reasonable price (if you're near NYC/NJ, I have a Pearl kit I'm selling for $350). But I'm sure there are some fine electronic kits on the market.

The absolute bare essentials are kick, snare, and hi-hat. One step above (in terms of adding to the kit, not in terms of quality) of that is a rack tom and a crash. One step above that is adding a floor tom and a ride. It really is based on your personal taste, comfort, and needs. I recommend renting a kit or buying a cheap one to start and finding a good teacher who can help guide you with soundproofing, setting up the kit, and learning the basics

[Schlatte]

I can only recommend getting a "real" acoustic kit in the beginning. Only with that you will get a feeling for volume, stick handling and overal rebound of the drums. Only get an electronic kit when your're somewhat experienced. Practice pad is also a good start for getting the right stick grip and not starting to cramp while playing.
Start at the very bottom, make sure to get your sticks under control, it will save you from a lot of trouble later on. Start slow, gradually increase speed and rythm complexity, start with a single snare drum or practice pad, add the bass drum/hihat pedals later, get used to everything slowly and don't rush it. Play economically, not brutal.

[MrNovember]

Great tips! Thanks! I was leaning towards the acoustic kit because I had a feeling that would give me the best feeling for the drums. Plus, I just like the idea of an acoustic kit much more than an electronic kit.

I hadn't considered getting a practice pad, but that's something I could probably justify ordering right now.

Also, I forgot, I technically have a snare already, but it has a Morfbeat Tongue Head on it (I could never get the tuning right) and the actual snare wire is broken/missing:

It's one of these:

[frodog]

I was trying to find this guy among my subscriptions, he has a lot of good tips for drummers on a budget/starting out, and got lucky as he uploaded a video today that basically answers all your questions:



I've been playing a friend's kit (sometimes his spare one alongside him) at our rehearsal space for some years now. Playing with someone really helps, but if you can't do that then practicing alone to music you like is also great. I can't recommend an e-kit either, it's expensive to get a really good one and that still won't get you anywhere close to the feel and sound of acoustic drums (which you can still muffle), like this guy says.

I was fortunate to find a Tama Swingstar kit for like $100 last year. Only the drums, but I've gradually been buying used hardware and cymbals for it, to the point where I'm just a few parts shy of a full kit. Actually only lacking a chair, snare stand and a crash. In the meantime, like the video also mentions, all my practice has been on borrowed drums. Never owned a pad, probably that would have helped me even more.

Oh and you just posted yr snare, cool! Well then you only need to buy a head and wire for that, and a stand. Or just muffle it with something if it's just for practice.

[MrNovember]

That was an excellent video! I've subscribed to his channel and will start watching some of the other videos he suggested throughout. I really like the idea of getting some essentials to practice with; I'm probably going to order a practice pad and some sticks sometime this weekend to start practicing.

[Psyre]

Turn your brain off, don't try to count, your really just dancing on a stool. Softer is better, relax your joints and muscles, DON'T THINK. Fuck thick sticks. Volume aND groove come from how you place weight on your ass. You can't fake it, you either have it or you don't.
Don't suck on your lips, they will get fat. Playing blindfolded isn't any more difficult, despite stupid youtube bids of ppl drumming to Flim, it's all muscle memory, eyes play no part in drumming.
You may or may not find it easier to play along with your fav albums for the first year.
Really though, don't think about what drum falls on what beat. Clocks don't think, they move.

Mike Portnoy surely went back and calculated his moves to explain Dream Theater drum/time sig break downs, IMO

[manymanyhaha]

If you are anything like me, I can tap out rhythms with my hands all day long (and kind of do at times, it is a compulsion that fortunately no one has ever gave me shit over) but when it comes to coordinating my feet with the hand rhythms, never quite figured that out. So fuck it, hand drums!

And yes, the drum in the middle is the kick.

[goroth]

https://www.mikeportnoy.com/aboutmike/f ... 0.aspx#163

When playing some complex time changes, does Mike actually count each bar, or does he just “play with the music,” i.e rather than counting, remember a melody/riff of one of the other players and play along to that?
MP: Yes, I usually am counting if it is very complex....and usually when I work out my drum parts I make it a point to figure out the exact time signatures in order to fully grasp the musical content (rather than just “playing with the music”)

[goroth]

I would say that counting and theory are always relevant and useful both in beginners and more advanced situations. But Psyre's point of going with muscle memory, finding grooves, playing to a feel is also super important. In my mind they are not mutually exclusive approaches.

[goroth]

This video is in Swedish, but it is a good example of taking something that is theoretical, and then just going off and making it into something musical and physical. Morgan Ågren, the drummer, is really good at showing how you can incorporate playfulness into exercises and music.
The first half has Thordendal playing some stuff from Solen Niger Within, the second half is the instruction.

[Howsyrface]

Last week I bought a mesh practice pad and I'm having a lot of fun learning some snare basics via YouTube (though I can't seem to get my left stick to travel down in a straight line very often yet. pointers?). A kit is definitely out of the question for me in the next 1.5-2 years, but this is pretty therapeutic so far. Has anyone ever attached some kind of midi trigger to a practice pad to record into a DAW or some such? Anything to recommend?

[Psyre]

Thanks for that follow up Goroth, in regards to:

"MP: Yes, I usually am counting if it is very complex....and usually when I work out my drum parts I make it a point to figure out the exact time signatures in order to fully grasp the musical content (rather than just “playing with the music”)"

I would say counting is essential, but I'm not so sure he breaks it down like " 1: kick, 2:HH 3: SN 4:kick HH...etc" when he is trying to form the composition. I thunk it would be more breaking down tapes to gain the understanding of the movement.

It would seem he uses his academic training to retroactively analyze decisions he makes within the counting to solidify his bodies maneuvers. Obviously a band that experiments with ever changing motion is going to have a more studious approach.

Obviously speculation to someone's aproach is futile, all I can say is anyone I have ever known who has tried to play drums who is worried about what beat each element is placed can never get the seperate on of each limb into a sphere of independance.
It's like patting your head and rubbing your stomach at the same time or creating counter loops infront of you with your arm, it's easier to accomplish on auto-pilot but after rigid review of the technique, can be moved into the realm of analysis once the muscle memory is formed.

[MrNovember]

If you are anything like me, I can tap out rhythms with my hands all day long (and kind of do at times, it is a compulsion that fortunately no one has ever gave me shit over) but when it comes to coordinating my feet with the hand rhythms, never quite figured that out. So fuck it, hand drums!

And yes, the drum in the middle is the kick.

This is awesome; I love that you've found something that works for you while struggling to coordinate your feet with the rhythm. I think that's one of my bigger worries when learning the drums, but it's good to know I can work my way around it.

Last week I bought a mesh practice pad and I'm having a lot of fun learning some snare basics via YouTube (though I can't seem to get my left stick to travel down in a straight line very often yet. pointers?). A kit is definitely out of the question for me in the next 1.5-2 years, but this is pretty therapeutic so far. Has anyone ever attached some kind of midi trigger to a practice pad to record into a DAW or some such? Anything to recommend?

I ordered a practice pad and a set of new sticks, I'm pretty excited to get them and start practicing the same way. Even if I don't get too far with drumming, I'll probably use the practice pad with a contact mic to trigger synths.