How To Become The Ultimate Drummer Without ever picking up a pair of sticks By John Xepoleas
Copyright © 2016 by John Xepoleas. All rights reserved.
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Introduction In this lesson series I’m going to teach you how to become the ultimate drummer without ever picking up a pair of sticks. In the following you won’t learn new sticking patterns, grooves, licks or fills. You will however learn how to become a better drummer and a better musician by gaining a much deeper understanding of the music you are playing. • You will learn about song form and structure as it pertains to rock, pop and blues music. • You will learn how to identify the different sections of a song and the function each one serves in a piece of music. • You will learn how feel and hear 4 bar phrases and easily count bars so you can quickly learn new music. • And, you will learn how to read, write and create drum charts. To begin, I would like to tell you why it became absolutely necessary for me to better understand song form and structure, AND to read and write drum charts. In 1964 The Beatles appeared on the Ed Sullivan TV show. I saw Ringo playing his 4piece Ludwig drum kit and I was hooked. Shortly thereafter, I picked up a pair of sticks and beat on books, pails and anything that looked or sounded like a drum. Eventually, I got my first drum set and played along with records for hours at a time. I was in my first band playing professionally by the time I was 17 years old and I sounded pretty good. To learn a new song I would play along with the recording over and over until I could play the song from memory, and this method worked okay for me. However, I always had a sense that I didn’t fully understand what I was doing and often felt I was playing in the grey zone. I didn’t know how many bars where in each section of a song and wasn’t exactly sure beyond the Verse, Chorus and Solos what the song sections where even called. I would play some nice sounding fills but didn’t really understand why fills were played. Then, at 21-years-old my band broke up. I loved drumming and wanted more than anything to have a career in music. However, I knew down deep I needed to be much more knowledgeable to compete at a professional level. I had never taken lessons, couldn’t read a note of music and didn’t know the difference between a paradiddle and a flam. Remember, this was way before DVDs and YouTube. So off to college I went, where I learned how to read music and play some rudiments. I studied music theory, music history, composition and piano. I got to perform in a wide variety of groups ranging from jazz combos and big bands to orchestras and percussion ensembles.
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But guess what? I still felt I was playing in the grey zone when performing rock, pop and blues music outside of the college environment. The game changing moment came for me when I had to learn 20 songs in one week. There simply wasn’t enough time to play the songs over and over until I memorized them. I was forced to find a better method for learning new music. And now I would like to share this method with you.
Lesson #1 Song Sections and Parts To start, let’s take a look at the different sections or parts of a song. I will identify each section and describe the function it serves in a piece of music. Song Sections Verse • A Verse is the part of the song that tells the story. What is the song about? Love, war, peace, politics. You name it. Think of any subject and you can bet a song has been written about it. Chorus • The Chorus is the most recognizable part of a song. It repeats throughout and often has the song title in it. The Chorus is sometimes referred to as the “hook”. That’s because it’s the part of a song that hooks you in. It’s also the part that most people hear in their head when they think of the song. Pre-Chorus • The Pre-chorus is the part of a song that precedes or sets up the Chorus. Like the Chorus it is also typically played the same throughout the song. Bridge • A Bridge is designed to break up the monotony of a song that would otherwise go from a Verse to a Chorus, then to another Verse and another Chorus. A Bridge is usually in a different key signature and typically happens only once in a song. Intro • The Intro introduces the song. Intros are often based on the Verse or Chorus but played without vocals. An Intro can also be based on a riff. A good example is the guitar riff on the Intro to Smoke On The Water by Deep Purple.
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Outro • The Outro is used to end a song. Quite often the Outro is based on the Chorus of the song. Sometimes you will hear a soloist play over an Outro as the band plays the Chorus riff. Sometimes the vocalist will vamp over the Chorus in order to end then song with a high-energy vibe that will leave the listener with a lasting impression. The Outro can also be based on the Intro or a Riff. Once you are familiar with all of the different song sections you will easily be able to recognize what part of the song the Outro is based on. Interlude • An Interlude is part of a song that composers will often add after a Verse and Chorus to leave a little space between the next Verse and Chorus. An Interlude can be based on another section of the song or on a riff. It is typically played without vocals. Vamp • A Vamp is a section of a song that is based on a repeated groove or riff. Sometimes the band will vamp and the vocalist or soloist will improvise over it. Other times, a composer will use an instrumental Vamp between sections of a song much like an Interlude. Solo Section • Solo Sections are used to feature the instrumentalists in a band. Solos are typically based on a part or parts of the song such as a Verse and/or Chorus. In rock music the guitar player takes most of the solos. However, any instrumentalist can take a solo. In fact, when I first started playing professionally a 20-minute drum solo was expected at each performance. Those were the good old days. Breakdown • The Breakdown section is where some of the instrumentalists in the band drop out or stop playing. For example, you might have a Verse where the bass and drums drop out and the guitar and vocals play by themselves. Or, the entire band drops out and the drums and vocals play by themselves. Sometimes, the band will breakdown to one musician, then every four bars or so another musician enters until everybody is playing together again. Final Thought • When identifying song sections do not stress about trying to name each section. Most often the sections will be obvious. However, in some songs the sections can be somewhat vague. If you are creating a chart for yourself you simply need to know when each section starts and ends and how long it is. When rehearsing with other musicians it's essential that everybody agrees on what each section is called so the rehearsal can run as efficiently as possible.
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Lesson #2 Counting Bars, Feeling Phrases and Better Understanding Song Structure In this lesson I will teach you how to quickly learn songs without having to play them over and over until they are memorized. I will also teach you how to better understand song form and structure so YOU won’t have to play in the grey zone. When figuring out the form I start by playing the song and simply count bars. You will find that most rock and pop songs are built around 4 Bar Phrases. For this reason I will count in groups of four. If you are counting bars and the song you are working on isn’t built around 4 Bar Phrases, simply consider it an exception to the rule. Please keep in mind that bars and measures are two different words that have the same meaning. Both terms will be used in this lesson. Listen to the Intro of “Like A stone”, by Audio Slave. It starts with guitar and drums for the first 4 bars. Here is how I would count this phrase.
1, 2, 3, 4 – 2, 2, 3, 4 – 3, 2, 3, 4 – 4, 2, 3, 4 I will write a line or slash for each measure and separate the 4 bar groups with a dash. Here’s what the song looks like using this method.
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“Like A Stone” - Song Form Now we will take closer look at “Like A Stone”. Follow the video and/or purchase a copy of the song and follow along. A. The Intro starts with the guitar and drums playing a four bar phrase. Notice that the guitar player uses a “clean tone” on the Intro and Verse. A “clean tone” is a term used for an amp setting that does not have distortion. B. For the next four bars the guitar and drums play what they previously played and are joined by the bass. C. Next, the lead vocal enters and the first Verse begins. Notice that the guitar, bass and drums continue to play the same 4 bar phrase they played in the Intro. The length of this Verse is 16 bars or four “4 bar phrases”. D. Now the song goes to the Chorus. Remember, the Chorus is the most recognizable part of the song. It repeats throughout and often has the title of the song in it. Here, the guitar player plays power chords using a distorted tone instead of the clean tone he used in the Intro and Verse. The song gets louder, the bass line changes, the vocalist sings the Chorus lyrics and the drummer continues to play the same groove he has been playing, but with some additional cymbal crashes. This Chorus is 16 bars long or four “4 bar phrases”. E. After the Chorus there is a four bar Interlude or Re-intro. I would call it a Re-Intro because it’s exactly the same as bars 5-8 in the Intro. However, somebody else might want to call it an Interlude. Remember, it’s not about being right. It’s about everybody agreeing that there is a four bar instrumental section following the Chorus and it’s based on the Intro part of the song. F. Take a look at the attached drum chart. After the Re-Intro the song goes as follows: • Verse 2 -16 bars just like Verse 1. • Chorus 2 - This chorus has two extra bars – 18 total. • Guitar Solo - Comprised of two distinct 8 bar sections. • Verse 3 - This verse breaks down to vocals and guitar for the first 8 bars. The drums and bass enter on bar 9 and play a new groove for 6 bars. Then, the band does a build-up for two bars leading to the next section. • Out Chorus - This is the same length as the previous Chorus, 18 bars. Note. The last Chorus of a song is often referred to as an Out Chorus. Purchase the song, then follow along with the attached drum part.
Like A Stone Rock INTRO
Audioslave Medium hi-hat
««« ««« ««« ««« ««« ««« ««« ««« 7 bars ¿«« ¿ ¿«ˆ« ¿ ¿«« ¿«« ¿«ˆ« ¿ 4 «ˆ« «ˆ« / 4 «ˆ« ‘l ============================ l =” VERSE 1
16 bars
/ “ ‘l ============================ =” CHORUS
16 bars
/ “ ‘l ============================ =” RE - INTRO
(4)
/ “ ============================ l l l =” VERSE 2
16 bars
/ “ ‘l ============================ =” CHORUS
16 bars
(18)
/ “ ‘l ============================ Ò l =” SOLO
16 bars
/ “ ‘l ============================ =” VERSE 3 "Breakdown «« ««« >««« ««« ««« ««« «««> «« (4) 8 bars ««¿« ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ «¿«« ‘ ‘ «ˆ« l / “ ============================ l ««ˆ l l ‘ =l >« _«««¿« «««« ««ˆ« ««ˆ« ««ˆ« ««ˆ« «««ˆ ««ˆ« «««ˆ ««ˆ« «««ˆ ««ˆ« ««ˆ« ««ˆ« «««ˆ ««ˆ« (6) ˆ« ««ˆ« «ˆ«ˆ« «ˆ«ˆ« ««ˆˆ« «ˆ«ˆ« ««ˆ«ˆ «ˆ«ˆ« ««ˆˆ« «ˆ«ˆ« ««ˆˆ« «ˆ«ˆ« «ˆ«ˆ« «ˆ«ˆ« ««ˆ«ˆ «ˆ«ˆ« / Ò ‘ ‘ ============================ =” l l l Ñ U ««« « ««« ««« ««« ««« ««« ««« ««« ««« « 15 bars _ ¿«« ¿ ¿«ˆ« ¿ ¿«« ¿«« ¿«ˆ« ¿ ¿««ˆ« ¿««« Œ Ó «ˆ« «ˆ« / “ «ˆ« ‘l =========================== =” FINE l l l l «ˆ« OUT CHORUS
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Lesson #3 The Blues For this lesson I would like to take a look at The Blues. The Blues is one of the earliest song styles in popular music and one of the most commonly played. It has a 12 bar form and is often referred to as a “12 Bar Blues”. The Blues became a popular style of music to perform because it is based on a very simple chord progression that most musicians could easily play. A chord progression is simply a series of chords played by a harmonic instrument such as the guitar or piano to define the form of a song. In the simplest terms, a chord is a group of 3 or more notes played at the same time. For example, the notes in an F Blues chord are F, A, C and Eb. Now let’s take a look at a standard “12 Bar Blues” chord progression.
The Roman numerals written in the measures refer to the note in the scale that the chord is based on. For example, in the key of C the notes in the scale are: C, D, E, F, G, A, B, C. • The first (I) note in the scale is a C. In this key signature the notes in the I chord are: C, E, G and Bb. This is called a dominant seventh chord. • The fourth (IV) note in the scale is F. The notes in the IV chord are: F, A, C and Eb. This is also a dominant seventh chord. In fact, all Blues chords are typically dominant seventh chords. • The fifth (V) note in the scale is G. The notes in the V chord are: G, B, D and F.
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Why do we drummers need to know the form of a blues and why do we need to know the chord progression? Simple, we need to know the form of the blues and the chord progression to be a better musician. You do not want to fake it or simply count bars, you want to hear and feel the form of the song and know exactly where it is going like all of the other musicians in the group. With this knowledge you will know exactly where to fill, where to apply dynamics, where to change from the hi-hat to the ride and where you can change your groove if you choose to. Listen to the standard blues chord progression included in the video and follow the chord changes bar by bar. The most prominent part of the progression starts in the ninth bar where a five (V) chord is played; It’s followed by a four (IV) chord in the tenth bar then back to the one (I) chord for bars 11 and 12. This is called the turnaround. The turnaround is where the chord progression sets up the next 12 bar section. Most often drummers will fill on the last one or two bars of the turnaround.
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Lesson #4 Reading and Writing Drum Charts Now let’s take a look at reading and writing drum charts. I will start by saying that there is definitely more than one way to write a drum chart. However, some ways are just a little easier to read than others. I will teach you the method I use, and then we will take a look at a couple of other methods. Since we have been working with the song, “Like A Stone”, we will start by writing out the drum groove for that song. I start by writing a bar line at the beginning of the measure, then add the percussion clef, the time signature and a double bar line at the end of the measure.
Ex. 1
Next I will write out the hi-hat part. For this groove the hi-hat plays eighth notes. I place the hi-hat part on the top line of the staff. Some people place the hi-hat in the space between the two lines of the staff. However, I prefer to reserve that spot for the hi-tom.
Ex. 2
Now, I will add the snare drum part using a solid note head. Ex. 3
And finally, I add the bass drum part. Once again, I use a solid note head. Ex. 4
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Here is another way this groove can be written. In this version the eighth notes on counts one and two are beamed together, or in other words connected, and the eighth notes on counts three and four are beamed together. This is an acceptable way of writing an eighth note groove. However, it’s not usually my preferred method. 1
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3
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Ex. 5 Here is yet another method of writing out the same groove. In this version the hi-hat and snare drum are written as one part and the bass drum is written as a separate part. To me this method can sometimes make it harder to see how the different parts of the groove line up. Once again, it is acceptable, however it’s not my preferred method. Ex. 6
Where the different drum and cymbal notes are written on the staff Unfortunately the drumming community is not yet 100% in agreement as to where each parts of the drum set is written on the staff. This has always seemed very odd to me. When a musician is reading in Treble Clef an F is always an F and an A is always an A, no matter who is writing it.
Ex. 7
Likewise, when a musician is reading in Bass Clef, a C is always a C and an E is always an E. These notes will always appear on the same place in the staff. Ex. 8
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This is where the percussion and drum set community are pretty much in agreement. The following two examples are referred to as a drum key or drum legend. The drum key tells you what each note on the percussion staff stands for.
Drum key for snare drum, toms and bass drum
Ex. 9
Drum key for cymbals, hi-hat and cowbell These are the note heads typically used for cymbals, hi-hat and cowbell. If you see a note head with an (x), it most often signifies a cymbal of some sort. Ex. 10
I have attached a Sample Drum chart. We will go through it section by section and discuss what is written and why it is written the way it is.
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A. The Intro. • The chart starts with a four bar Intro. A simple rock groove is written using slashed hi-hats. Slashed hi-hats is a term used to tell the drummer to keep the foot pressure on the hi-hat pedal very loose so the hi-hat cymbals have a sloppy or slashed sound. This is a common technique used in louder sections of rock and pop songs. Ex. 11 • The groove is written out in the first measure. Then, a repeat sign is written in measure 2. This tells the drummer to repeat what was played in the previous measure. A repeat is used again in measure 3. Ex. 12
• Slashes / / / / are written in a measure to tell you to play time or play a groove. This method of writing is used in many different styles of music.
Ex. 13 • The last measure of the Intro has 3 slashes and a fill written out. This tells the drummer to play three beats of the groove, then, play a fill starting on the fourth beat of the measure. • Notice that there is a double bar line written at the end of the last measure of the Intro. Double bar lines are used to signify the end of a song section. Ex. 14 • Here is what this measure would look like if the full groove was written out for the first three beats instead of slashes. Ex. 15
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• Compare this to the version with the one using slashes. Slashes will save you a lot of time when writing charts and for me they make the chart much easier to follow. Remember, you are not creating a transcription; you are simply creating a drum chart that will tell you where you are in a song and what to play. B. Now we will take a look at the first Verse. There are a few different things I would like to discuss in this section. • Let’s start with the first bar. Notice that it has the same groove written as the Intro. However, this time it is played using tight hi-hats instead of slashed hi-hats. To get a tight hi-hat sound simply apply more foot pressure on the hi-hat pedal. Tight hats are typically used for softer sections of a song. • Also, notice that the first note of the measure is played using a crash cymbal and bass drum. Your right, or lead hand, will move to the hi-hat on the “and” or 2nd eighth note of beat one.
Ex. 16
• In bar four you will notice the number 4 in parenthesis (4) on top of the bar. This simply tells you that this is the fourth bar of the section. This is does not say to repeat the previous 4 bars. Ex. 17
• In the first measure of line three you will see another method for writing a cymbal crash. This method is used when you want to tell the drummer to play a crash but don’t want to write the entire groove out. Ex. 18
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• In the last measure of the Verse you will see (---- Fill ----) written over the top of two slashes. This tells the drummer to play a fill on beats 3 and 4 of the measure. It also lets the drummer choose whatever fill he or she feels is appropriate for this part of the song. • And last but not least, notice that there is an (8) above the last bar of the section. This is simply a reminder that this is the eighth bar of the section Ex. 19
C. Next we will take a look at the Chorus. In this section there are four points I would like to discuss.
•
First, notice the groove has changed and it is played using the ride cymbal instead of the hi-hat. The ride cymbal note sits above the top line of the staff.
Ex. 20 • Next, we will look at the fill in measure 4. It starts on the 3rd beat of the measure with two eighth notes played on the snare drum. It is then followed by four sixteenth notes. The first sixteenth note is played on the snare drum, the second on the hi-tom and the last two on the lo-tom.
Ex. 21
• On the second half of the Chorus the groove changes from eighth notes on the ride to quarter notes on the bell of the ride. The most common note head used for the bell of the ride is an x with a circle around it.
Ex. 22
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• This is the final point to discuss is the last measure of the Chorus. On the fourth beat of the measure a flam is played. A flam is written by first writing the main or primary note, then writing a grace note just before it. A grace note is defined as a note added to embellish the main or primary note. Ex. 23
D. Now we will look at the Bridge. This is a short 4 bar section and everything I would like to discuss appears in the first bar.
Ex. 24
• First, notice that the groove is played on a medium hi-hat. This tells the drummer that the tension on the hi-hat pedal will be somewhere between the tension used to play tight and slashed hi-hats. To save space, Medium Hi-hat is often abbreviated as Med Hat. • Also, notice that the snare is now played using a rim click. The rim click is written using an x note head with a circle around it. I have also seen it written with just an x. However, I like to reserve the x’s for cymbals and my last name. • Next, notice the mp written at the beginning of the first measure. This is called a dynamic mark. In this case the dynamic is mezzo forte. This is telling the musicians that this section of the song is played at a medium soft volume. o When the chart moves to the Guitar Solo you’ll see that there is an f written at the beginning of the first measure. This dynamic mark is forte. It tells the musicians that this section is played at a loud volume. • Next, on the “and” of the 3rd beat in the measure you will see an (o) written above the hi-hat part. This tells the drummer to open the hi-hat by releasing the tension with the foot on the pedal. Then, on the 4th beat of the measure you will see a (+) written above the hi-hat. This tells the drummer to close the hi-hat by increasing the tension with the foot on the pedal.
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E. Now we will take a look at the Breakdown section of the chart. • In the first measure of this section the hi-hat and bass drum are played together on beat 1. Then the hi-hat is played with the foot on beats 2, 3 and 4.
Ex. 25
• Now let’s take a look at measures 3 and 4. The number 2 is written above the repeat sign that connects the two measures. This tells the drummer to repeat what was played in the previous two measures.
Ex. 26
F. Next we will take a look at the parts for the Guitar Solo. • In the first bar of this section you will see the Verse groove written with directions saying to play using “slashed hi-hats”. • Then you will see a long empty measure with an angled line in it and text written above that says, “Play 7”. This is a short-cut method that tells the drummer to play seven more bars of the groove written in the first bar. o This makes the total length of the Guitar Solo 8 measures. • Last but not least, see the written note at the end of the line. This tells the drummer to play a fill and also reminds him or her to “go to the ride cymbal” in the next section. Ex. 27
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G. After the Guitar Solo the chart goes back to another Chorus. This Chorus is pretty much the same as the previous one except for the last two measures.
Ex. 28
• In the second to the last measure notice that (---- Fill ----) is written over the 4 slashes. This tells the drummer to play a full measure fill, or in this case a 4 beat fill. • In the last measure the bass drum and hi-hat are played together on beat “one” and rests are written for beats 2, 3 and 4. • Notice the two slashes “//” to the right of the bass drum and hi-hat part. These are commonly referred to as Railroad Tracks. This tells the drummer to stop short without ringing cymbals or any other sound after beat one. • Then at the end of the last measure you will see an End Bar Line. This only appears once in a chart and only at the end of the very last measure. • Finally, to the right of the End Bar Line you will see the word Fine. This means “finished” or end of the song. I like to add it so that if somebody else is reading my chart there will be no doubt that the song is over.
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Bonus Material Repeats To begin we will look at start and end repeats. Notice the start repeat barline at the beginning of the line and the end repeat barline at the end of the line. This simply tells the drummer to play this section of the song two times. Repeats like this are written to avoid having to write out the same phrase twice.
1st and 2nd endings Now, we will look at 1st and 2nd endings. • In the following example you will start at the Verse, play to the end of the 1st ending, then repeat back to the beginning of the Verse. • After you repeat back to the beginning of the Verse you will play through measure 6 then go to the 2nd ending. • After you play through the 2nd ending, you will continue on to the next section of the song, which in this case, is the Chorus. 1st and 2nd endings are not designed to be confusing. They are simply designed to save space on the page by not having to write out the same parts more than necessary.
D.S.’s, D.C.’s and Codas D.S.’s and D.C.'s are used to help you navigate your way through a chart. If I am sightreading or looking at a chart for the first time, repeats, D.S.’s, D.C.'s and Codas are some of the first things I look for. They help to outline the roadmap of the chart. We will start by looking at a chart that uses a D.S. al Coda.
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D.S. al Coda In this sample chart the song starts with the Intro, moves to the Verse, plays through the Chorus, then goes to the Bridge. At the end of the Bridge you will see D.S. al Coda. This tells you to go to the sign or Segno, located at the Verse. After you go back to the sign you will play through the Verse and to the end of the Chorus. However, this time, at the end of the Chorus you will see a Coda Sign . This tells you to skip the Bridge, move to the Coda and play to the end of the song.
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D.C. al Coda The roadmap for this sample chart is almost identical to the previous one. However, this time you will see D.C. al Coda at the end of the Bridge. This tells you to go back to the beginning of the song or Da capo. In this case you will go back and repeat the Intro and play another Verse and Chorus. At the end of the Chorus you will once again skip the Bridge, jump ahead to the Coda and play to the end of the song.
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D.S. al Fine This chart will be played from the top all the way through to the end of the song. At the end of the song you will see D.S. al Fine. D.S. al Fine tells you to go to the sign (back to the Verse in this case) and play until you see the word Fine. The song will end at the Fine. Notice the note on the last measure of the Chorus saying, “play figure on Fine only”. This tells you to simply play a groove the first time through the song, then, play the written rhythm the 2nd time through. Also notice the eyeglasses above the text. This helps to bring focus to this very important set of directions. See D.S. al Fine chart on next page…
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Well, that wraps up the final lesson in this series. You now have the tools you need to read and write drum charts. Although there might be more to learn, the concepts we have discussed will give you a good starting point. Your assignment, if you choose to accept it, is to pick a song and chart it out. If you are one of my online lesson members, I encourage you to send me your chart along with a link to the recording. I will be happy to take a look and let you know how you did. I sure hope you enjoyed this lesson series. If you are not already a member of JohnX Online Drum Lessons, I invite you to join so you can gain access to numerous step-bystep, easy-to-understand video lessons and transcriptions that will help take your drumming to the next level. Enjoy the journey, John X
Copyright © 2016 by John Xepoleas. All rights reserved.
