Juan
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Everything posted by Juan
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Hi Robert! I see in your profile picture we have another common interest: Japanese. I studied a bit on my own for some time, but instead as of with drumming, never took classes and I didn't get far. But it is still something that draws me a lot.
はじめまして -
I don't have a personal opinion, but my in-person teacher, a seasoned jazz and Latin jazz player made a strong statement about plastic tips being too harsh sounding on cymbals, and specially the ride, and that he would only use them on mesh heads. But hey, sound is such a personal thing and I'm sure not every ride sounds bad with those tips. considering you have to play all the kit with the same stick, I think this should be explored over the snare and HH at least. Any references of jazz players using plastic tips?
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For me, besides changing the sound and feel, it makes no difference playing sticks from 7A to 5B, maple or hickory, wich is all the range I have covered. I have small hands and belive I would have issues with bigger and heavier sizes.
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Welcome Dr! Glad you joined. How's your drumming journey so far?
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Sure. Send a PM to @Grant and/or an email to help@stephensdrumshed.com
But Dr is nice and there are no more Drs 👍🏻😁. Don't choose a common first name, just the first few get listed when we use the @ to tag people, and we have many Roberts and Bobs, etc 😅
Practice will quickly improve. I assume you are just starting. Two most important things, be consistent (better little time often that a lot once a week), and have fun (add fun things and look for fun ways do do the lesson. Put music to what you do as often as you can). Time will do the rest
You can come to the forums with anything, even if just to share a bad or good practice you have. We all here love to hear from others and there's always some learning for others in your experience, even if you don't think.
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Welcome Ryan!
Digged your profile pictures. Is that you playing in the street? That's a lot of gear to haul. Do you that often?
And the mountains illustration is very nice, are those of King's Peak (Utah)?
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Hey Juan! Thanks for the kind words. That photo was one of the last gigs I played before the pandemic hit, and unfortunately, I haven’t played a gig since. That band dissolved, I’m considering looking for something new.
The painting was done by my dad, it depicts the Wasatch mountain range in Utah, though the prominent peak here is Timpanogos. My dad passed away last year and I’ve been putting his art on all my profiles since.
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That's a lovely way to honor and remember your dad. I know how that helps to feel them still present in our lives. First year is the worse, it will get less overwhelming. Keep strong.
Hope you find some people to start a new band soon. It is not easy to find people that will commit. I just joined some guys to jam, but it's taken me some months, and we are not even requiring regular rehearsals.
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This calls for a recording (video please 🙂 )
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first result I got, did not check it. hope it is useful https://www.7drumcity.com/uploads/4/4/2/7/4427384/when_the_levee_breaks.pdf
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Beautiful! Love how the song keeps its paused feel despite the fast tempo.
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Hi Renee. Your struggles sound familiar. Your accuracy hitting the drums will improve as you accumulate practice time. But check for things that may be making you hit sticks more often. Like your position and that of the instruments. Make the moves slow looking at your hands, then faster and check if the trajectory is so close that makes it easy to hit sticks. Speed is a common cause. On one hand moving our hands faster we are less accurate, and on the other we have less time to plan our moves and those doubts at the last moment rush us. So in each exercise try to start doing it slow enough to feel in complete control, and add speed gradually, not moving on until you are confident again. That is not a beginner thing to do, bit the common trade of practice.
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NAEJ EILLIB
Juan replied to Julia's topic in Challenge Accepted's Click here for the index of challenges
Warning! If he gets to do it, and he probably would, the laws of physics would reverse and there would no longer be a reaction for and action but an action for a reaction and we would have to unhit the drum to make them sound, or make drum sounds to make the sticks bounce 😱😂 -
NAEJ EILLIB
Juan replied to Julia's topic in Challenge Accepted's Click here for the index of challenges
Yep, a more proper honorific treatment would be Lord Of Snares Bob. 🤘😁 And of course "DBD Legend" -
Student Social Live Call - Wednesday 6th July 6PM BST
Juan commented on David's event in Members Social Hang Out's Events
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Today' s concert was given by Ghost Woman. A Canadian band that have a very laid back and a bit psychedelic sound on some songs, yet a more rock sound on others.
It was in an even smaller venue "La Salvaje", that programs gigs every week, and will be one of my main sources of live performances. Again few people, about 25, and the band at hand's reach.
The drummer performance brought to me some of the same impressions as of yesterday. Again just a 3 piece kit wit a ride and HH as only cymbals. Again much more playing on the ride than on the HH. A lot of snare+floor tom grooves. Some songs did just have an eventual debbie, and one song did not even have that or any crash at all. The more rock sounding songs were faster, with more snare work and some rack tom. One beat was just two kicks two double handed notes on snare followed by the same on the rack tom.
I liked the sound of the drums better than yesterday. Very well balanced, thumping, round an deep. The ride more clearly audible.
Totally different music styles, something in common: groove. I came out more determined to make groove my main practice track.
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I'm decided to go out to more live gigs now that things have become more normal. Yesterday a friend wrote on FB he was about to go to a concert of an unknown to me band. Bought the tickets as I grabbed a jacket, jumped in the car and drove there.
I really recommend the band, "Silver Synthetic" from New Orleans Very good songs, a familiar soft rock sound, with their own style.
It was at a small, standing up venue I had never been before. We were like 60 people. I could be first row, five feet away from the band. It was revealing how good and complete the drums sound with just a small 3-piece, snare and ride. I've though of cutting down my kit to that to push me to do more with less.
The drummer, a pretty tall guy sat relatively low and played without much arms movement, right arm tugged, resembled my own that I've thought I should change. Maybe I don't. 🤔
He did a lot of ghosting with the fingers after the snare hits, like dropping the fingers and doing a short roll. That's something I've seen other times and liked. I think I can do it, more or less. Another thing I noticed was that he played much more on the ride than on the HH, though he did too. Foot on the HH a bit stompy.
The drum parts were nothing fancy, I did not see anything that seemed really complex. I think I could play most of what he did. That made me think I could be better learning to play these simpler songs in that solid way, with more groove and pocket, that going after the next coordination or speed puzzle.
That connected with my watching a lesson grom Benny Greb that morning, a the one @Sean shared, with Nate Smith. I had never had really specific goals about drumming, until now. I declare 12 months of nurturing groove.
Here's what I saw for a good part of the show:
The idea is to go to as many live music events as I can.
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One day I'll play Dreaming... when I do I'll probably roll over the floor laughing. My first song was Thorn In My Side by Eurythmics, that happens to be played by Clem Burke, and he was the first drummer I searched online for. I recommend Thorn In My Side to all beginner drummers that are up for a challenge, the only actually hard part is the HH 16th notes section before the outro, but you can cheat that. Here's my transcription if someone want's to give it a go. ThornInMySide.pdf
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Just watched the "Buena Vista Social Club" documentary and fell in love with the music and the story of this album. The music is just beautiful, and watching these people of over 90 years, that played from very young in the early 1900s, and lived their art through a revolution and unimaginably hard times was mind blowing. Their humbleness, generosity and joy for life and music, an inspiration. Specially recommend for their percussion "Chan Chan", "El Cuarto de Tula" and "Candela". As an intemporal classic Bolero "Dos Gardenias", and for the clave "¿Y Tu Qué Has Hecho?"
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Saw these offered in Amazon when looking for a replacement for my current pair. They are cheap, not the soft feel of VF, and the letters and engrabed with feels in the fingers and I yet have to decide if it's good or not. The fulcrum casually falls right on my name, I can feel where to place the thumb, and when looking down it is "IRON" I see, which I indulge in feeling inspired by. I still like the idea, but with a better looking finish.
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Bought a pair of them for my nephew one year before I embarked myself into drumming. They are obviously fun and flashy, but never though about them as a training tool. Time to get my own pair.
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So How Close to the Record Do You Play?
Juan replied to Otis's topic in Gigging Drummers's Miscellaneous
Just listened to the song and I could see what you mean. That transition must be really tricky. Good for you! The main groove reminds me a lot to one of the first ones I learned on my own, found in a Spanish song "Allí Donde Solíamos Gritar" by Love of Lesbian, but at a slower tempo. That one made me work long to learn it and even more to endure enough to play it through the hole song. I'll take the chance and add your song to my play along list.
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