Jazz Drummer’s Workshop

Modern Drummer is the world’s most widely read drum magazine, is dedicated entirely to the art of drumming and caters to the needs of amateur, semi-pro, and professional drummers.

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On the Beat With Drummer/Educator Steve Fidyk: The Making of Allied Forces

Hello, On the Beat readers. Steve Fidyk here. You may be familiar with the column Jazz Drummers Workshop that I have been contributing to for the past five years in Modern Drummer magazine. I’ve also been performing as a member…

Modern Drummer
Aug 3, 2016

Video Lesson: Jazz Drummer's Workshop - Crossovers with Steve Fidyk

 This excerpt is taken from the complete article that appears in the April 2016 issue, which is available here. Jazz Drummer's Workshop Crossovers 10 Exercises to Improve Drumset Facility   This month’s lesson focuses on the crossover, a technique that…

Modern Drummer
Feb 26, 2016

Video Demo: Timetable Warm-Up with Steve Fidyk

 This excerpt is taken from the complete article that appears in the March 2016 issue, which is available here. Jazz Drummer's Workshop Timetable Warm-Up Modulating Swing Patterns As drummers, we’re often taught the importance of warm-up exercises. These drills are…

Modern Drummer
Jan 29, 2016

Video Lesson: Triplet Fill Concepts Part 3, Three-Over-Four Fills With Rudiments

 This excerpt is taken from the complete article that appears in the February 2016 issue, which is available here. Jazz Drummer's Workshop Triplet Fill Concepts Part 3: Three-Over-Four Fills With Rudiments Welcome to the third and final lesson in our…

Modern Drummer
Dec 30, 2015

VIDEO LESSON! Elvin Jones–Style Triplet Fills, Part 3

The excerpt below is taken from the complete article that appears in the July 2015 issue, which is available here. Jazz Drummer’s Workshop Elvin Jones–Style Triplet Fills Part 3: More Two-Bar Patterns by John Xepoleas Welcome to the third and…

Modern Drummer
May 28, 2015
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VIDEO LESSON! Elvin Jones–Style Triplet Fills, Part 2: Orchestrating Accent Patterns

This excerpt is taken from the complete review that appears in the June 2015 issue, which can be purchased here. Jazz Drummer’s Workshop Elvin Jones–Style Triplet Fills Part 2: Orchestrating Accent Patterns by John Xepoleas Welcome to our second lesson covering…

Modern Drummer
Apr 30, 2015

VIDEO LESSON! Jazz Drummer’s Workshop: Elvin Jones–Style Triplet Fills, Part 1

This post is an excerpt from the complete article that appears in the May 2015 issue. Jazz Drummer’s Workshop Elvin Jones–Style Triplet Fills Part 1: Creating a Rolling Melodic Feel Using Basic Stickings by John Xepoleas In this lesson I’m going…

Modern Drummer
Mar 31, 2015

VIDEO! Jazz Drummers Workshop: Syncopation Revisited: Part 6: Assorted Applications (from the November 2014 issue)

November 2014 Jazz Drummer’s Workshop Syncopation Revisited Part 6: Assorted Applications by Steve Fidyk Welcome to the final installment of our series on ways to interpret the classic Ted Reed book Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer. The…

Modern Drummer
Oct 1, 2014

VIDEO! Jazz Drummer's Workshop: Syncopation Revisited: Part 5: Afro-Cuban Applications (From the October 2014 Issue)

October 2014 Jazz Drummer’s Workshop Syncopation Revisited Part 5: Afro-Cuban Applications by Steve Fidyk Welcome to part five in our continuing series on ways to interpret the classic Ted Reed book Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer. This…

Modern Drummer
Sep 3, 2014

VIDEO! Syncopation Revisited, Part 5: Brazilian Applications

September 2014 Jazz Drummer’s Workshop Syncopation Revisited Part 4: Brazilian Applications by Steve Fidyk We continue our series on ways to interpret the classic Ted Reed book Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer by applying Brazilian rhythms and…

Modern Drummer
Aug 11, 2014

VIDEO! Jazz Drummer’s Workshop: Syncopation Revisited, Part 3: 5/4 Applications (From the August 2014 Issue)

by Steve Fidyk We continue this month with more ways to interpret Ted Reed’s classic book Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer. This time we’ll be converting the written manuscript from its original 4/4 form to 5/4 time.…

Modern Drummer
Jul 7, 2014

VIDEO! Jazz Drummer’s Workshop: Syncopation Revisited, Part 2: 3/4 Applications (From the July 2014 Issue)

by Steve Fidyk We continue this month with more of my favorite ways of interpreting the classic Ted Reed book Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer. This time we explore ways of converting the written manuscript from its…

Modern Drummer
Jun 2, 2014
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VIDEO! Jazz Drummer’s Workshop: Shifting Sands (From the May 2014 Issue)

http://youtu.be/IVXHAhRfxb0 by Steve Fidyk Transitioning from one time signature, tempo, or musical style to another is a very common technique in modern jazz. These shifts are often referred to as metric modulations, where a specific note value from the current…

Modern Drummer
Apr 7, 2014

VIDEO! Jazz Drummer's Workshop: Stick Control Revisited, Part 4 (March 2014 Issue)

by Steve Fidyk Welcome to the fourth and final installment in our series on Stick Control drumset applications. This month we’ll explore ways of interpreting author George Lawrence Stone’s exercises while playing up-tempo swing rhythms. As you practice the applications,…

Modern Drummer
Jan 28, 2014
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