Here are some exercises in back-to-back rolls. These rolls are a series of the same stroked roll (five-stroke, six-stroke, etc.) played in a continuous fashion, so as not to break the flow of constant 16th notes or an 8th-note triplet feel. Below, I have listed various ways in which these combinations can be used around the drumset. Ways To Practice First, practice each exercise on the snare. Repeat each exercise at least ten times, using three different speeds: slow, medium and fast. Make sure that the accents are strong, and the rolls are crisp and even. Count in 16th notes. Next, practice each exercise on different drums by playing the accents on the toms and the double strokes on the snare drum. Right-hand accents should be played on the floor tom, and left-hand accents on the small tom. For example: Advertisement Next, practice each exercise playing the double strokes on […]

October 1984 Issue