Basics

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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The Four Practice Pockets #1 Release Your INTUITION

“Good practice is fluid and adaptable, it mirrors nature.” The IREC practice model (Modern Drummer Dec. ’22) is when we use the four practice pockets of Intuition, Reps, Edges, and Celebration to get more out of the time we have…

By Chris Lesso
Jan 31, 2023

How To Practice When You Have No Time: The 3 Minute Rule

“Don’t break the chain. Your only job is to not to break the chain!” These are not the words of a drummer, but of comedian Jerry Seinfeld. When asked how he works on his craft, he says that he writes…

By Chris Lesso
Jan 1, 2023

The Rhythm Of Practice

Beats are something you do; drumming is something you live. The drums don’t want you to be good at them. The world will throw every excuse at you not to practice or play drums. We have all heard the excuses,…

By Chris Lesso
Oct 31, 2022

Practice Outside of the Box

For this month’s article, I’d like to discuss the concept of practicing creatively or “outside of the box”. I’ll agree there’s certainly nothing wrong with playing through a drum method book as written. However, I’ve discovered that there are many…

By Billy Ashbaugh
Sep 30, 2022

The Business Side of Drumming

For this month’s article, I’m going to share some of my personal insights for dealing with the business side of drumming. If you’re lucky enough to be making a living playing drums, then you are already aware of the importance…

By Billy Ashbaugh
Aug 31, 2022
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The Game Changers Part 2

Welcome back for part two! Last month we discussed several important topics that I felt were monumental in my growth as a player. Those were: understanding subdivision, learning to read music, developing your ears, and learning to write charts/roadmaps. Once…

By Billy Ashbaugh
Jul 31, 2022

The Game Changers Part 1

For this month’s article I’d like to share several different topics that I feel were monumental for my growth as a drummer. I call these “The Game Changers”. There are several topics so this article will be split into two parts.…

By Billy Ashbaugh
Jun 30, 2022

Touring Life and Lessons

For this month’s article, I’m going to share some of my experiences from over the years while on tour with various artists. I’ve been fortunate enough to have done many different “levels” of tours, everything from stadiums to smaller 200-300…

By Billy Ashbaugh
May 27, 2022

Recording from Home and Wearing Three Hats

Last month we talked about the challenges of picking up the drumsticks for the first time, studying, and the process of learning to become a good drummer. This month we take a big jump forward in your drumming journey. My…

By Billy Ashbaugh
Apr 30, 2022

Concepts for Beginners

This month’s article will focus on some monumental ideas that will help you quicken your growth as a drummer when first starting out. Some of these concepts were taught to me by my drum instructors when I was younger, and…

By Billy Ashbaugh
Mar 31, 2022

Carl Palmer Applied Rhythms

This month’s Basics contains a series of fills that are based on flams, and is included in Carl Palmers book Applied Rhythms. The idea here is to flam various 8th notes in the bar, and to voice the 8th notes…

By Carl Palmer
Feb 28, 2022

5 Fun Lessons to Get Today’s Youth into Drumming

If your child is banging his or her dinner utensils around and smacking pillows with plastic lightsabers, it’s likely time to transition your budding rhythmatist to some drum lessons. The challenge is how to maintain the entertainment factor of bashing…

Modern Drummer
Aug 28, 2020
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“Rhythm Basics” Expanded

This is the first lesson in a three-part series that is to be used in conjunction with the “Rhythm Basics” educational pack we produced for the SYNKD customizable rhythm sequencer app. TO READ THE FULL STORY: SUBSCRIBE TO ACCESS LOG…

by Andy Shoniker
Jan 31, 2020

The Modern Drummer Guide to Reading Rhythms - Part 3

Part 3: 8th Notes and 8th-Note Rests

by Miguel Monroy
Dec 27, 2018
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