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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.
Teachers Forum: The Gladstone Technique
The late William D. Gladstone was a multi-faceted percussionist who for many years worked in the pit orchestra of Radio City Music Hall in New York. Many well known drummers studied technique with him during the 40's and 50's. TO…
Rudimental Symposium: Back-sticking
Years ago, back-sticking was almost unknown in most drumming circles and when it was used, it was usually done in a rather simple way. Since that time, back-sticking has become more widely used and with this use has come some…
Strictly Technique: Understanding Flams
The ability to freely and easily embellish rhythmic figures with single grace notes and create "flams," is to me one of the earmarks of an accomplished snare drummer. Such accomplishment does not always come easily, but the following observations may…
Gimmie 10! Brad Mehldua/Chick Corea Regular Jeff Ballard
Big-picture tips from the drummer who’s an integral part of Chick Corea, Joshua Redman, and Brad Mehldau’s trailblazing ensembles. TO READ THE FULL STORY: SUBSCRIBE TO ACCESS LOG IN
14 Reasons To Love The Doors' John Densmore
The original four-piece lineup of the Doors was together for around six years, from its formation in mid-1965 until the death of frontman Jim Morrison in July 1971 at age twenty-seven. TO READ THE FULL STORY: SUBSCRIBE TO ACCESS LOG…
Backbeats: Ari Gold's Adventures Of Power
Actor/musician/writer/director Ari Gold (yes, that’s his real name) has had an obsession with air drumming since he was a kid listening to his sister’s Rush records. In the new comedy feature film Adventures Of Power, which he wrote, directed, and…
Basics: Master Time
When I was a college student in Madison, Wisconsin, in the ’80s, I encountered the funk drumming legend Clyde Stubblefield. At that time, Stubblefield himself was not as well known as the classic grooves he played with James Brown, and…
Strictly Technique: Top 10 Rudiments
The drag is the tenth and final rudiment in our series. If you’ve been practicing these rudiments and exercises correctly, at a wide variety of tempos, then your hands are now trained with all of the necessary motions required to…
Rock Perspectives: Polyrhythms
In the third part of this series (November ’09), we applied a four-against-three polyrhythm to either the ride cymbal or the bass drum, while the snare drum played the backbeats on 2 and 4. Now let’s take things a step…
Off The Record: LIFEHOUSE’S Rick Woolstenhulme Jr.
Rick Woolstenhulme Jr. has been the drummer for Lifehouse since 2000. In the ’90s, after high school, he moved to California from his home state of Arizona and attended the Los Angeles Music Academy, where he spent most of his…
Concepts: When To Lead And When To Follow
There are three ways to keep time when you play with an ensemble. One is to lead, another to follow, and the third is something often referred to as “band time.??? Let’s take a look at each of these and…
It's Questionable: E-Drums and Apartment Dwellers
E-Drums and Apartment Dwellers I live in a very old three-story apartment building with hardwood floors. I bought a Roland TD-20 drumkit for my son, but apparently the impact from the pads is finding its way into the apartment below,…
Strictly Technique: Triplet Gear-Shifter
This month we’re going to apply two alternate stickings to the triplet gear-shifter exercise. To review, 12th notes are 8th-note triplets (twelve notes to a bar of 4/4). In the exercise, a bar of 12th notes is followed by a…
In The Pocket: Funk Drumming Training Camp
In part one of this series (May 2013 MD), we talked about the importance of developing a tight, solid, feel-good groove. Things you can work on to tighten up your playing include gaining an intimate knowledge of the feel of…
