Education
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.
Master Studies II: Warm-Up Exercises
As a follow-up to Joe Morello’s legendary Master Studies book, he released Master Studies II in 2006. Joe was a masterful teacher and helped many great drummers with their musicality, technique, and touch. He was also masterful at creating exercises,…
Don Grolnick's "Nothing Personal," from Michael Brecker S/T, Jack DeJohnette drums.
The first transcription of 2025 highlights the legendary Jack DeJohnette, taken from Michael Brecker’s debut solo album. The track, “Nothing Personal,” exemplifies DeJohnette’s status as one of the greatest jazz drummers of all time. Jack’s drumming is both innovative and…
Understanding the Language of Music : Chord Alterations
Modern Drummer founder Ron Spagnardi wrote an excellent book called Understanding the Language of Music, a Drummer’s Guide to Theory and Harmony. This book spells out the basics of theory and harmony in a very easy to understand way. It…
Vocabulary Development Essentials Part 4 - Hand and Foot Combinations with Flams
In last month’s edition, we explored the concept of enhancing your vocabulary through musical hand and foot combinations with diddles. This month, we’re diving into the world of flams, a powerful embellishment that will significantly elevate your drumming vocabulary and…
Encyclopedia of Double Bass Drumming: Five and Six Note Linear Cross Rhythms
In the new and revised edition of the Encyclopedia of Double Bass Drumming, Bobby includes nine new double bass drumming chapters. The new and expanded edition covers contemporary techniques such as bass drum double strokes, feet-only exercises, binary and ternary…
The 12 Week Year
There’s one problem with setting annual goals, a year is too long. How many people get fired up over their New Year’s resolutions, only to forget about them a couple weeks later? Have you ever set a goal and thought,…
Master Studies: Ostinato Studies
This month we will conclude our exploration of Joe Morello’s legendary Master Studies book. We started a few years ago with his application of the Stone Killer, and have traversed all his Master Studies concepts and excercises to develop control…
Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs” drummer, Bill Ward
This month, in honor of the legendary Bill Ward, I’ve transcribed the classic song “War Pigs” from Black Sabbath’s iconic second album, Paranoid. This song showcases Ward as a true pioneer of metal drumming. From beginning to end, it’s a powerhouse…
Duet 7
Ron Spagnardi wrote a terrific book called Snare Drum Duets: 25 Duets for Two Snare Drummers. It offers a selection of 25 challenging duets that range in difficulty from relatively simple to more complex. A wide assortment of time signatures…
Vocabulary Development Essentials Part 3 - Hand and Foot Combinations with Diddles
In last month’s edition, we explored the concept of enhancing your vocabulary through musical hand and foot combinations with accents. This month, we’re diving into the world of diddles, an embellishment that will significantly increase your drumming vocabulary. Incorporating diddles…
Encyclopedia of Double Bass Drumming: Linear Cross-Rhythms
In the new and revised edition of the Encyclopedia of Double Bass Drumming, Bobby includes nine new double bass drumming chapters. The new and expanded edition covers contemporary techniques such as bass drum double strokes, feet-only exercises, binary and ternary…
Don’t HIT Your Drums!
What? You mean I shouldn’t hit my drums?!? Some drummers can’t wait to grab their sticks and start flailing away, beating the drums like a punching bag. This gets old fast, and only leads to a string of bad habits.…
Master Studies: Stroke Combination Studies, 9 Stroke Roll Combinations
Going from single strokes to double strokes, to buzz (multiple rebound) strokes, involves different pressures on the sticks. You must be able to change the pressure your fingers are putting on the sticks without tension developing in the wrists. When…
Led Zeppelin “Hots On For Nowhere” drummer John Bonham
This month, we take a step back in time to spotlight one of the all-time great drummers, John Bonham. What more can be said about him that hasn’t already been covered? Our song of choice is “Hots On for Nowhere”…
