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.
Jazz Drummer’s Workshop - Stick Control Revisited Part 3: 5/4 Variations
Welcome to the third installment in our series on drumset applications of George Lawrence Stone’s classic book Stick Control. The following variations utilize the “72 Single Beat Combinations” found on pages 5 TO READ THE FULL STORY: SUBSCRIBE TO ACCESS…
Elvin Jones-Style Triplet Fills
Jazz Drummer’s Workshop Elvin Jones-Style Triplet Fills Part 3: More Two-Bar Patterns by John Xepoleas Welcome to the third and final lesson in our series on creating Elvin Jones–style triplet fills. This time we’re creating high-energy two-bar fills. Let’s begin…
Antonio Sanchez - The Meridian Suite
by Terry Branam Contemporary drumming giant Antonio Sanchez’s The Meridian Suite takes the listener on a spectacular journey through a nearly hour-long composition that’s divided into five parts. This epic long-form piece features some of Sanchez’s most refined yet most…
JAZZ DRUMMER'S WORKSHOP - Triplet Fill Concepts Part 3
Welcome to the third and final lesson in our series on jazz-style triplet fills. This lesson continues with the three-over-four triplet concept and incorporates buzz rolls, double strokes, and paradiddles. In our first example, we’ll play the accents using the…
JAZZ DRUMMER'S WORKSHOP - Timetable Warm-Up
As drummers, we’re often taught the importance of warm-up exercises. These drills are typically designed to help loosen the muscle groups of your wrists, forearms, and fingers. A good warm-up routine develops your reflexes and helps you produce an articulate…
Swing Style 101, Part 1: Avoiding the 1
Jazz Drummer’s Workshop Swing Style 101 Part 1: Avoiding the 1 by Justin Varnes Chances are, not many of us launched into a career in drumming after hearing a Papa Jo Jones record and asking our parents for a set…
JAZZ DRUMMER'S WORKSHOP - Crossovers
This month’s lesson focuses on the crossover, a technique that legendary drummers such as Buddy Rich, Gene Krupa, Louie Bellson, Jo Jones, and Sonny Payne popularized in their extended solos. Employing crossovers can help maintain the continuity and flow of…
Swing Style 101, Part 2: The Other Half
Jazz Drummer’s Workshop Swing Style 101 Part 2: The Other Half by Justin Varnes One of the main reasons why it can be so hard to make jazz sound and feel right is that here the basic timekeeping elements of…
Swing Style 101 - Part 3: The Most Common Song Forms
To finish out the series, we’re going to prepare you for when it comes time to play some jazz tunes on the bandstand, by discussing the most standard forms used in this style. Understanding these forms is the key to…
Jazz Drummer’s Workshop - Rhythmic Conversions
In this lesson, we’ll focus on variations of the converted triplet phrases from Part 1 . When practicing new material, I find it beneficial to explore as many different combinations as possible. By doing so, I’m more apt to apply…
Triplet Fill Concepts - Part 1: Three Over Four
Welcome to the first of three lessons in our “Triplet Fill Concepts” series. In this part, I’m going to show you how to play some simple three-over-four ideas using accents over triplets. TO READ THE FULL STORY: SUBSCRIBE TO ACCESS…
Jazz Drummer's Workshop - Five-Note Patterns
We discussed Tony Williams’ use of five-note ride patterns in the February 2015 issue of Modern Drummer. In this lesson we’ll analyze approaches that Max Roach and Bill Stewart have used to utilize five-note groupings around the drumset, and we’ll…
Bebop Syncopation - Part 1: Max Roach and Art Blakey
Ted Reed’s Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer is considered a timeless book by many leading drummers and educators. One page alone can inspire a lifetime’s worth of practice material. In this series of articles we’ll explore new…
Beyond the Noteheads - Benefits and Strategies for Transcribing, Part 1
I recently thought about my first lesson with the great drummer and educator Ed Soph. I was eighteen years old at the time, and my parents drove me from our home in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, to see Ed in New Haven,…
