Ruffs Archives - Modern Drummer Magazine

Ruffs

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Diamonds in the Ruff - Part 1: The Mighty Three-Stroke

The first thing I learned when I started taking drum lessons was the three-stroke ruff. I was shown a few ways of playing it, with different accents and stickings, but it wasn’t until I heard Cream drummer Ginger Baker play…

Matt Star
Feb 23, 2017

Diamonds in the Ruff, Part 2: The Sexy Four-Stroke

Welcome to part two of our miniseries on the ruff. I consider the three-stroke ruff to be the workingman’s rudiment. The four-stroke is much sexier, but it’s not easy to master. And it takes a certain amount of precision, which…

Matt Starr
Feb 23, 2017

Necessary Ruffness - Make Your Grooves Percolate With Subtle Doubles

Basics Necessary Ruffness Make Your Grooves Percolate With Subtle Doubles by Rich Redmond The ruff is an essential rudiment that’s directly related to the double-stroke roll, or buzz roll. The ruff can be played open, as we have it here,…

Modern Drummer
Feb 23, 2017