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.
Physical Hazards Of The Throne
13 Exercises to Minimize the Wear and Tear of Drumming Drummers play thousands—maybe even millions—of strokes throughout the course of their careers. With that amount of repetitive activity, mechanical wear can occur, which can then cause pain or injury. Over…
Dexterity in Odd Rhythms: Quintuplet Variations
In this article we’re going to cover how to feel quintuplets using an Indian counting system. There are many different variations, but the syllables I like to use are ta, ka, din, ah, and gah, which are easy to pronounce…
Timbales: The Roots of the Latin Drumset
The essence of playing the drumset in Latin American music consists of orchestrating the different percussion parts from the original styles. Before the drumset was incorporated into Afro-Cuban music, it was the “pailas,” aka Cuban timbales, that fulfilled that role,…
Jane’s Addiction’s Stephen Perkins on the Who’s Live at Leeds
“No matter how many times you listen to Live at Leeds, it surprises,” says MD Pro Panelist Stephen Perkins, who’s been touring with Jane’s Addiction behind its latest studio album, The Great Escape Artist. TO READ THE FULL STORY: SUBSCRIBE…
Polyrhythmic Coordination Part 4: Six-Note Base Rhythm
Last time (November 2012), we continued our study of two-hand polyrhythmic coordination by playing a five-note base rhythm with one hand while adding one to eight evenly spaced notes over the top with the other hand. This month we’re using…
Pete La Roca Sims Style & Analysis
The great jazz drummer Pete Sims was born on April 7, 1938, in New York City, and passed away on November 20, 2012. He gained early professional experience playing timbales in Latin groups, and it was during this period that…
Further Beyond the Barline
2/4 Hemiolas in ¾ and 6/8 Welcome to my second article discussing an approach to improvisation that will allow you to play longer and more interesting solo phrases in a variety of styles. As in the first part, which appeared…
Popular Play-Alongs: Part 4: Dance-Rock
In the last three play-along articles (July and October 2012 and January 2013), we focused on developing the proper performance technique, groove vocabulary, and sound to play alongside Top 40, pop-punk, and synth-metal tunes. In this month’s installment, we’re taking…
Learn to Love Easy
There’s a folksy old saying that goes something like, “People sure do make things more difficult than they need to.” We’ve all made that observation at one time or another about others—and, let’s be honest, at times we even make…
Queens of the Stone Age’s Jon Theodore
It’s been four years since the esteemed ex–Mars Volta drummer began playing in QotSA. Now we’ve been gifted with the multifarious Villains, and at long last we get to hear what he sounds like on a full-length record with the…
Jon Theodore Style and Analysis
From his days playing mind-melting Mars Volta compositions to his current gig with the rock giants Queens of the Stone Age, Jon Theodore has inspired drummers with powerful grooves, explosive fills, and rock-solid time. His ability to craft the perfect…
Modern Drummer 2018 Readers Poll
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The Psychedelic Furs’ Paul Garisto
In addition to many years spent powering the iconic band, he's toured and recorded with Iggy Pop, Ryan Adams, and many other greats. For him, though, the studying never stops. TO READ THE FULL STORY: SUBSCRIBE TO ACCESS LOG IN
Roy McCurdy
The spry elder statesman, who made a splash in the mid-'60s with the Cannonball Adderley Quintet's soul-jazz classic "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy," is still showing us how it's done. TO READ THE FULL STORY: SUBSCRIBE TO ACCESS LOG IN
