drums lesson #3

During this lesson we will learn how to play 8th notes. Let's start with the quater notes. Play on your snare drum or a pad is enough.
First step : play slowly quater notes (beats/pulses). Play and repeat them with your right hand, count to 4.

|1 2 3 4|

Now add "and" in between each digit. We will note it "+". Now we get :

|1+2+3+4+|

The "+" should be played with your left hand.
Listen you get strokes twice as fast as the beginning. You're playing 8th notes. The 8th notes let us play two strokes where we had just one with the quater note. Each 8th note is half the value of a quater note. We need two 8th notes to make the same length as a quater note. The next exercice is about to repeat one bar with only quater notes (4 strokes) and one bar with only 8th notes (8 strokes).

|1 2 3 4|1+2+3+4+|

The next exercices are mixing all the different value we already know with 8th note: quater, half and whole note. Take care to play the beats (digits) with your right hand and the upbeats (+) with your left. The "+" is said "and".

ZIP (pdf + mp3) :

PDF :

-- -- -- EXERCICE 1 : Quater Notes and Eighth Notes-- -- --

Download :

|1-2-3-4-|1+2+3+4+|1-2-3-4-|1+2+3+4+|1-2-3-4-|
|o-o-o-o-|oooooooo|o-o-o-o-|oooooooo|o-------|

-- -- -- EXERCICE 2 : Half Notes and Eighth Notes -- -- --

Download :

|1-2-3-4-|1+2+3+4+|1-2-3-4-|1+2+3+4+|1-2-3-4-|
|o---o---|oooooooo|o---o---|oooooooo|o-------|

-- -- -- EXERCICE 3 : Whole Notes and Eighth Notes -- -- --

Download :

|1-2-3-4-|1+2+3+4+|1-2-3-4-|1+2+3+4+|1-2-3-3-|
|o-------|oooooooo|o-------|oooooooo|o-------|

Now exercices with all kind of value.

-- -- -- EXERCICE 4 -- -- --

Download :

|1-2-3-4-|1-2-3-4-|1-2-3-4-|1+2+3+4+|
|o-------|o---o---|o-o-o-o-|oooooooo|

|1-2-3-4-|1-2-3-4-|1-2-3-4-|1-2-3-4-|
|o-o-o-o-|o---o---|o-------|o---o-o-|

|1+2+3-4-|1-2-3+4+|1+2+3-4-|1+2+3+4+|
|ooooo-o-|o---oooo|ooooo---|oooooooo|

|1-2+3+4-|1+2+3-4+|1+2-3-4+|1-2-3-4-|
|o-ooooo-|ooooo-oo|ooo---oo|o-------|

-- -- -- EXERCICE 5 -- -- --

Download :

|1+2+3+4-|1+2+3-4-|1+2-3-4+|1-2-3+4+|
|ooooooo-|ooooo-o-|ooo-o-oo|o---oooo|

|1-2-3-4-|1-2+3+4-|1-2-3-4+|1-2-3-4+|
|o-------|o-ooooo-|o---o-oo|o-o---oo|

|1+2-3+4+|1-2-3+4-|1+2-3+4-|1-2+3-4+|
|ooo-oooo|o---ooo-|ooo-ooo-|o-ooo-oo|

|1-2-3+4-|1-2-3-4-|1+2+3+4+|1-2-3-4-|
|o-o-ooo-|o-o-o---|oooooooo|o-------|

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