I spoke with a real drummer, Mr. Pardue, and interviewed him on certain things that I thought were necessary to know before actually tackling a drum set. He also strengthened the thought that a drummer is the most important part of a band. I asked him why he though so: “The drummer's primary role is to be the glue that holds a band
together. He is many times responsible for starting a song by providing stick clicks or an introductory drum 'fill' to establish the tempo of a song. It's also his/her job to maintain that tempo throughout a song. Every drummer at some points struggles with tempo. The tendency is to play faster as the song increases in volume.” He goes on to say how a band is a cake and a drummer is the icing between the layers. It gets a bit confusing, but I figured it out. A drummer not only keeps rhythm, starts a song and sets the tempo, but he also manages the band.
To be a drummer, rhythm is of great importance. Yet, having rhythm consists of many things. Surprisingly, one of these is balance. Having balance is essential to any good drummer (Brown). I can vouch from personal experience that if you get to into the song and your smashing away you can easily lose your balance from twisting around so much and fall out of the throne. For beginners a large stable, non twisting throne is recommended. Also to develop a sense of rhythm, there are things called drum machines, which are different from electric drum sets. A drum machine is used to keep tempo and rhythm in measures with any kind of count you want (4/4, 2/4 etc). These machines are great to develop a sense of rhythm, but nothing can nurture rhythm like actually playing the drums. Electric drum sets on the other hand, are also good for beginners because they aren’t as expensive and a headset can be connected to them which allow just the drummer to hear. This is a blessing for anyone who lives with a fledgling drummer because nobody wants to hear an off beat newbie on a real set (Expert Village).
Now that you have rhythm and an understanding of why a drummer is so important to a band we can get to the fun stuff. “Real drums, sometimes called classic drums, have the authentic loud sound of rock and roll, yet can also be the quiet tap of jazz or the bassy sound of hip hop”(Expert Village). A classic drum set is made up of two basic components: drums and cymbals. Your basic set has a high-hat cymbal, a bass drum, a snare drum, a crash cymbal, a floor tom, and one or two tom-toms. A high hat is composed of two cymbals one on top of the other, attached to a rod which is connected to a pedal. This pedal moves the rod up and down and clashes the cymbals together. A snare drum has a sort of chain attached to the bottom, and when taut, this chain vibrates giving the snare its snap. Bass drums are played with pedals are can be booming or a short thud. Toms are basically your ‘George of the Jungle’ drums and are used for filler. Cymbals accent the music (Expert Village).
Music truly is the universal language. From the rain forests of South America to the Great Wall of China, drums make up a large part of mankind’s music.
Works Cited
Brown, Ashley, ed. The Marshall Cavendish Illustrated History of Popular Music. 21
Vols. New York: Freeport, Long Island. Marshall Cavendish Co. 1990.
Erlewine, Michael. All Music Guide to Rock. San Francisco, CA: Miller Freeman Books, 1997.
“Expert Village.” How to Play the Drums. October 19th, 2008. Demand Media, Inc.. 4 November, 2008. < http://www.expertvillage.com/video-series/690_learn-how-to- play-drums-beginner.htm >
“The Importance of a Drummer.” Street Directory. Jan 16, 2008. 14 Nov, 2008.
Personal Interview. James Pardue, December 1, 2008.
PERSONAL INTERVIEW WITH JAMES PARDUE
1. The drummer's primary role is to be the glue that holds a band
together. He is many times responsible for starting a song by providing
stick clicks or an introductory drum 'fill' to establish the tempo of a
song. It's also his/her job to maintain that tempo throughout a song.
Every drummer at some points struggles with tempo. The tendency is to
play faster as the song increases in volume.
2. I feel that the drummer does lead the band, but I may be biased. I
think of a song as a cake. The different layers of the song represent
the different instruments. The bass guitar is on the bottom (of course),
the rhythm guitar guitar and keyboards are in the middle and the lead
guitar is on top. The vocals or melody of the song is the icing. And you
can decorate the cake with vocal harmonies, guitar solos, or whatever
you want but if you don't put some icing between the layers, the cake
will fall over. The drummer is that icing. You don't see him much, he's
in the back of the stage just like the icing is inside the cake, but the
drummer is very important.
3. That takes practice and some coordination. I don't see how
guitarists or keyboardists manipulate their fingers as they do. Drummers
optimally would like to be ambidextrous, but we always have a dominant
hand. I can do things with my right hand that my left hand could never
think about doing. Carter Beauford (Dave Matthews Band) is one of
favorite drummers. He is left handed but plays on a right handed setup
(there is a difference). He plays his hi-hat open handed (his left hand)
where as RH drummers play cross handed (R over L). It freaks me out to
watch him play.
4. Maybe take basic lessons, but watch other drummers on video or
YouTube. I learned more from watching other drummers than I ever leaned
from a lesson. Play air drums or I used to play on our loveseat at home
before I got my first real set. I would squat on the floor, the left arm
was my hi-hat, the snare the left cushion, toms - the back cushions,
floor tom - the right cushion, ride cymbal - right arm, and the crash
cymbals - the top of the loveseat. Put on some headphones (or put in
your buds) and go to it.
5b. Not necessarily. If the music your playing calls for it (Death
Metal, Prog Rock, etc.) then yes. Many top drummers don't use them but
in metal, most of them do. A double pedal is cheaper, easier to
transport, and you don't have to worry about tuning the 2 bass drums to
match. I have a double pedal and I don't use it alot. I sprinkle it in
on certain beats or drum fills in a song. I can sit there and go
dubba-dubba-dubba at 500 mph like Joey Jordison(Slipknot). Believe it or
not, I practice double bass while using the bathroom. I'm not a reader,
so I sit there and play the toms on my legs and start moving my feet. My
wife thinks I'm crazy, but my set is in our band studio and I can't
practice at home.
5a. You had two number 5's. I listen to a song and usually practice it
on my steering wheel as I drive. I try to visualize what the drummer is
doing in the song. I try to replicate the drummer's fills as close as
possible, just because I'm that way, but it's not necessary. I feel like
the bass drum rhythm is the most important because it usually flows with
the bass guitar. The snare is usually on 2 & 4, but the tom fills are up
to the drummer. All drummers use their creative license. I try to make
it sound as much like the recordings as I can.
6. I got my first drum set at 5 years old. It was a small set but
wasn't a toy. My uncle made me a harness for the snare and many times as
my first and second grade class would 'march' to the playground, I would
play a cadence. My bother played trombone in the HS marching band but
was a decent drummer. He taught me to play. I joined to middle school
band in 6th grade but almost switched to trumpet, because I was so bored
with the drums as we were learning it. I got my first real drumset in
8th grade. It was a Ludwig Amber Vistalite (clear acrylic) set. It was
the same color as the one John Bonham (Zep) used in the movie, "The Song
Remains the Same". I played in the band at school and in bands out of
school. My first 'band' was a funk band named "Amience." I was the only
white guy, which was kind of unusual in that I was the one keeping the
rhythm. Then I joined a rock band called 'Overpass.' We played stuff
like the Doors, Cars, Van Halen, AC/DC. Our lead singer was Mike
Wheless. He's a DJ on WQDR (94.7) in the morning. He's gone country on
me. In school I was the 2nd chair percussionist at All-State band my
senior year. At NC State, I was drumline captain for 2 years (4th and
5th year???). I wrote several cheers with the cheerleaders that they
still use and one cadence I wrote is still used as the band marches in
and out of the stadium almost 20 years later. They eeven recorded it on
a CD a few years ago but didn't give me any props. I played in several
other bands in college. We played mostly frat parties but some clubs,
traveleing as far away a Richmond and Wilmington. We never made any
money, beacuse we had to rent so much equipment. And I never picked up
any girls. I was always the first one at a gig, and the last one to
leave. I never had a roadie and had to pack my mess up. If you're in
music for girls, stick with guitar. I tried a country band after
college. That lasted two weeks. I took about 6 years off from playing in
my late 20's. You know - marriage....kid....another kid. I started back
playing in a contemporary christian band and I now play in Progressive
Rock band, 'The Ambient Noise.' We play music stuff by Yes, Genesis,
Rush, Iona (celtic) and my fav Porcupine Tree. Notice, I payed homage to
my first band in the name.
