Articles by Ronald Black on ArticleSnatch.com

Snare, Cymbals, Stands And Accessories Setup Guide Part Seven

Sat, 06 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0500

There are some other things you should pick up that will be essential to your drumming education. I've listed these accessories in order of importance. A metronome! It's about time! A metronome is a mechanical or electronic device that keeps perfect time. The electronic kind, preferably one with a headphone jack, is best for a drummer. Learning to work with a metronome is crucial for any drummer, because it allows the drummer to gauge his or her sense of time against the perfect time of the metronome. You'll also need a decent pair of headphones or ear buds to use with your metronome. If you plan on having good hearing for the rest of your drumming career and your life, start thinking about hearing protection now. I know you're probably not in the mood to hear a lecture, but hear me out for a few minutes. I never used hearing protection when I was young and starting out, so I have suffered significant hearing damage over the years. it's a real drag having to ask people to repeat themselves constantly and having to watch TV with headphones on because I can't hear from across the room. **End Summary** Topics: drum]]> drumming]]> drummers]]> drums]]> solo]]> snare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who talks about Paiste and Sabian and teaches beginner drummers.

Snare, Cymbals, Stands And Accessories Setup Guide Part Six

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 00:00:00 -0500

There are some even more rare cases like myself in which drummers play a left handed but right footed setup. In that case, the drum set is set up completely for a right handed person, but the ride cymbal is moved over to the left side of the kit instead of the right, over near the floor tom. To play drums in this way requires slightly different playing techniques than just a full right or left handed setup. If you're left handed, you might want to check out a left handed, right footed setup and playing style. It might work for you it worked for me. I don't have to reverse a right handed kit completely, just the ride cymbal position. So actually, there is no right or wrong way to set up. Nor is there a right or left way. But if you're right handed, you don't have to worry about any of this. See what we left handed people have to deal with? Unfortunately, it's a right handed world. But not for long. Big time changes. There are many different types of cymbals to choose from. **End Summary** Topics: drum]]> drumming]]> drummers]]> drums]]> solo]]> snare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who talks about Drum Triggers and Electronic Drums and teaches beginner drummers.

Snare, Cymbals, Stands And Accessories Setup Guide Part Five

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0500

On a regular right handed kit setup, the ride cymbal should be placed above the floor tom on the right side of your kit. Because the ride cymbal is made to be played on its top and not its edge, like the crash cymbal, it should not be placed up as high as the crash cymbal. Be careful not to place it low enough so that it knocks against the top of your floor tom, either. Be a little Goldilocks again, ind find just the right height for you. Now it's time to go have some porridge because your kit is all set up. Special effect cymbals usually don't come with a beginner's kit, but can be added later. These include splash cymbals (tiny crash cymbals) or china type cymbals, which can sound like either a really bad trash can lid or a really good one. **End Summary** Topics: drum]]> drumming]]> drummers]]> drums]]> solo]]> snare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who talks about Slingerland Drums and Sonor Drums and teaches beginner drummers.

Snare, Cymbals, Stands And Accessories Setup Guide Part Four

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0500

At the top of the cymbal stand, you'll see what's called the cymbal tilter. The tilter may or may not be in a folded up position when you first go to set it up. You'll know it's in the folded up position if you're looking at it and you can't picture a cymbal being attached to it. In this case, simply unscrew the hand screw that you'll find on the side of the tilter just enough so you can move the tilter up and down. Put the tilter in a more or less horizontal position, and use the same hand screw to tighten it in place. When the tilter is in its upright position, you should see either a metal wing nut or a plastic sleeve, two felts, and a metal disc, all stacked up on each other on the tilter. To put the cymbal on the stand, unscrew the wing nut or sleeve ail the way and put it aside (but not too far aside because you're going to need it again in a second). **End Summary** Topics: drum]]> drumming]]> drummers]]> drums]]> solo]]> snare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who talks about Zildjian cymbals in a drum set and teaches beginner drummers.

Snare, Cymbals, Stands And Accessories Setup Guide Part Three

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0500

If you have assembled your Hi Hat cymbals correctly, your two hi hat cymbals would now be on top of each other on the hi hat stand, looking like a sandwich. If you step on the hi hat pedal, you'll see the rod going up and down uselessly. Step on the pedal just a little bit, and then tighten the hand screw on the outside of the clutch. Then, when you lift up your foot and the rod goes up, it will take the clutch and the top hi hat cymbal up along with it. The amount of space between the hi hat cymbals when your foot is not on the pedal is determined by how much you press down on the pedal while tightening the clutch. The average distance between the two cymbals in the open position should be about an inch. After you've been playing drums for a while, you'll develop your own idea of how open you want your hi hats to be in the pedal up position. Feel free to experiment. If you look on the side of the disc that's under the bottom hi hat cymbal, you might find a small thumb screw. **End Summary** Topics: drum]]> drumming]]> drummers]]> drums]]> solo]]> snare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who talks about Dw Drums and Gretsch Drums and teaches beginner drummers.

Snare, Cymbals, Stands And Accessories Setup Guide Part Two

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Depending on the type of hi hat stand you have, the rod might have a hinge in it, causing I t to flop over while still connected, rather than being straight upright. Next, look for a thick, hollow tube with what looks like a small plate on one end with a felt disc stacked on top of it. Take this hollow tube with the plate side facing up and put it over the long rod, so that the long rod is inside the hollow tube. If your long rod has a hinge, you'll need to hold it upright as you put the hollow tube over it. When the hollow tube is on the stand surrounding the long rod, tighten the hand screw on the side of it so it will stay in place. Now it's time to look for the hi hat cymbals. They are most likely the two smallest cymbals in your collection of cymbals that came with your kit, and they are identical to each other in size, but not always in weight. **End Summary** Topics: drum]]> drumming]]> drummers]]> drums]]> solo]]> snare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who talks about cool Tambourines and Timbale Drums and teaches beginner drummers.

Snare, Cymbals, Stands And Accessories Setup Guide Part One

Sun, 23 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0500

The snare is a shallow drum with crooked, wiggly wires attached to one of the heads. These crooked wires are called snares, and they are what give this drum both its name and its distinctive sound. The head that has the snares lying against it is a special extra thin head and should never be hit with your sticks. It should be treated as carefully as an egg. The snare drum uses a special stand to hold it, called, you guessed it, a snare stand. There are generally two different kinds of snare stands one on top of which the drum sits flat, and another kind that has an adjustment that allows the stand to grab the snare drum tight. Whichever kind of stand you have, it is very important to pay attention to that fragile bottom head when putting the drum on the stand. It's very easy to break that head by setting the drum down on the stand and letting the little finger like parts of the stand accidentally poke through the head instead of resting against the outside of the drum, as they're supposed to. **End Summary** Topics: drum]]> drumming]]> drummers]]> drums]]> solo]]> snare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who talks about Pacific Drums and gives drum lessons to beginner drummers.

Setting Up And Tuning Your Drums Guide For The Youngest Drummers Out There Part Three

Mon, 03 Nov 2008 00:00:00 -0500

Tuning drums starts with a drum key. I actually have one on my keychain so I'll almost never be without one. Unless I lose my keys, but that will never happen, right? You need this little tool to turn the rods that tighten or loosen the drumhead on the drum. This is called tuning the drum, which you will learn to do shortly. The second use for a key is to tighten various things on the hardware or stands. If you go to tighten something that's too small to grab with your fingers, you'll probably need your trusty key. If you don't have one handy, just find me. I have one on my keychain. Hey, wait. Where are my keys?! - Anyway lets go on and check out the drumheads! There are two heads on each drum, top and bottom. Drumheads differ in various ways, such as color, single ply or double ply, or sound characteristics, but the most important difference is weight or thickness. The bottom head on the toms is usually of a lighter type than the top because it's to add tone to the drum, not to be hit like the top or batter head. **End Summary** Topics: drum]]> drumming]]> drummers]]> drums]]> solo]]> snare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who talks about Tama Drums and Yamaha Drums and teaches beginner drummers.

Setting Up And Tuning Your Drums Guide For The Youngest Drummers Out There Part Two

Sat, 25 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0400

Lets examine a drum, if you look closely at the rim, you'll notice that the rim has holes in it. The rods, long pieces of metal with threads on one end and another end that your drum key fits onto, fit through the hole and down the outside of the drum and into the threaded hole at the top of the lug. The lugs are the pieces attached to the outside of the shell of each drum. The drum key is used to tighten or loosen the rods on the drum to change the pitch. It's best to get a general pitch that'somewhere in the middle of the range of pitches that the particular drum you're working on is capable of. To do this, use your drum key to loosen all the rods on both the top and bottom heads until they are as loose as they can be. This will give you a starting point from which to tune the drum. **End Summary** Topics: drum]]> drumming]]> drummers]]> drums]]> solo]]> snare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who explains ...

Setting Up And Tuning Your Drums Guide For The Youngest Drummers Out There Part One

Sat, 25 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0400

Once you find the spot in your house or garage where you're going to set up your kit, take some time to locate or go out and buy a rug to put down on that spot where your kit is going to be. The best kind of rug to use will have rubber on the bottom and rug on the top. Next time you walk into a restaurant, check out the rug that you're supposed to wipe your feet on when you walk in. You do wipe your feet, don't you? Of course you do. Not the welcome mat that's outside, but the rug that's just inside. That's the kind of rug I'm talking about, Unless you walk into the only restaurant in the world that doesn't have the kind of rug I'm talking about and you think I'm crazy. What's he talking about now? You can find these rugs at Home Depot or a similar store. They shouldn't be too expensive. Get the size that looks as if it will be big enough to set up your drums, obviously. You use a rug for two reasons. **End Summary** Topics: drum]]> drumming]]> drummers]]> drums]]> solo]]> snare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who talks about his ...

Marching Music Education History And Standardization Of Military Marching Bands

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0400

The object of this article is to give you a solid beginning to your drumming education, whether you're a young person or an adult. It is not meant to be the only source of information for you if you want to become a drummer. A teacher who gives one on one lessons is absolutely essential. You might not need a teacher if you were born exceptionally gifted in drumming and are a complete natural. in that case, I'd love to meet you because you are unbelievably rare. As a matter of fact, I don't know if I've ever met you in my lifetime. Although you might have a large chunk of natural ability, playing in a band with other people can be so entirely different from practicing alone that any advice or guidance from someone with experience is tremendously valuable. However if you do not desire to become a drummer, but want to get some education about drumming and marching, read on as today we will be talking about marching music. The roots of march music extend into the distant past, with modern march music beginning to take form in the European military bands of the early 1500s. **End Summary** Topics: drums]]> drumming]]> marching]]> band]]> triggers]]> snare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who frequently discusses Drum Parts and Drum Pedal Beaters at DrumZa the musical instruments and pro audio equipment resource.

Different Drum Sticks Sizes - Drumming And Performance In General

Wed, 22 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0400

Plastic sticks produce a brighter, more distinctive sound when you use them on cymbals, particularly the ride cymbal. (I'll get to the definition of the ride cymbal very soon.) It's strictly a matter of preference of nylon versus wood. The best thing to do would be to buy a pair each of wood tips and nylon tips (if you can afford them) and experiment. If you much prefer the way the nylon tips make your cymbals sound then those are the sticks for you. There are only two possible drawbacks to nylon tips. They might cost a little bit more than wood tips, so be prepared to spend perhaps a dollar or two more per pair. That brings us to possible drawback number two. Now, I don't want to seem like I'm picking on the cheap sticks again, but cheap nylon-tip sticks are even worse than cheap wood sticks. A nylon tip is securely glued onto the end of the wooden stick that you pay top-dollar for. The cheap nylon tips are not glued on as securely. I guess they save money by using cheap glue. **End Summary** Topics: drums]]> drumming]]> drumsticks]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black, the professional drummer who explains the difference between junior drum sets and professional cheap drum sets at his drum set blog called XdrumSet.

Non Standard Sizes Of Drum Sticks And Their Impact On Drumming

Sat, 18 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0400

You'll sometimes see sticks made by one manufacturer or another that are named after a famous drummer. These are usually slight variations on a standard size, and they usually cost a little bit more because the person after whom they're named is just really, really cool. It's certainly not a bad idea to check out a pair named after a drum hero of yours, but don't expect to magically sound as good as your hero by merely using his sticks. I know you're smarter than that, and I don't even know you. However, if I ever come out with my own model of sticks, then you'll know that they are magical. You might also see sticks that are not named after someone, but also are not standard sizes. These are usually sizes that fall in between the standard sizes. If you want to check these out, it's important to ask "Oh, these are like 5As but a quarter-inch longer", or "These are in between a 5A and a 5B". If you've tried a standard size and it never feels quite right, some of these in between sizes are worth checking out. **End Summary** Topics: drum]]> drum set]]> drumset]]> drums]]> drummers]]> drum sets]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> By Ronald Black who spend over 30 years on stage and is sharing his opinion about big drum sets on his drum set blog over at Xdrumset.