9 Key Rudiments to Master the Drum Set

Welcome to my personal favorites,- as far as the rudiments that have the most use on a set of
drums. Most of these are from the official 40 rudiments list. But some are personal adaptations and
variations of them. I really believe it is best for every drummer to pick their 5-0 favorite rudiments and
then !W" #$%M, by &ay of practicin' them &ith all kinds of variations throu'h the years. #hese
ones here continue to be my favorite ones for 'ettin' the (ob done.
DONT EVEN THINK about doing these with just your hands alone. The whole idea is that after
mastering them with your hands !no matter how long it may ta"e # then begin to ma"e substitutions with
the feet. !E$% e&ery time it says ' hand you (an ma"e it a ' or ) *oot instead#. Then substitute the other
foot et(. 'emember that these are for drum set%so dont be afraid to de&elo+ all your limbs e,ually.
-hene&er you find that one way is the most diffi(ult%%..s+end e$tra time on that until it be(omes your
strong +oint. .(ott
1. 6 STROKE ROLL.continuous triplets sticking RLLRRL, RLLRRL (and the
reverse) etc. with slight accents on the single notes.
Variation #1 continuous triplets with RRL, RRL etc. useful for going around the
drums and cymbals with triplets leading with your right hand
Variation #2 .continuous triplets with sticking of RLL, RLL
For extra funplay the 6 stroke roll in continuous triplets and whenever you want, sneak in a variation
! or " to change the sticking around to help you get around different drums. #r insert $ust half a variation
(% notes in total) of ! or " followed immediately with the 6 stroke roll. &his will shift this basic
rudiment to start on the 'offbeat( (the 'ands( of each beat) and it will continue to be that way )*&+,
another half variation is inserted. &hese six stroke rolls can sound very cool when placed starting on an
upbeat instead of the usual downbeat.

2. !R!DD"DLE D"DDLES.RLRRLL, RLRRLL#
-lay on snare and put the first note of each group of six on any cymbal (together with bass drum) thus
making your right hand a 'traveling( hand.
$. S"%&LE STOKE ROLL
.on/t get me started00 For beginners you can play sixteenth notes around drums leading with the same hand
every time you change drums. &hen as you get more advanced, go to groups of five. (1very time you change
drums you will start with a different hand). &hen groups of six. (now you won/t change hands every time you
change drums). &hen mix and matchgo around with 6/s s and every once in a while stick in a five etc. for
only for one beat, then go back to the 6/s etc. &ry all the numbers out switching to a different number
whenever you feel like it, or need to end up on a different hand. &hen, over time, replace one of the hands with
the bass drum and let your mind expand greatly.
'. ()*s Ro+, -i..#2imple math 3 +t/s two strokes on the hands and one on the bass drum. -ractice this with
it/s three forms. &he basic one listed above will put the bass drum as note % in the group of three notes.
4lso practice the ones with the bass drum as note " (middle position) and as note ! (first position).
/these are sho0n on the 19 Ki..er Rudiments2 art T0o3
4. -.ams#
+n every way, shape or form when you least expect 5em.
6. Sin5.e aradidd.es# RLRR, LRLL
For me, the biggest reason to use paradiddles on the set is the fact that they allow one be able to switch drums
with one hand whenever the other hand is playing the double notes. + like this one because when played on the
snare, the first note of each four hits will be played with alternating hands, that can 'travel( around the drum
set. + also recommend .ave 6eckl/s '7ack to 7asics( .8. where he demonstrates lots of paradiddles for the
set.
&he version of the inverted paradiddle that + demonstrate on the video 'for real fast speeds( is done like this9
:,,: ,:,, with the : hands being played by the bass drum and the left hand on the snare. &his still
leaves the right hand free to play half notes or ;uarters on the cymbal.
(. The 1Da6e2 -i..#
+t/s like the <=/s rock fill but it/s a group of four notes instead of three, with the first three notes done by the
hands (on any drum) and the last one on the bass. -ractice this one with all the inversions of the bass drum
(bass on !st note, bass on "nd note, bass on %rd note,) in addition to the regular way with the bass drum being
the last note.. >uess you can tell l + like .ave 6eckl?
7. 4 Stro,e Ro..#
8ery helpful for putting high speed flourishes on the hi hat and putting the 'single( note on a different drum or
bass drum.
9. Dou8.es#
+deally practice doubles so that the second stroke (the rebound) is as loud or louder than the first. &hen they
will sound strong around the drums. (8irgil .onati is such an expert at this, both in doubles with his hands, and
doubles with his " bass pedals). 7e able to switch between doubles and singles for any length of time without
anyone being able to hear the difference. 7uddy :ich and ,ouie 7ellson were masters at this.
)n !ffer for you*
+ood luck &ith all of these. Masterin' (ust a fe& of these &ith your o&n personal variations
can chan'e one,s drummin' forever in a bi' &ay. -hould you &ish further instruction over the
net by &ay of private video and other forms then shoot me an email at s+ott9s+otta6ery.+om
#he price is .5 for a personal lesson over the net. /et me kno& the areas that you &ould like
to develop and I &ill be happy to 'et back to you &ith some more specific details of &hat I no&
have available over the net..
$appy 0rummin'***-cott
1)2)0I/%- %3#2)-
ll r l r ll r l r
l rr l r l rr l r
l r ll r l r ll r
l r l rr l r l rr
ll rr l r ll rr l r
l rr ll r l rr ll r
l r ll rr l r ll rr
ll r l rr ll r l rr
ll rr ll r ll rr ll r
ll rr l rr l rr l rr
ll r ll rr ll r ll rr
l rr ll rr l rr ll rr
ll rr ll rr ll rr ll rr