(Good) Practice Makes Perfect

by Jarrod Wood

Probably one of the most frustrating aspects to Scottish drumming is not knowing the best way to practice. I can remember those long hours of tedious practice and feeling the overwhelming urge to throw my sticks across the room as I was learning to use my thumb and fingers. But after a short time, I realized that I needed to reevaluate my practice methods in order to achieve success faster.

After 15 years of playing drums and observing dozens of other drummers, I have noticed that not all practice methods are helpful towards advancing skill level in drumming. I began teaching drummers 7 years ago and I have noticed 10 common problems that many drummers have when it comes to practicing. These problems, ultimately, slow down the learning process.

1. Infrequent practice sessions. There are some people out there; believe it or not, who believe that band practice is when they are supposed to practice their drumming. Wrong! Successful individuals do their practicing at home. When they go to band practice, they are going to band rehearsal. The time to practice is EVERYDAY AT HOME. The best time to practice is in the evening. Most people are done with work, or school, or whatever they have to do for the day. Sit down in front of the practice pad and start working. I think that it is also beneficial for a drummer to put in a really hard practice session a couple of time a week. After a good hard session of really working the hands, you might consider taking a day off to recover, but you must earn it.

2. Inadequate practice sessions. I have seen it all too often when a drummer will walk through the house and look at the sticks and pad and then keep on walking. Some people will even pick up the sticks and play a couple of taps on the pad only to set the sticks down and go turn on the TV. I often practice rudiments while watching television to make the best use of my free time. A good practice session, however, needs to be at least 30 consecutive minutes of work. You have to devote the time in order to succeed.

3. Lack of a specific practice focus. It is very common for people to practice many things when they sit down at the pad. A good solution is to focus on 2 rudiments per session and work extremely hard on those 2 rudiments that you pick. Most often, a drummer will play every rudiment that they know only one time and then they are done. It is hard to get better at something if you only practice it one time per session. It is far better to play a rudiment from slow, to fast, and then back to slow again. That would be one repetition. Then complete that repetition 10 to 20 times per rudiment. Another thing to consider is to play the rudiments at various volumes. Playing from soft to loud, or from loud to soft also adds another element to learning the rudiment. If you have music to work on, you must devote more time in addition to the rudiment work in order to learn the music.

4. Weakness of work ethic. A student has to realize that if they want to get better at drumming, they have practice diligently. Playing a musical instrument requires work ethic and determination. During each practice session, the brain creates new and faster pathways in order to tell the hands what to do, so practicing often helps with that development. This is often referred to as "muscle memory."  Muscle memory is key for learning to play faster and more accurately. By repeating a rudiment or phrase over and over, the muscles retain the pattern and "memorize" it for future playing purposes. The more you play the rudiment or phrase, the quicker the pattern is recalled and you can then play the patterns faster.

5. Inattention to detail. It is very common for drummers to play something and say to themselves “that was really good.” But there is always room for improvement and we need to take the time and really look at what we are playing from an observational standpoint. A good way to do that is to record your playing so you can listen to what you really sound like when you are playing. The key is that you must not marvel in how good you sound on a recording, but you must listen to it critically and determine where you need to improve your technique, execution or expression. If you have a private teacher, have your teacher listen to your recording and make an evaluation for you and come up with some goals for improvement from one session to the next.

6. Tightness in the hands. While practicing, the muscles in the arms tend to get tighter and that tightness can impede improving your speed of playing. The tightness must be kept in check and that brings me to my next point, which is proper stretching. Proper stretching is pivotal when it comes to a good relaxed sound and playing with speed. The best way to stretch the hands and arms is different for each person, but a student should stretch several times during each practice session to maintain good flexibility and keep from gripping the sticks too hard. Gripping the sticks too hard causes tension in the hands and the arms. Allowing this tension to continue is one of the most common reasons for not being able to play anything with speed. Loose and relaxed playing is what you want to aim for and you must avoid tension in the arms and hands as much as possible.

7. On occasion, use a mirror while practicing. The use of a mirror while practicing can give you a first hand look as to whether or not your technique looks right visually. I'm not saying to use a mirror every time your practice, but try using one once in a while to see if your technique looks balanced. For instance, if you are playing a single stroke roll, and your right stick is bouncing higher than your left stick, then you will notice it in the mirror. This will also help you check your posture and general positioning such that you are playing as ergonomically as possible. Sometimes something that feels comfortable may actually be hurting you, so be mindful of this type of thing and use the mirror as a chance to double-check each element of the physical application of drumming.

8. Develop a regimen. Every practice should have the same format, but not necessarily the same content. I try to start every practice session the same way. First, I start with a basic rudiment. I play it for a while, until my forearms start to feel the proverbial burn, then I stretch my hands. There are various ways to stretch the hands, feel free to use which ever method you feel comfortable with. Then I go back to playing the rudiment. I pick one other rudiment to work on, and then play it until again until I am starting to feel the tension in my forearms. I then stretch again. After this I play any scores that I feel need work. Usually, it is best to start with band competition scores and then move to solo scores. Lastly, work on any performance sets that the band might play. You don't have to work on all of that in the same practice session, I would pick one of them and work on it, and leave the other tunes for other practice sessions. Then I finally earn myself a cool down. Cool down should consist of something that you enjoy playing, or feel you are the best at. Ending a practice session with something you are confident about helps keep the desire to practice again.

9. Using poor equipment for practice. All too often, I see unbalanced and poorly pitched sticks that people use for practice. When a stick strikes a surface, it makes a vibration noise that emits from the wood. The sounds from each of the sticks must be as high of a pitch as possible and must sound the same as the other. Remember, the higher the pitch coming from the sticks, the higher the pitch coming from the drum. Also, using a good pair of balanced and straight sticks will help prevent any possible injuries such as tendonitis or carpal tunnel syndrome. Likewise, using a drum pad that is either too hard or too soft can also cause injuries. Remember to buy a practice pad that you feel closely mimics the response of a drum head but is perhaps slightly more forgiving. When deciding to buy a practice pad, try to look for something that is neither too hard nor too soft and has a moderate response.

10. Lack of proper instruction. When a person receives poor instruction, and then they practice frequently, people get really good at playing really incorrectly. It is essential that a person receive instruction from a reputable teacher who will teach the proper expression of this unique style. The worst kind of instructor is one with good intentions but bad information. Teachers, please make sure that you are certain of what you are teaching your students. Good instructors are not hard to find. You can find a list of reputable instructors at any Scottish drumming workshop such as the Winter Storm workshop in Kansas City, or any other clinic out there. There is also a list of capable instructors on this website with whom you can arrange quality lessons in your area.

Good luck! And remember, only good practice makes perfect!

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